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By Johanna Calfee
Fall and our Founding Fathers’ homes–in our area, the two are a perfect combination. Lynchburg residents are fortunate to be very close to four distinguished homes of three of Virginia’s best-known historic figures: Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and Patrick Henry. Not only did these men play pivotal roles in establishing our country and independence, they also claimed Central Virginia’s scenic hillsides as their own. If you’ve never taken the time to visit, or you need an excuse to go again, these Virginia Founding Father’s homes are now perfectly in season, and beckoning you to come visit this fall.
Monticello: Jefferson’s Sanctum Sanctorum
“Mr. J. went to his apartments, the door of which is never opened but by himself and his retirement seems so sacred that I told him it was his sanctum sanctorum.” -Margaret Bayard Smith, writing about her visit to Monticello on August 1, 1809
Just up the road from Lynchburg, in Charlottesville, Virginia, Thomas Jefferson’s world is bursting with color. The fall season embodies what our country’s third president and author of the Declaration of Independence loved about his mountaintop home at Monticello–an opportunity to see the fruits of his labor come to life.
“Monticello was the center of Jefferson’s world. To understand Jefferson, one must understand Monticello; it can be seen as his autobiographical statement,” Gary Sandling, Monticello’s Vice President of Visitor Services and Programs, said. “Monticello encompasses a house, an ornamental landscape, a farm, a plantation, a small mountain and a large and diverse community.”
Known for his architectural innovations and keen interest in a wide variety of subjects, such as art, science, horticulture, decorative arts, language and books, Jefferson’s Monticello evidences these interests in a variety of different and interesting ways.
“To stand in Jefferson’s bookroom, surrounded by his books and his scientific instruments is inspiring and evocative, as if Jefferson might walk in and greet you,” Sandling described.
The Monticello mountain was initially at the center of a 5,000-acre plantation that Jefferson inherited from his father, Peter Jefferson, in 1764. Monticello occupied Jefferson’s attention and imagination for more than 50 years, and today, it does the same for the approximately 450,000 visitors it hosts every year.
Jefferson designed the exceptional neoclassical house–his “essay in architecture”–and supervised its construction, expansion and furnishing from 1769 into the 1820s. From the beginning, Jefferson envisioned it as part of an ornamental landscape. His gardens were laboratories for the cultivation of myriad species of trees, flowers, vegetables and fruit.
“The beautiful context of the Virginia Piedmont for Jefferson’s mountaintop home makes an excellent backdrop for touring the house, gardens and grounds,” Sandling said. “Monticello offers a wide range of programming for a variety of interests in the fall.”
Notably this year, the 5th Heritage Harvest Festival at Monticello will be held on the West Lawn on September 17. As America’s “first foodie,” Jefferson championed vegetable cuisine, plant experimentation and sustainable agriculture. The Heritage Harvest Festival offers visitors an opportunity to “taste a bounty of heirloom fruits and vegetables and learn about organic gardening and seed-saving during this fun, affordable, family-friendly festival,” according to Monticello’s Web site. The festival also includes lectures, workshops and special tours.
To learn more about Monticello and all of its fall events, visit www.monticello.org.
Poplar Forest: A Presidential Retreat
“I had rather be shut up in a very modest cottage, with my books, my family, and a few old friends, dining on simple bacon, and letting the world roll on as it liked, than to occupy the most splendid post which any human power can give.” –Thomas Jefferson
While far from a “modest cottage,” Poplar Forest offered Jefferson many of the luxuries he enjoyed at his home in Monticello, but with one vital bonus–perfect solitude. Often described as his “retreat home,” Jefferson designed and worked on Poplar Forest in Forest, Virginia, from 1806 until his death in 1826. “It is the most valuable of my possessions,” Jefferson once wrote a correspondent.
Today, Poplar Forest is an easy escape for visitors from our area, located mere minutes from the City of Lynchburg. A future entrance planned off Enterprise Drive in Wyndhurst will offer guests another point of access to Poplar Forest. While no completion date has been set, President Lynn Beebe says that the additional entrance is part of the long-range vision for the home, which also includes a future welcome center.
“The ultimate goal is to realize the retreat’s full potential for educational opportunities and public use,” Beebe said.
Certainly, educational opportunities are constantly on the forefront at Poplar Forest. This year, that knowledge-driven focus has emphasized technology more than ever, through the addition of the first-ever, three-dimensional virtual rendering of Jefferson’s ornamental landscape surrounding his house. Along with handheld GPS-guided capabilities, guests to Poplar Forest now have the ability to experience the grounds in a more intimate way.
Jack Gary, Director of Archaeology and Landscapes at Poplar Forest says the virtual landscape, which is available both onsite and online, was created to give visitors an interactive view of what his team is working to recreate. The educational animations, made possible through support by Verizon, are also available at a new touch-screen computer kiosk in the Poplar Forest Museum Shop. These short videos introduce visitors to the home’s landscape as if they are walking through it or flying over it.
“People are surprised at how realistic it is and in awe of what Jefferson was doing. There is sort of a ‘wow factor,’” Gary said.
Adding to that wow factor this season is the flourish of events planned over the next few months.
Fall finds Poplar Forest at the hub of many an activity. The Poplar Forest 5k Race to support children’s educational programming is a notable fall event, scheduled for October 15. Another event that has quickly become among the most anticipated is the Thomas Jefferson Wine Festival on November 19. Described as American’s “first distinguished viticulturist,” Jefferson made many attempts to grow Vitis vinifera, a grape that produces wine, at Monticello. In honor of that trailblazing spirit, the Thomas Jefferson Wine Festival will feature 12 Virginia wineries, as well as food purveyors and local crafters and artisans.
To learn more about Poplar Forest and its fall events, visit www.poplarforest.org.
Montpelier: History, Reconstructed
“History is an inexhaustible fund of entertainment and instruction.” -James Madison
From first sight, Montpelier is breathtaking. Nestled on nearly 2,700 acres in Orange, Virginia, just outside of Charlottesville, the former home of James and Dolley Madison offers an unparalleled view of the sprawling landscape.
“The temperature and foliage make fall the perfect time to visit. The view of the Blue Ridge Mountains from the mansion front portico is stunning at this time of year,” Beth Morrill, Media Relations Manager for James Madison’s Montpelier, said.
The Madison’s home itself is an astounding work of architecture. Originally formed in 1723, the Madison family owned the Montpelier estate for 120 years. During the time that James Madison, Father of the Constitution, architect of the Bill of Rights and fourth president of the United States, lived in the home with Dolley, he is believed to have “read, researched, and thought more deeply about our republican form of government than any other Founding Father,” according to Montpelier’s Web site.
After Madison’s death in 1836, Dolley sold the estate in 1844. It changed hands several times before it was purchased by William duPont in 1901. During the time DuPont owned the property, he doubled the size of the mansion, leaving The Montpelier Foundation with a unique challenge to “deconstruct” it when it assumed the estate decades later.
“In 2008, Montpelier completed a $25 million authentic architectural restoration that returned the home to the one James and Dolley Madison would have recognized during their retirement,” Morrill said. “At the end of the restoration, there were 26 rooms. Previously, the mansion had 55 rooms.”
Today, tours of the home offer a rare glimpse into the life of the Madison family, circa the 1820s. Walking trails, ornate gardens and even a Civil War site, where Gen. Samuel McGowan’s South Carolinians encamped during the winters of 1863 and 1864, are open to visitors to explore.
“The Montpelier Civil War Camp is a rare example of an authentically rebuilt Civil War encampment,” Morrill explained. “Each summer, the Third Regiment of the Army of Northern Virginia re-enactors use Civil War-era techniques and reproduction tools to rebuild the Montpelier Civil War Camp winter quarters. The public is invited to watch the rebuilding process on the third Saturday of each month, April through October.”
As with Monticello and Poplar Forest, Montpelier is ripe with fall activities for guests to take part in. This year, the Constitution Day celebration on September 17 will include a barbeque dinner, visits with “James” and “Dolley Madison” and fireworks on the mansion lawn. The annual Constitution Run on September 25 offers challenging 5K and 10K courses for adults and 1K courses for kids, as well as dogs and their owners. Other fall events at Montpelier include the Fall Fiber Festival and Sheep Dog Trials on October 1 and 2, and the Fall Big Woods Walk on October 16.
To learn more about Montpelier and for full details on all fall events, visit www.montpelier.org.
Red Hill: The Garden Spot of the World
“I think he was the best humored man in society I almost ever knew, and the greatest orator that ever lived.” -Thomas Jefferson about Patrick Henry
Described by Patrick Henry as the “garden spot of the world,” Red Hill is Henry’s last home and burial place. A Founding Father, Governor of Virginia, anti-federalist, opposer of the Stamp Act and deliverer of his famous “Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” speech, Henry’s career as a rousing lawyer and politician was juxtaposed with that of his quiet life at Red Hill–a place that remains almost untouched by time and modern influence.
“Virtually unchanged since Henry’s tenure at Red Hill, the vista from the hill overlooking the Staunton River is one which really does transport the visitor back in time,” Karen Gorham, Executive Vice President of Red Hill, said. “The cooler temperatures and lessening crowds really make exploring the 525-acre site a real treat in autumn.”
About 10,000 visitors a year come to discover the serene and scenic site that Henry called home in his last years. With “not a sign of human habitation from any vantage point at Red Hill,” Gorham says that much of Red Hill’s treasure lies in its natural beauty. One of its most striking features is a 300-year-old Osage orange tree with an 85-foot span and stands 65 feet high.
Also on the grounds of Red Hill is Henry’s burial site, law office (when Henry moved to Red Hill in 1794, he was in semi-retirement from his law practice) and reconstructed home on the site where it was first built in the 1770s.
“The modest dwelling for the size of Henry’s family is always surprising to visitors,” Gorham said. “Up to 11 people inhabited the two-bedroom, one and a half-story 18th century house during its peak occupancy.”
Red Hill also houses the largest collection of Patrick Henry memorabilia in the world, including the well-known painting, “Patrick Henry Before the Virginia House of Burgesses,” by Peter Frederick Rothermel, which depicts Henry delivering his famous “If this be treason, make the most of it!” speech, declaring his opposition to King George III’s Stamp Act of 1765.
Taking advantage of the season’s splendor, Red Hill holds some of its most popular events of the year in the fall. On October 6 and 7, “Patrick Henry” will be at Red Hill, portrayed by his sixth great grandson, Patrick Henry Jolly, for the annual “Living History Days for Homeschool Students” event. Spinning and weaving, pottery making, blacksmithing, demonstrations in the outdoor kitchen, 18th century medicine, basket making and more will also be part of this two-day educational event.
The Bluegrass, Barbeque & Brew Festival on November 5 brings three bluegrass bands to the stage, along with barbeque, shopping with local artisans and the opportunity to enjoy craft beer and ale from Legend and Starr Hill breweries. Tickets are available for sale beginning September 15.
To learn more about Red Hill and for full details on all fall events, visit www.redhill.org.
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