Volume Three of the Confederation Series of The Papers of George Washington spans the year between May 1785 and April 1786, described by Washington's biographer Douglas Southall Freeman as a year of "drought and distraction." Washington spent most of these months at Mount Vernon, continuing to wrestle with the problems of restoring the plantation and his personal fortune after years of neglect while serving as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army — efforts hampered by a long summer drought. During these months Washington was distracted by national affairs, particularly the impotence of the Confederation government, and by a constant stream of visitors. His principal concerns, however, were close to home.