Leaving Washington, DC, we drove on to Mount Vernon, the home of George and Martha Washington. There was a special event going on and the grounds were full of people in period dress. A fife and drum group, in their red uniforms, played on the lawn and tents were set up in an open place and 1700-ish activities were taking place, ya' know -- cooking outside, cleaning rifles, mending and needle work, close order drill, and smoking, drinking (tea and coffee, of course!) and chatting.
It was a slow line going through the house, but we tagged along and had a good view of life at Mt. Vernon. Best of all was the new Educational Center, a separate facility with all the latest educational technology. There were displays with vivid explanations of Washington's life. The biggest draw was Washington's teeth...no pictures, please! Note: they were not wooden and never were. Rather, they were made out of bone and wood and teeth from hippopotami. The man had a serious tooth problem, and had spent a small fortune on dentures and tooth care. Our recollection is that he had as many as three or four sets of dentures with him most of the time. Nor was there any talk of cherry trees, nor dollars tossed across the Delaware. All told it, was very well presented and very informative.
On to Charlotteville and a nice KOA. We had a cozy spot in the trees and it was just a short drive the next day to Monticello. This was a tour, with just a few people, led by a informative and knowledgeable docent . Jefferson , of course, designed this house and it is full of inventive ideas, such as floor to ceiling windows, letting much light into the house, pocket doors, a two pen writing instrument that made a second copy (think of Kinkos), the library chair that converted into a step ladder for accessing his top library shelves, his cubby like bedrooms designed to increase light and at the same time hold in heat. In his parlor, where he received his most important guests, he featured three portraits, all heroes of the Enlightenment: Newton, Galileo, and Aristotle. It would appear that nowledge was first among his values.
After the house tour we joined a docent for a tour of the slave quarters. Here is the man who wrote "all men are created equal" and at the same time has over three hundred slaves. Our guide had a very good way of describing the varied lives of slaves, and talked at length of Jefferson's relationship with Sally Hemmings and of the DNA testing, now 99.99% clear, that Sally Hemming's children were indeed sired by Jefferson -- in addition to all the red hair and freckles they shared with him. The descendants of Jefferson have decided that only the direct descendants of the two Jefferson daughters can be buried in the Jefferson cemetery at Monticello. The issue of slavery continues to "color" our thoughts of both Jefferson and Washington.
We also stopped at the Michie Tavern just down the road. Relocated to be near Monticello --location location location --) it has a tavern as well as a tour. The tavern lunch was decent steam table country style food: chicken, pulled pork, stewed tomatoes, black eyed peas, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, biscuits and of course, slow cooked green beans. The tour was a hoot -- don't miss it! Our docent, in period costume, showed us all the working parts of the tavern, including the common sleeping room which accommodated twenty-two men -- on the floor! There was one upstairs bedroom which had one bed in which no more than five women were to sleep at one time! The top floor has a gathering hall, community meeting place and a dance hall. Our host played a tune on a hammer dulcimer for us, and then coached us into a simple version of a Virginia Reel, complete with mountain music. We both joined right in and it was a lot of fun!
An unexpected pleasure was a tour of the Jefferson-designed and built University of Virginia. We happened upon a tour given by a bright fourth year student. The center piece was the great Rotunda, which housed the great library. What was unusual was what was missing: a chapel as the key stone building. Learning was, for Jefferson, once again at the center of his values and his vision. And so he designed this Academical Village as the 'groves of academe," like Plato's. Designed as a set of buildings "arranged around an open square of grass and trees" (Jefferson), he lined the long lawn stretching to the south with long rows of columns, known as the Pavilion Gardens. These columns supported pavilions which stretched between ten buildings, five on each side, in one continuous visual sweep. The buildings are rooms, designed as student and faculty living quarters, and are still in use. Outstanding senior students may live there, and our guide, Lisa, lived in #14. They have fireplaces, but the bathrooms have to be entered by going out the back door and down a flight of stairs. Oh well, thank goodness the weather is moderate.
The Rotunda was a spacious and impressive building. It is a smaller and somewhat modified version of the Pantheon in Rome, and was the last building Jefferson designed. We envied those attending this beautiful, stunning university.
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