英语听力：自然百科 美国总统华盛顿的往事

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Both childhood stories have found their way into the legend of George Washington, commander-in-chief of the Continental¹ Army and ultimately, America's first president. 

But the reality of Washington's early life may be equal to the myth. 

He was one of five children who grew up on a farm in Northern Virginia and went on to greatness. And now archaeologists working near Fredericksburg with support from the National Geography Society have uncovered the exact site of that very farm. 

Washington's father Augustine moved his family to Ferry Farm in 1738 when young George was 6 years old. The future president lived here until he was in his twenties. Archaeologists always knew this was the right area, but only when the team uncovered some well-crafted cellars, did they realize they had found the actual foundation of Washington's boyhood home. 

"What we've uncovered is the Washington landscape as it stood in the 1740s to 1770s, but also on that landscape are other outbuildings, including a kitchen, a slave quarter." The site is incredibly rich in history, and not just Washington's.

"It's a tricky², it's a tricky site. It's a site that had continuous occupancy from about 1700 to the early 1990s, and not in the same buildings." 

There are trenches³ here built during the Civil War by Union troops fighting to capture rebel-held Fredericksburg. The team has already brought up thousands of artifacts, but one potentially special find deserves notice — a clay pipe with Masonic symbols. 

"It is that George Washington was a Mason, actually he became a Mason when he was living in Fredericksburg. Without being able to say for sure, it's tempting⁴ to wonder if this is something that actually belonged to George." 

Each piece is cleaned, cataloged and stored. It's all part of the team's ultimate goal, to recreate what was until recently believed to be lost. 

"In the long run, where we're sitting will turn once again into, into the home of Augustine Washington, uh, with this landscape in place, uh, with animals and crops growing and be open to the public to come in and sort of experience it as a, as an 18th century farm." 

And yes, visitors will have a chance to see if they too can hurl⁵ a rock across the Rappahannock as Washington supposedly did. 

Sponsored by National Geographic⁶ Mission Programs, taking science and exploration into the new millennium⁷.

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