The genius of Thomas Jefferson is an integral part of America. As the author of the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson set the stage for “government by the people for the People” and the “right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” His words, written in 1776, still inspire others across the world today. A visit to Jefferson’s Estate at Monticello, Virginia, and to the University of Virginia, which he founded in 1819 after serving as the Third President of the United States, will bring to life this extraordinary man. He was President, philosopher, governor, ambassador, architect, landowner, and farmer. His impact across the ages is far-reaching.

Set on a hill near Charlottesville, Virginia, Monticello (meaning ‘little mountain’ in Italian) looks out over a 5,000-acre panorama of red clay and tree-covered hills. Over 40 years, Jefferson (who taught himself architecture from books) designed and constructed every aspect of this icon (the only historic American house  named a World Heritage site.)

Monticello is built in the neo-classical style inspired by Renaissance architecture, specifically the Venetian architect, Andrea Palladio; Jefferson’s experience as Ambassador to France contributed the dome of the house. The main house has 33 rooms, there are four more in the pavilions and six others concealed under the south terrace including a kitchen, said to have been the best-equipped in Virginia.

The bricks used to construct the mansion were made at Monticello, as were the nails. The wood and the stones used for the east front columns came from Jefferson’s land. Architectural features abound. There are 13 skylights, including the oculus in the dome. Fireplaces, specially designed by Jefferson to save fuel for heating, feature throughout.

The house is decorated with fabrics, furniture, and silver which Jefferson brought back from his travels to Europe. As you walk through the rooms, pay particular attention to Jefferson’s inventions and innovations, including a dumbwaiter, a swivel desk chair, a polygraph copying machine for his letters and a seven-day clock in the entrance hall which keeps time using a system of pulleys and weights.

Jefferson’s passion for gardening is evident as you walk around the grounds, stopping to admire the profusion of daylilies and countless other species in the oval-shaped flower beds at the four corners of the house and in the flower borders. Towering Mulberry trees provide shade over the area where Jefferson’s slaves once lived and worked. Nearby is his revolutionary vegetable garden, which supplied his family with food.

In addition to his passion for government, Jefferson was a powerful advocate of public education and no trip to this area would be complete without a visit to the University of Virginia of Charlottesville. Designed and built by Thomas Jefferson in 1819 as his “academic village,” it is the only University in the US that has been named a World Heritage site.

This was Jefferson’s architectural and intellectual masterpiece. The main focus of the University is the domed Rotunda, a quarter-size model of the Pantheon in Rome, sitting at one end of a two-acre lawn. Iconic white Tuscan columns line the edges linking ten pavilions, which housed faculty and provided classrooms. The larger pavilions are linked by 54 small, single-student rooms which have provided housing to the likes of Edgar Allen Poe, a eresident of Number 13 on the West Side of the Lawn, and John Singleton Mosby, later known as the “Gray Ghost of the Confederacy” who was expelled in 1852. Jefferson designed the pavilions to reflect different classical architectural styles so that they could serve as a model to the students.

But Jefferson didn’t just design and construct the buildings. He also served as the first chancellor, developed the University’s curriculum and wrote out the list of 6,000 volumes that he wanted in its first library. In his view if you “enlighten the people generally,” “tyranny and oppression of the body and mind will vanish like spirits at the dawn of day.”

When Jefferson died on July 4, 1826, he was buried in the small cemetery at Monticello that still belongs to his descendants. His tombstone reads “Here was buried Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of American Independence, of the Statue of Virginia for Religious Freedom and the father of the University of Virginia.” He will continue to be celebrated for his monumental achievements.

IF YOU GO
Monticello is at 931 Thomas Jefferson Parkway, Charlottesville, Virginia; 434-984-9880. A number of different tours are available for the house and gardens; although tickets can be bought on the day of your visit for a specific time, it is recommended to buy these in advance as Monticello is a very popular location and spots sell out quickly.
The University of Virginia is at University Avenue, Charlottesville (Tel 804-924-0311.