[Footnote 3: George William Fairfax, eldest son of the Hon. William Fairfax, of "Belvoir," Va., was born in Nassau, New Providence, West Indies, in 1724. His father having been appointed to the custom house in Salem, Massachusetts, he was taken to that town and resided there until 1734, about which time his father accepted the agency of Lord Fairfax's lands in Virginia, and removed to that province. For a time he resided in Westmoreland county, Va., but after a couple of years he settled upon and developed the "Belvoir" estate on the Potomac river. George William Fairfax was educated in England, and coming to his majority settled at "Belvoir," and married Sarah, daughter of Col. Wilson Cary, of Hampton, Va., who some writers, on rather apocryphal testimony, endeavor to show was an object of Washington's ardent devotion when a mere youth. The same compliment has also been claimed for her sister Mary, who married Edward Ambler, and for other belles of that period in Virginia, as well as in some of the other colonies. George W. Fairfax, after his marriage, resided part of the time at "Belvoir," and part at "Greenway Court," as agent of Lord Fairfax, in the vicinity of which he owned and cultivated lands. On his father's death in 1757 he inherited "Belvoir," where he continued to reside until the summer of 1773, when, accompanied by his wife, he went to England to look after some property he had inherited there. The proprietors of "Belvoir" and "Mount Vernon" and their families were always on the most friendly terms, as the letters extant of each attest, and Washington's diaries fully confirm. Mr. Fairfax favored the early protests by the colonies and petitions to the king in the interests of the colonies, but opposed measures looking to forcible resistance. Washington consented to act as his agent while he was absent, presuming his stay in England would be of short duration. But a complication of matters detained him abroad so that he instructed his agent to sell off his stock at "Belvoir" and lease the property. A sale was accordingly held on the estate in August, 1774, which continued two days. A second and further sale was held in December the same year. The property was leased in 1774 for seven years, but shortly after this the mansion house was burned down and never rebuilt. During the Revolutionary war some of Mr. Fairfax's property in Fairfax county was escheated to the state. His loss of income from America led him to limit his expense, he therefore removed from Yorkshire to Bath and lived in a modest way, dividing generously, from his limited means, with the American prisoners of war held in England. He had no children. A friendly correspondence was kept up between him and Washington to the close of his life. He was urged to return to America, but his mansion at "Belvoir" having been destroyed by fire he kept putting it off and never returned. He left "Belvoir" and some other landed property to Ferdinand, son of his half-brother, Rev.