• Donald Trump is now the wealthiest person to ever become president.
• Before him, George Washington was considered the richest president in history.
• He had an estimated net worth of $525 million, in today’s dollars.
Donald Trump is the wealthiest president in history.
Forbes estimates his net worth is $3.1 billion, although he’s previously claimed to be worth much more than that.
And, since the president never released his tax returns, his financial situation is still somewhat unclear.
Still, it appears that he’s the first ever billionaire to ascend to the White House.
Until now, the wealthiest president in US history also happened to be the first: George Washington.
The soldier, farmer, brewer, entrepreneur, and statesman is thought to have had an estimated net worth of $525 million in today's dollars. He not only earned more than other presidents - his salary was twice the total US budget in 1789, 24/7 Wall Street reports - but he owned over 50,000 acres of land.
Read on to learn more about the finances of the first US president:
This is an updated version of a post by Kathleen Elkins.
Washington was born at Pope's Creek in Westmoreland County, Virginia, in 1732. He was the oldest of Augustine Washington and Mary Ball's six children and also had three half-siblings. When Washington was 11 years old, Augustine died, leaving the future founding father with a great deal of responsibility managing the family's plantation.
Source: mountvernon.org
Not much else is known about his childhood. His formal education ended around age 15. In 1749, he received his surveying license from the College of William and Mary before getting involved in the military.
Sources: mountvernon.org
In 1759 he married Martha Dandridge Custis, a young widow with two children and a great deal of wealth. When Washington was elected president — first in 1789 and again in 1792 — his family didn't live in the White House. It wasn't completed until after his death, and he's the only president never to have stayed there.
Source: mountvernon.org
When Washington inherited Mount Vernon in 1761, it was a one-and-a-half-story farmhouse his father had built. Over the next several years, he grew it from a 2,000-acre property to an 8,000-acre property with five farms and a 21-room mansion.
Source: Business Insider
He oversaw many landscape improvements to the property, grew a variety of crops, and maintained fruit orchards at Mount Vernon. In addition to being aesthetically pleasing, his gardens were practical and provided food for the mansion.
Source: Business Insider
Here's a glimpse inside the Mount Vernon kitchen and storeroom.
Though Washington mentioned in his own accounts that he couldn't play an instrument, he created a music and family room where his stepchildren and grandchildren could learn the spinet and violin.
Source: Business Insider
He couldn't play any instruments ... but he owned the dance floor. First-hand accounts say Washington was an excellent dancer and always the center of attention at parties and balls.
Source: mountvernon.org
He was also a tippler — and an experimental brewer. In the pages of a military notebook he kept, he left a recipe (pictured) for 'small beer,' a porter made with molasses.
Source: Business Insider
Washington wasn't just a beer lover. He liked his whiskey, too, and ran a successful distillery out of Mount Vernon.
Source: mountvernon.org
His distillery, which was reconstructed in 2006, was the biggest and most profitable whiskey distillery in America at the time. The last year of his life, it produced nearly 11,000 gallons of spirit.
Source: mountvernon.org
He and Martha also had an incredibly potent eggnog recipe.
Source: Business Insider
When Washington wasn't hosting parties or doing the reel, he could often be found studying religion. He was quietly religious, and set aside time to pray and read the Bible every day.
Source: mountvernon.org
He was also a dog lover, and owned a handful of French hounds with awesome names like Sweetlips and Madame Moose.
Source: mountvernon.org
Washington died at age 67 in 1799, but his legacy lives on. His stoic face is on the quarter and the dollar bill and on hundreds of schools and towns ... and the capital city of the US.
Source: mountvernon.org
