I was chewing the fat with an older gentleman who came into my workplace and we got on the topic of the government. I mentioned that I read an article about the US no longer being a Democracy but instead is an Oligarchy. He agreed and said that the Oligarchy goes all the way back to the Founding Fathers; and how Washington, Edison, Franklin, and the others, chose the best plots of land in the New World and divided it up between them. I was wondering if you guys had any sources or insights to back this up.
By the time that Washington, Edison (not usually considered a "founding father") and Franklin were old enough to be considered 'Founding fathers", colonists had been living in America for 150 years (250 years in the case of Edison), and all the best land in settled areas was already owned by people.
It was not possible to "choose" the best plots of land and just acquire them at this time.
Neither Edison nor Franklin owned any significant amount of land. Washington was a large landowner. He inherited his estate at Mt. Vernon, and bought surrounding parcels to eventually make an estate of 7,000 acres. Washington also speculated in unsettled Western land, buying land and being granted land for service in the Virginia Militia. By his death, Washington had 52,000 acres of Western lands (mostly unsettled and not the most valuable land in America at the time).
Still, Washington was very wealthy. At his death, his estate is valued at circa $780,000, which includes the Western lands which he valued himself at $530,000 ($10 per acre), and an estimate of the value of Mt. Vernon and other assets. This value does not include the value of his 123 slaves, which were freed soon after his death in accordance with his will.
Of course, $780,000 was worth much more then than it is today.
Source:
http://www.history.org/Foundation/journal/feature2.cfm#Summer07