Frances Bassett Washington Lear
(1767-1796)
BIRTH
December 19, 1767
PLACE
New Kent County, Virginia
NAME
Frances Bassett
DEATH
March 25, 1796
PLACE
Virginia
FAMILY
BROTHER
John Dandridge Jr.
(1700-1756)
HUSBAND
Tobias Lear
(1762-1816)
CHILDREN
Burwell Bassett Sr.
(1734-1793)
CHILDREN
Anna Maria Dandridge Bassett
(1739-1777)
HUSBAND
Tobias Lear
(1762-1816)
HOMES
NICKNAMES
Fanny
RELIGIOUS VIEWS
NOT YET RESEARCHED
NOT YET RESEARCHED
MEMBERSHIPS
AWARDS
Frances “Fanny” Bassett Washington Lear (1767–1796) was Martha Washington’s niece and a close correspondent. She lived at Mount Vernon and married George Augustine Washington in 1785. While he managed the estate, their household remained closely tied to the Washingtons. After his death in 1793, Fanny dealt with her children’s care and inheritance. She married Washington’s secretary Tobias Lear in 1795 and died the following year, leaving letters that illuminate family life.
EARLY LIFE
Frances Bassett Lear was born on Dec 19, 1767 in New Kent County, Virginia. The surviving biographical summary provides only limited evidence about childhood, schooling, and the daily circumstances of the household, so those details are not reconstructed here without documentation. What can be stated securely is that this person belonged to the interconnected family world from which HistoryGPS traces participants, relatives, and later descendants of the Revolutionary generation.
Eltham Marker
1860 Eltham Rd, West Point, VA
The old house burned in 1875, and the marker's account identifies a surviving foundation. The present extent and condition of those remains, their relationship to the marker, and current stewardship require confirmation.
MARKER
Ruins
No distinct public profession or office for Frances Bassett Lear is established by the source summary used for this entry. The surviving record is primarily genealogical and documents family identity rather than an independent public career. Frances Bassett Lear died on Mar 25, 1796 in Virginia. Additional claims about employment, public service, or accomplishments have been omitted where the consulted source did not support them.
CAREER
DEATH
Frances Bassett Lear's death is attributed to reported tuberculosis. Frances “Fanny” Bassett Washington Lear was Martha Washington’s niece and a close correspondent. While he managed the estate, their household remained closely tied to the Washingtons. After his death in 1793, Fanny dealt with her children’s care and inheritance. She married Washington’s secretary Tobias Lear in 1795 and died the following year, leaving letters that illuminate family life. Frances Bassett Lear died on Mar 25, 1796 in Virginia. The available biographical account does not describe a continuous final medical course. It gives no dependable sequence of treatment and last symptoms from which to reconstruct a more detailed bedside narrative.
George Washington's Mount Vernon
3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Hwy, Mount Vernon, VA 22121
GRAVE
MUSEUM
George Washington's Mount Vernon
3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Hwy, Mount Vernon, VA 22121
MARKER
Eltham Marker
1860 Eltham Rd, West Point, VA
POPULAR BIOGRAPHIES
Frances “Fanny” Bassett Washington Lear, Martha Washington’s niece and wife of George Augustine Washington and later Tobias Lear. Editorial selections prioritize biographical coverage; five standalone biographies were not established. Family and collective biographies, primary writings, references and related studies are labelled individually. Multi-volume works and series are counted as one selection.
1. The Checkered Career of Tobias Lear — Ray Brighton. [Related biography of her husband] Find on Amazon
2. Martha Washington: An American Life — Patricia Brady. [Related family biography] Find on Amazon
3. Martha Washington: First Lady of Liberty — Helen Bryan. [Related family biography] Find on Amazon
4. The Washingtons: A Family History, Volume 1: Seven Generations of the Presidential Branch — Justin Glenn. [Family biographical reference] Find on Amazon
5. The Papers of George Washington: Presidential Series — Dorothy Twohig (editor). [Related primary family correspondence; series counted once] Find on Amazon
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