1. Washington in the Wilderness Coloring Sheet
On October 31, 1753, Major George Washington and his guide, Christopher Gist, set out
from Williamsburg to the nearest French outpost, at Fort Le Boeuf, in Waterford,
Pennsylvania. Washington carried Virginia Governor Dinwiddie's warning to the
French army, which had invaded the Allegheny River Valley.
On the return trip, progress on horseback was so slow that Washington and Gist struck
out on foot by the most direct route home. The painting shows them poling their hastily
constructed log raft across the Allegheny River on December 29, 1753. Their ability to
light a camp fire on Herr's Island saved them from disaster after Washington fell into
icy river waters.
They arrived back in Williamsburg on January 16, carrying back to Dinwiddie the
French commander's refusal to heed the ultimatum.