Presidential Places: Thomas Jefferson's Monticello
Monticello was the primary plantation of Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States. After Jefferson inherited a large amount of land from his father, he started building Monticello when he was twenty-six years old. It is located just outside Charlottesville, Virginia. At Jefferson's direction, he was buried on the grounds, an area now designated as the Monticello Cemetery, which is owned by the Monticello Association.
The house which Jefferson designed, was based on the books of the Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. Jefferson reworked it through much of his presidency to include design elements popular in late eighteenth-century Europe. It contains many of his own designs. The house is located at the summit of an 850-foot (260 m)-high peak in the Southwest Mountains south of the Rivanna Gap. Its name is Italian for "little mount."
After Jefferson's death, his daughter Martha Jefferson Randolph sold the property. In 1834 it was bought by Uriah P. Levy, a commodore in the U.S. Navy, who admired Jefferson and spent his own money to preserve the property. His nephew Jefferson Monroe Levy took over the property in 1879 and also invested considerable money to restore and preserve it. He held it until 1923, when he sold it to the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, which operates it as a house museum and educational institution. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark. In 1987 Monticello and the nearby University of Virginia, also designed by Jefferson, were together designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Following is more information about Monticello:
Website: http://www.monticello.org/
Hours of operation: Monticello is open every day of the year, including Sundays, except Christmas. To see the hours for a particular day, check the website as hours vary.
Location: 931 Thomas Jefferson Parkway, Charlottesville, Virginia.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TJMonticello
Twitter: @TJMonticello
The house which Jefferson designed, was based on the books of the Italian Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio. Jefferson reworked it through much of his presidency to include design elements popular in late eighteenth-century Europe. It contains many of his own designs. The house is located at the summit of an 850-foot (260 m)-high peak in the Southwest Mountains south of the Rivanna Gap. Its name is Italian for "little mount."
After Jefferson's death, his daughter Martha Jefferson Randolph sold the property. In 1834 it was bought by Uriah P. Levy, a commodore in the U.S. Navy, who admired Jefferson and spent his own money to preserve the property. His nephew Jefferson Monroe Levy took over the property in 1879 and also invested considerable money to restore and preserve it. He held it until 1923, when he sold it to the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, which operates it as a house museum and educational institution. It has been designated a National Historic Landmark. In 1987 Monticello and the nearby University of Virginia, also designed by Jefferson, were together designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Following is more information about Monticello:
Website: http://www.monticello.org/
Hours of operation: Monticello is open every day of the year, including Sundays, except Christmas. To see the hours for a particular day, check the website as hours vary.
Location: 931 Thomas Jefferson Parkway, Charlottesville, Virginia.
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TJMonticello
Twitter: @TJMonticello