The Genius of Thomas Jefferson

Friday, October 25: we leisurely leave at 8:30....at least it seems leisurely to us at this point, an extra half hour! It is a twenty minute drive to Monticello, the wonderful home that Thomas Jefferson built....it took him forty years to complete it. His father had owned the land and he always dreamt of building a home there on "little mountain". He did not want the typical home of the era, Georgian Colonial, but devised his own style based on the drawings of Palladio and the architecture of classical Rome. When he was the U. S. minister to France for five years, he visited Nimes and learned to appreciate classical architecture. He also liked the French cuisine and the wines. He brought this knowledge back to Virginia...actually he had taken his chef to France and he learned the cuisine. Jefferson did not cook!

Entering Monticello

The west side of Monticello...Jefferson wanted his home to face west

as he knew the future of America was to the west.

First we see a film, actually we see half a film, because when the film gets to 1776, a cannon shot blasts off...so we thought...it was really the film breaking, and that was the end of the movie for us. So now we visit the museum and learn a lot about Jefferson as an architect and builder. Upstairs are artifacts found on the property, each with their story. It is time to go up the mountain. Bob opts to walk, and Liz takes the shuttle.

Liz and a friend have time to walk around looking at the vegetable garden, down Mulberry Row. The topsoil looks very rich and dark. The views from the mountain are expansive, beautful.

At our assigned time, 10:20, we begin our tour. Our tall thin guide with large eyes that rolled around very expressively is excellent, somewhat eccentric or perhaps dramatic is a better word. We have trouble hearing him in the entry area and he says move closer, but he is always moving around the room faster than I can keep up with him among a crowd of people! The other rooms are smaller, so he is easier to hear. We were here in 1985, but we certainly enjoy seeing it again. There are amazing features in the house. The main house is about 7,000 square feet and the entire complex with the attached additional buildings total about 12,000 sq. ft. It is three stories plus basement, but we only tour the main floor. We go outside and visit some of the attached buildings, the most interesting of which is the kitchen. The kitchen is always separate from the house because of the danger of fire.

There are eight burners..this is state of the art in the early 19th century.

Our time is up and we catch the shuttle back to the visitor center where we have some time to finish looking at the museum and to see the gift shop. On to lunch at the historic Michie Tavern (pronounced mickey). They are known for their Southern fried chicken, and it is delicious. Bob comments that the entire meal is exactly like the food his Grandmother Harris made. We grew up in Missouri and the food we had definitely has southern roots.

Michie Tavern

Back to the hotel around two, and we can rest until 4:15 when we start downstairs for a special lecture by an Afro-American historian, Dr. Leni Sorenson, who is on the staff at Monticello (born in Southern California).

Liz walked back to Main Street to visit some of the stores which were closed last night when we went to dinner. The Caspari shop is especially interesting. This was the only shop in the U.S., but now there is one in New York..and there has been one in Paris. A man on the elevator who saw my shopping bag commented that it was good that New York was catching up with Charlottesville.

Main Street, Charlottesville

 

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