Harrison Howell Dodge (March 31, 1852 - May 20, 1937) was the third resident superintendent of

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

's estate at

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

. During his 52 years overseeing the estate, he doubled the facility's acreage, improved the grounds, and added many historic artifacts to the collections there.

Early and family life

Dodge was born on March 31, 1852, in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Being underage during the American Civil War, he assisted on his uncle's farm in Maryland during the conflict. Dodge graduated from

Columbian College The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a private federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by the United States Congress and is the first un ...

, which was later renamed

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

Banking and clerical careers

After graduating from college, Dodge worked in the

Wall Street Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...

banking house of

Jay Cooke & company Jay Cooke & Company was a U.S. bank that operated from 1861 to 1873. Headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with branches in New York City and Washington, D.C., the bank helped underwrite the American Civil War, Union Civil War effort. It ...

, until that firm collapsed during the

Panic of 1873 The Panic of 1873 was a financial crisis that triggered an economic depression in Europe and North America that lasted from 1873 to 1877 or 1879 in France and in Britain. In Britain, the Panic started two decades of stagnation known as the "L ...

. He returned to Washington, D.C., where he spent 1874 indexing the ''

Congressional Record The ''Congressional Record'' is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress, published by the United States Government Publishing Office and issued when Congress is in session. The Congressional Record Ind ...

''. He worked from 1874 to 1877 with commissioners of a

sinking fund A sinking fund is a fund established by an economic entity by setting aside revenue over a period of time to fund a future capital expense, or repayment of a long-term debt. In North America and elsewhere where it is common for government entiti ...

before accepting a position at Riggs & Co. (1877-1885). There, the longtime clerk gained a reputation for meticulous accounts, that helped him gain the position which Dodge held for the next five decades.

Superintendent

In 1885, the regents of

The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association of the Union (MVLA) is a non-profit organization that preserves and maintains the Mount Vernon estate originally owned by the family of George Washington. The association was founded in 1853 by Ann Pamela Cu ...

(MVLA) appointed Dodge as the successor of John McHenry Hollingsworth, who had succeeded MVLA founder

Ann Pamela Cunningham Ann Pamela Cunningham (August 15, 1816 – May 1, 1875) was an American preservationist who founded The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association in 1853 and served for years as its first regent. She gained participation by women leaders from all 30 states ...

in 1872. The nationwide depression in 1882-1883 caused tourism to drop. The non-resident Hollingsworth's means of addressing the revenue drop alienated first the staff (which also had to deal with vandalism and natural deterioration of the wet historic site) and then the MVLA regents. However, his departure proved messier than Cunningham's exit. Dodge also succeeded Hollingsworth as

postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

for the Mount Vernon post office.

United States President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed For ...

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, serving from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. He was the first U.S. president to serve nonconsecutive terms and the first Hist ...

appointed Dodge to the latter position, and successive Presidents reappointed him until his death. While managing Mount Vernon, in addition to his primary duties of handling visitors to the historic site and managing the farm, Dodge reviewed George Washington's writings about the estate. Dodge also visited other Colonial-era gardens and traveled to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

to see gardens there dating from the

Georgian period The Georgian era was a period in British history from 1714 to , named after the Hanoverian kings George I, George II, George III and George IV. The definition of the Georgian era is also often extended to include the relatively short reign ...

. Using this knowledge, Dodge oversaw the restoration of the site and put in place a number of improvements that Washington had planned but never implemented. This restoration work was completed from 1932 to 1935 by Charles Wilson Killam. Dodge and then-assistant superintendent

Charles Wall Charles Cecil Wall (June 21, 1903 – May 1, 1995) was an American self-taught historian and preservationist, who spent nearly 40 years as resident director of George Washington's estate at Mount Vernon on the banks of the Potomac River, wher ...

, who had been hired in 1929, rotated turns sleeping as guards in the manor house. Dodge's 1932 book ''Mount Vernon: Its Owner and Its Story'', with an introduction by

Owen Wister Owen Wister (July 14, 1860 – July 21, 1938) was an American writer. His novel ''The Virginian (novel), The Virginian'', published in 1902, helped create the cowboy as a folk hero in the United States and built Wister's reputation as the " ...

, told many stories about Washington and his home, including details of a mechanical roasting spit that Washington had designed and of finding a pocketknife that had belonged to Washington in his youth. The knife was said to have played a role at

Valley Forge Valley Forge was the winter encampment of the Continental Army, under the command of George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. The Valley Forge encampment lasted six months, from December 19, 1777, to June 19, 1778. It was the t ...

in convincing the general to continue as leader of the

Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies representing the Thirteen Colonies and later the United States during the American Revolutionary War. It was formed on June 14, 1775, by a resolution passed by the Second Continental Co ...

in one of its darkest days. George Washington University recognized Harrison Howell Dodge in 1931 with an honorary

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

degree.Staff
"COL. HARRISON DODGE, MT. VERNON CUSTODIAN; Superintendent of Washington's Home Since 1885--Made Many Improvements"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', May 21, 1937. Accessed July 24, 2010.

Death and legacy

Dodge died at age 85 on May 20, 1937, at Garfield Hospital in Washington, D.C. He was survived by his wife, the former Elizabeth Knowlton, and two of his four daughters. He was succeeded as resident superintendent in 1937 by

, who continued many of the improvements to the grounds and buildings that Dodge had initiated.Staff
"New Head of Mount Vernon Well Prepared for New Job"
, ''

The Christian Science Monitor ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (''CSM''), commonly known as ''The Monitor'', is a nonprofit news organization that publishes daily articles both in Electronic publishing, electronic format and a weekly print edition. It was founded in 1908 ...

'', September 25, 1937. Accessed July 24, 2010. He is buried in the cemetery of

Pohick Church Pohick Church, previously known as Pohick Episcopal Church, is an Episcopal Church in the United States of America, Episcopal church in the community of Lorton, Virginia, Lorton in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Often called the "Moth ...

, at which he served for many years as

vestryman A vestryman is a member of his local church's vestry, or leading body.Anstice, Henry (1914). ''What Every Warden and Vestryman Should Know.'' Church literature press He is not a member of the clergy.Potter, Henry Codman (1890). ''The Offices of W ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dodge, Harrison Howell 1852 births 1937 deaths Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni People from Washington, D.C. Mount Vernon American bankers Burials at Pohick Church Cemetery