Monticello
Monticello | |
---|---|
Location | Albemarle County, Virginia near Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S. |
Coordinates | 38°00′37.1″N 78°27′08.4″W / 38.010306°N 78.452333°W |
Built | 1772 |
Architect | Thomas Jefferson |
Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical, Palladian |
Governing body | The Thomas Jefferson Foundation (TJF) |
Official name | Monticello and the University of Virginia in Charlottesville |
Type | Cultural |
Criteria | i, iv, vi |
Designated | 1987 (11th session) |
Reference no. | 442 |
Region | Europe and North America |
Designated | October 15, 1966[1] |
Reference no. | 66000826 |
Designated | December 19, 1960[2] |
Designated | September 9, 1969[3] |
Reference no. | 002-0050 |
Monticello (
Jefferson designed the main house using neoclassical design principles pioneered by Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio and reworking the design through much of his presidency to include design elements popular in late 18th-century Europe and integrating numerous ideas of his own. Situated on the summit of an 850 ft-high (260 m) peak in the Southwest Mountains south of the Rivanna Gap, the name Monticello derives from Italian meaning "little mountain". Along a prominent lane adjacent to the house, Mulberry Row, the plantation came to include numerous outbuildings for specialized functions, e.g., a nailery; quarters for slaves who worked in the home; gardens for flowers, produce, and Jefferson's experiments in plant breeding—along with tobacco fields and mixed crops. Cabins for slaves who worked in the fields were farther from the mansion.[4]
At Jefferson's direction, he was buried on the grounds, in an area now designated as the Monticello Cemetery. The cemetery is owned by the
Design and building
Jefferson's home was built to serve as a
After his wife's death in 1782, Jefferson left Monticello in 1784 to serve as Minister of the United States to France. During his several years in Europe, he had an opportunity to see some of the classical buildings with which he had become acquainted from his reading, as well as to discover the "modern" trends in French architecture that were then fashionable in Paris. His decision to remodel his own home may date from this period. In 1794, following his tenure as the first U.S. Secretary of State (1790–1793), Jefferson began rebuilding his house based on the ideas he had acquired in Europe. The remodeling continued throughout most of his presidency (1801–1809).[8] Although generally completed by 1809, Jefferson continued work on Monticello until his death in 1826.
Jefferson added a center hallway and a parallel set of rooms to the structure, more than doubling its area. He removed the second full-height story from the original house and replaced it with a
Summertime temperatures are high in the region, with indoor temperatures of around 100 °F (38 °C). Jefferson himself is known to have been interested in Roman and Renaissance texts about ancient temperature-control techniques such as ground-cooled air and heated floors.[10] Monticello's large central hall and aligned windows were designed to allow a cooling air-current to pass through the house, and the octagonal cupola draws hot air up and out.[11] In the late twentieth century, moderate air conditioning, designed to avoid the harm to the house and its contents that would be caused by major modifications and large temperature differentials, was installed in the house, a tourist attraction.[12]
Before Jefferson's death, Monticello had begun to show signs of disrepair. The attention Jefferson's university project in Charlottesville demanded, and family problems, diverted his focus. The most important reason for the mansion's deterioration was his accumulating debts. In the last few years of Jefferson's life, much went without repair in Monticello. A witness, Samuel Whitcomb Jr., who visited Jefferson in 1824, thought it run down. He said, "His house is rather old and going to decay; appearances about his yard and hill are rather slovenly. It commands an extensive prospect but it being a misty cloudy day, I could see but little of the surrounding scenery."[13]
Preservation
After Jefferson died on July 4, 1826, his only official surviving daughter,
Levy's heirs argued over his estate, but their lawsuits were settled in 1879, when Uriah Levy's nephew,
In 1923, a private non-profit organization, the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, purchased the house from Jefferson Levy for $500,000 (~$6.96 million in 2023) with funds raised by Theodore Fred Kuper and others. They managed additional restoration under architects including Fiske Kimball and Milton L. Grigg.[16] Since that time, other restoration has been performed at Monticello.[17]
The Jefferson Foundation operates Monticello and its grounds as a
Monticello is a
Among Jefferson's other designs are Poplar Forest, his private retreat near Lynchburg (which he intended for his daughter Maria, who died at age 25), the "academic village" of the University of Virginia, and the Virginia State Capitol in Richmond.[20][21]
Decoration and furnishings
Much of Monticello's interior decoration reflects the personal ideas and ideals of Jefferson.[22]
The original main entrance is through the portico on the east front. The ceiling of this portico incorporates a wind plate connected to a weather vane, showing the direction of the wind. A large clock face on the external east-facing wall has only an hour hand since Jefferson thought this was accurate enough for those he enslaved.[23] The clock reflects the time shown on the "Great Clock", designed by Jefferson, in the entrance hall. The entrance hall contains recreations of items collected by Lewis and Clark on the cross-country expedition commissioned by Jefferson to explore the Louisiana Purchase. Jefferson had the floorcloth painted a "true grass green" upon the recommendation of artist Gilbert Stuart, so that Jefferson's "essay in architecture" could invite the spirit of the outdoors into the house.[citation needed]
The south wing includes Jefferson's private suite of rooms. The library holds many books from his third library collection. His first library was burned in an accidental plantation fire, and he 'ceded' (or sold) his second library in 1815 to the United States Congress to replace the books lost in the 1814 burning of Washington during the War of 1812.[24] This second library formed the nucleus of the Library of Congress.[24]
As "larger than life" as Monticello seems, the house has approximately 11,000 sq ft (1,000 m2) of living space.[25] Jefferson considered much furniture to be a waste of space, so the dining room table was erected only at mealtimes, and beds were built into alcoves cut into thick walls that contain storage space. Jefferson's bed opens to two sides: to his cabinet (study) and to his bedroom (dressing room).[26]
In 2017, a room identified as Sally Hemings' quarters at Monticello, adjacent to Jefferson's bedroom, was discovered in an archeological excavation. It will be restored and refurbished. This is part of the Mountaintop Project, which includes restorations in order to give a fuller account of the lives of both enslaved and free families at Monticello.[27][28]
The west front gives the impression of a villa of modest proportions, with a lower floor disguised in the hillside.[citation needed]
The north wing includes two guest bedrooms and the dining room. It has a
Food and cuisine
Monticello is known as the birthplace of macaroni and cheese in the United States. While it is a myth that Monticello is its American birthplace,[9] it is true that it was made popular there. Jefferson's slave and cook James Hemings,[5] brother of Sally Hemings,[7] Jefferson's slave mistress, perfected the dish and made it similar to the way it is prepared today.[4]
Quarters for slaves on Mulberry Row
Jefferson located one set of his quarters for slaves on Mulberry Row, a one-thousand ft (300 m) road of slave, service, and industrial structures. Mulberry Row was situated three hundred ft (100 m) south of Monticello, with the quarters facing the Jefferson mansion. These cabins were occupied by the African slaves who worked in the mansion or in Jefferson's manufacturing ventures, and not by those who labored in the fields. At one point, "Jefferson sketched out plans for a row of substantial, dignified neoclassical houses" for Mulberry Row, for enslaved blacks and white workers, "having in mind an integrated row of residences."[31]
Archaeology of the site shows that the rooms of the cabins were much larger in the 1770s than in the 1790s. Researchers disagree as to whether this indicates that more slaves were crowded into a smaller spaces, or that fewer people lived in the smaller spaces.[32] Earlier houses for slaves had a two-room plan, one family per room, with a single, shared doorway to the outside. But from the 1790s on, all rooms/families had independent doorways. Most of the cabins are free-standing, single-room structures.[32]
By the time of Jefferson's death, some enslaved families had labored and lived for four generations at Monticello.[32] Thomas Jefferson recorded his strategy for child labor in his Farm Book. Until the age of 10, children served as nurses. When the plantation grew tobacco, children were at a good height to remove and kill tobacco worms from the crops.[33] Once he began growing wheat, fewer people were needed to maintain the crops, so Jefferson established manual trades. He stated that children "go into the ground or learn trades". When girls were 16, they began spinning and weaving textiles. Boys made nails from age 10 to 16. In 1794, Jefferson had a dozen boys working at the nailery.[33] While working at the nailery, boys received more food and may have received new clothes if they did a good job. After the nailery, boys became blacksmiths, coopers, carpenters, or house servants.[33]
Six families and their descendants were featured in the exhibit, Slavery at Jefferson's Monticello: Paradox of Liberty (January to October 2012) at the
In February 2012, Monticello opened a new outdoor exhibit on its grounds: Landscape of Slavery: Mulberry Row at Monticello, to convey more about the lives of the hundreds of slaves who lived and worked at the plantation.[35]
Outbuildings and plantation
The main house was augmented by small outlying pavilions to the north and south. A row of outbuildings (dairy, a washhouse, store houses, a small nail factory, a joinery, etc.) and quarters for slaves (
On the slope below Mulberry Row, African slaves maintained an extensive vegetable garden for the main house. In addition to growing flowers for display and producing crops for eating, Jefferson used the gardens of Monticello for experimenting with different species. The house was the center of a plantation of 5,000 acres (2,000 ha) tended by some 150 slaves. There are also two houses included in the whole.
Programming
In recent decades, the TJF has created programs to more fully interpret the lives of slaves at Monticello. Beginning in 1993, researchers interviewed descendants of Monticello slaves for the Getting Word Project, a collection of oral history that provided much new insight into the lives of slaves at Monticello and their descendants. (Among findings were that no slaves adopted Jefferson as a surname, but many had their own surnames as early as the 18th century.)[37]
Some of Mulberry Row has been designated as
In 2003, Monticello welcomed a reunion of descendants of Jefferson from both the Wayles's and Hemings's sides of the family. It was organized by the descendants, who have created a new group called the Monticello Community.[39] Additional and larger reunions have since been held.
Land purchase
In 2004, the trustees of TJF acquired Mountaintop Farm (also known locally as Patterson's or Brown's Mountain), the only property that overlooks Monticello. Jefferson had called the taller mountain Montalto. To prevent development of new homes on the site, the trustees spent $15 million to purchase the property. Jefferson had owned it as part of his plantation, but it was sold off after his death. In the 20th century, its farmhouses were divided into apartments for many University of Virginia students. TJF officials had long considered the property an eyesore, and planned to acquire it when it became available.[40]
Architecture
In 1784, Thomas Jefferson left America to travel and explore the streets of France, which influenced his taste in architecture. He was mainly influenced by the neoclassical style commonly seen in French architecture, which is the reason Monticello is designed in a classical revival style.[41]
Jefferson had also been interested in the
The house is similar in appearance to Chiswick House, a Neoclassical house inspired by the architect Andrea Palladio built in 1726–1729 in London.[43]
Representation in other media
Monticello was featured in
Replicas
In 2014, Prestley Blake constructed a 10,000 sq ft (930 m2) replica of Monticello in Somers, Connecticut. It can be seen on Route 186 also known as Hall Hill Road.[45]
The entrance pavilion of the Naval Academy Jewish Chapel at Annapolis is modeled on Monticello.[46]
Chamberlin Hall at Wilbraham & Monson Academy in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, built in 1962 and modeled on Monticello, serves as the location of the Academy's Middle School.[47]
Completed in August 2015, Dallas Baptist University built one of the largest replicas of Monticello, including its entry halls and a dome room. Approximately 23,000 sq ft (2,100 m2), it is the home of the Gary Cook School of Leadership, as well as the University Chancellor's offices.[48]
Saint Paul's Baptist Church located at the corner of East Belt Boulevard and Hull Street Road in Richmond is modeled after Monticello. Originally built by Weatherford Memorial Baptist Church, the building was donated to St Paul's when Weatherford Memorial disbanded in the early 2000s.[49]
Pi Kappa Alpha's Memorial Headquarters, opened in 1988, is located in the TPC Southwind development in Memphis, Tennessee and was inspired by the architecture of Monticello.[50]
Perrot Library (1931), Old Greenwich, Connecticut, was inspired by Jeffersonian architecture and Monticello.[51][52]
The exterior of University of the Cumberlands' Ward and Regina Correll Science Complex is also a replica of Thomas Jefferson's Monticello mansion. The $1 million expansion of the Science Complex was started in May 2007[53] and classes began in January 2009.
Legacy
Monticello's image has appeared on U.S. currency and postage stamps. An image of the west front of Monticello by
Monticello also appeared on the reverse of the
The 1994 commemorative Thomas Jefferson 250th Anniversary silver dollar features Monticello on the reverse.
Gallery
-
West Front of Monticello
-
Vegetable Garden – 180 degrees
-
The Visitors' Center
-
Monticello facade and its reproduction on a nickel
-
A Nickel by Monticello
-
Monticello, the day after a snowstorm
-
In the dome room, wall detail
-
Inside the Pavilion at the Vegetable Garden
See also
- Bibliography of Thomas Jefferson
- Jeffersonian architecture
- List of residences of presidents of the United States
- History of early modern period domes
- People from Monticello
- Presidential memorials in the United States
- Thomas Jefferson Center for Historic Plants
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 15, 2006.
- ^ "Monticello (Thomas Jefferson House)". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. Archived from the original on October 6, 2012. Retrieved June 27, 2008.
- ^ "Virginia Landmarks Register". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Archived from the original on September 21, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2015.
- ^ a b "The Long Shadow of the Plantation". BackStory. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ a b "Thomas Jefferson Family Cemetery". Cemetery Records. Carols House. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Monticello". Archipedia. Society of Architectural Historians. March 13, 2019. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ a b "The Monticello House". Archived from the original on April 25, 2016. Retrieved April 14, 2016.
- ^ "Monticello". National Park Service, US Dept of the Interior. Archived from the original on November 3, 2011. Retrieved April 30, 2011.
- ^ a b Kern, Chris. "Jefferson's Dome at Monticello". Archived from the original on September 15, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2009.
- ^ "Poplar Forest - Privacy restored, p33" (PDF). PoplarForest.org. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 11, 2016. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
- ^ MARYLOU TOUSIGNANT (May 17, 1998). "Cooling Trend Predicted for Mount Vernon". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Retrieved August 7, 2016.
- )
- OCLC 5545215252.
- ^ Leepson, Marc. Saving Monticello: The Levy Family's Epic Quest to Rescue the House That Jefferson Built. New York: Free Press; 2001, p. 94.
- ISBN 978-0813922195.
- ^ Fleming, Thomas. "The Jew Who Helped Save Monticello", The Jewish Digest, February 1974, pp. 43–49.
- ^ "Monticello Restoration Project Puts An Increased Focus on Jefferson's Slaves". NPR.org. National Public Radio. Archived from the original on June 2, 2021. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
- ^ "Tickets and Tours". Monticello.org. Archived from the original on May 14, 2019. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
- ^ "Architectural drawing of a house ('Monticello'), Albemarle County, Virginia". Archived from the original on September 1, 2020. Retrieved January 19, 2017 – via Library of Congress.
- ^ Sara, Wilson; Mary, Hughes (July 25, 2002). "Thomas Jefferson's Plan for the University of Virginia: Lessons from the Lawn". NPS.gov. National Park Service. Archived from the original on September 3, 2019. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
- ^ "Richmond: A 'Discover Our Shared Heritage' Travel Itinerary". NPS.gov. National Park Service. Archived from the original on July 12, 2019. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
- ^ "A Day in the Life of Thomas Jefferson: Sunrise Design and Decor". Monticello.org. Archived from the original on May 10, 2010. Retrieved July 9, 2010.
- ^ "A Day in the Life of Thomas Jefferson: Design and Decor - The Great Clock". Monticello.org. Archived from the original on January 10, 2019. Retrieved September 19, 2016.
- ^ a b "History - About the Library (Library of Congress)". Loc.gov. September 14, 1987. Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved July 9, 2010.
- ^ "House FAQs". Monticello. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ "Jefferson's Alcove Bed". Monticello.org. Archived from the original on August 15, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2010.
- ^ "Historians uncover slave quarters of Sally Hemings at Thomas Jefferson's Monticello". NBC News. July 3, 2017. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ f222-11e6-8d72-263470bf0401_story.html Krissah Thompson, "For decades they hid Jefferson's relationship with her. Now Monticello is making room for Sally Hemings."[dead link], Washington Post, 18 February 2017; accessed 4 February 2018
- ^ Whiffen, Marcus & Koeper, Frederick (1981). American Architecture, 1607–1976. MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass P.105
- ^ Self, R. L., & Stein, S. R. (1998). The Collaboration of Thomas Jefferson and John Hemings: Furniture Attributed to the Monticello Joinery. Winterthur Portfolio, 33(4), 231-248.
- ISBN 978-0-374-29956-9.
- ^ a b c "Changing Landscapes: Slave Housing at Monticello by Fraser D. Neiman, Director of Archeology for the Thomas Jefferson Foundation". pbs.org. Archived from the original on September 20, 2015. Retrieved March 26, 2011.
- ^ a b c "The Dark Side of Thomas Jefferson". Smithsonian Magazine. Archived from the original on November 25, 2021. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
- ^ "slavery at Jefferson's Monticello: Paradox of Liberty". Archived from the original on May 17, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
- ^ "Slavery at Jefferson's Monticello: Paradox of Liberty". Archived from the original on April 13, 2012.
- ^ Helen F.M. Leary, "Sally Hemings's Children: A Genealogical Analysis of the Evidence", National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 89, No. 3, September 2001, p. 207 (165–207)
- ^ "Thomas Jefferson's Monticello - Official Website". Monticello. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ "Honoring the Ancestors" Archived December 1, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Plantation and Slavery, Monticello, accessed 21 March 2011
- ^ "Reunion bridges Jefferson family rift". NBC News. July 13, 2003. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
- ^ "The Hook - Off Montalto, "It's all downhill from here."". June 3, 2004. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved February 18, 2007.
- ^ Leepson, M. "Monticello". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
- ^ a b Zygmont, B. "Thomas Jefferson, Monticello". Khan Academy. Retrieved November 17, 2022.
- ISBN 978-0-300-24620-9.
- A&E Network. Archivedfrom the original on November 2, 2010. Retrieved August 6, 2007.
- ^ Miranda Zhang (October 14, 2014). "Friendly Co-Founder's 'Monticello' On Market For $6.5 Million". The Courant. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved July 30, 2015.
- ^ "Jewish Ties to the U.S. Naval Academy". The Jewish Voice. JointMedia News Service. June 13, 2012. Archived from the original on October 27, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2018.
- ^ "Academics - Chamberlain Hall/ Middle School - Wilbraham & Monson". www.WMA.us. Archived from the original on April 14, 2019. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
- ^ "Nation Hall Highlights". Archived from the original on February 4, 2016. Retrieved October 19, 2015.
- ^ "Richmond church not afraid to give itself away". Baptist News Global. August 4, 2005. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
- ^ "About the Memorial Headquarters - About | Pikes.org". www.pikes.org. Archived from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
- ^ "A Very Brief History of the Library". Perrot Memorial Library. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
- ^ "Greenwich Landmark Series | Greenwich Historical Society". October 26, 2015. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved April 18, 2023.
- ^ "Corrells donate funds for Ward and Regina Correll Science Complex" (Press release). August 17, 2007. Archived from the original on August 22, 2007.
- ^ Scotts U.S. Stamp Catalogue
Further reading
- Adams, William Howard, Jefferson's Monticello (Abbeville Press, 1983)
- Burstein, Andrew, Jefferson's Secrets: Death and Desire in Monticello (Basic Books, 2005)
- Hatch, Peter J., A Rich Spot of Earth: Thomas Jefferson's Revolutionary Garden at Monticello (Yale University Press, 2012)
- Hayes, Kevin J., The Road to Monticello: The Life and Mind of Thomas Jefferson (Oxford University Press, 2008)
- Jackson, Donald, Thomas Jefferson and the Stony Mountains: Exploring the West from Monticello (University of Illinois Press, 1981)
- Kranish, Michael, Flight from Monticello: Thomas Jefferson at War (Oxford University Press, 2010)
- McCullough, David (intro.), Thomas Jefferson's Monticello: An Intimate Portrait (The Monacelli Press, 1997) – photos by Robert C. Lautman
- McLaughlin, Jack, Jefferson and Monticello: The Biography of a Builder (Henry Holt & Co., 1988)
- Stein, Susan R., The Worlds of Thomas Jefferson at Monticello (Harry N. Abrams, 1993)
External links
- Official website
- The Monticello Explorer, an interactive multimedia look at the house
- Monticello Association, private lineage society of Jefferson descendants
- "Thomas Jefferson Lived Here." Popular Mechanics, August 1954, pp. 97–103/212.
- "Life Portrait of Thomas Jefferson", from C-SPAN's American Presidents: Life Portraits, broadcast from Monticello, April 2, 1999
- Monticello, State Route 53 vicinity, Charlottesville vicinity, Albemarle, VA at the Historic American Buildings Survey(HABS)
- Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello in Google Cultural Institute
- Guide to the Monticello Architectural Records 1923-1976