George Gordon was a Scottish merchant and wealthy landowner who owned the 300 acres (1.2 km²) Gordon's Rock Creek Plantation on land that eventually became part of Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

  In the 1740s, Gordon built an inspection house for tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

 on the plantation.

Knave's Disappointment, part of his landholdings, was surveyed in 1752 as a possible site for George Town

Georgetown, Washington, D.C.

Georgetown is a neighborhood located in northwest Washington, D.C., situated along the Potomac River. Founded in 1751, the port of Georgetown predated the establishment of the federal district and the City of Washington by 40 years...

 (now Georgetown). Maryland offered Gordon two lots in the town, along with the "price of condemnation" (remuneration). Gordon accepted two lots (number 48 and 52). Maryland paid a total of 280 pounds to acquire the land from Gordon, along with land owned by George Beall

George Beall

George Beall was a wealthy landowner in Maryland and Georgetown in what is now Washington, D.C..Beall's Levels and Rock of Dunbarton, part of his landholdings, were surveyed in 1752 as a possible site for George Town . Maryland offered Beall two lots in the town, along with the "price of...

.