A lot of people don't realize that the Jefferson family sold the homestead after Thomas's death as he was deep in debt and the property was out of his decendents hands for many years. Also she said they couldn't help telling the story of Sally Henning but without any proof.
the guide's commentary alluded to the fact that Jefferson was close to $100k in debt at the time of his death, public service being just that 200 years ago and not some lucrative detour from the private sector. she went on to explain that many of the pet projects and programs instituted by the Jefferson Administration were funded by Jefferson himself, accounting for much of the debt. the plantation, being a self-sufficient working farm, was unable to satisy all the debt during his lifetime. the end result is that Monticello was sold to pay off the creditors upon the death of the President.
as for Sally Hemmings, it would be difficult to tell the whole story without at least a token mention of her and the relationship to Jefferson. our guide joked about the fact that there's an upcoming book project on Ms. Hemming's life, probably a book that will be about two pages long judging from what's known about her!!! as for proof of any relationship, you may recall that DNA went a long way towards affirming things several years ago and most now accept that there's much more than a grain of truth in the whole thing, but that's fodder for another thread or perhaps another forum.
another interesting tidbit-----the vegetable garden which has been recreated in it's former location and glory was quite impressive and approximately 1000 feet long by 40 feet wide on a south facing terrace. while it fed the plantation 200 years ago, it now is similarly distributed amongst the current employees!!
I visited Monticello in my youth about 40 years ago. The one thing that seems to still stand out in my mind is the clock that has some kind of weights on the chains that go through the floor. Is my memory playing tricks on me or am I correct??
<< <i>I visited Monticello in my youth about 40 years ago. The one thing that seems to still stand out in my mind is the clock that has some kind of weights on the chains that go through the floor. Is my memory playing tricks on me or am I correct?? >>
I remember that from just over 20 years ago. IIRC, the weights were supposed to tell the day of the week.
yeah, that clock is still there, one of Thomas Jefferson's many inventions to suit his needs.
evidentally Jefferson was very concerned with time as i alluded in my opening post. he kept a clock in every room of his home at a time when most told the time of day by the position of the sun!!! the clock you both recall showed both on the inside as well as the outside of the front portico and the chime could be heard as far away as six miles. there were counterweights on both sides of the entrance hall with holes in the floor for them to drop through into the basement. as you face the doors from the inside, to your right written on the wall are the days of the week beginning with Sunday near the cieling and ending with Thursday just above the floor. Friday and Saturday are in the basement because he ran out of room!!!! once the week ended it would be a simple matter of pulling the opposite counterweight down to restart the week, much in the same fashion as you'd do with a cuckoo clock.
like i said, it's a sad fact that we weren't allowed to take pictures inside the home. it was truly fascinating how our President/researcher/self-taught scientist arranged his living space to accomodate his needs. for instance, his bed was placed between two rooms and gave him scarcely enough space to stretch out. his head faced east and a clock was at the other end of the bed. immediately upon waking each day, he recorded the temperature/time and began his studies. no wasted time in that household!!! man, i get up and head for the coffee pot.
<< <i>Hi Al - The West portico (back porch) of Monticello was excavated in 1999, revealing the full extent of the original steps. It is likely that Schlag saw the porch as having six steps. Here's a link to the report on the archaeology of the West Portico: West Portico Archaeology You'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader to download the file and display it in your browser.
Great report! Thanks for the story and the pics!
Hoot >>
Architects were extremely concerned with balance in those days and it would be unusual for different parts of the structure to have even small differences.
If memory serves wasn't Jefferson also architect and general contractor in the construction of this building.
Lewis and Clark were instructed by Jefferson to record the unknown plant life, animals etc. they they came upon during their famous expedition and as part of that directive they decided to send a prairie dog to Jefferson, it took them nearly a full day to catch one (as mentioned in their journals) but they were finally successful and it survived a trip all the way back to Washington in a cage so Jefferson was able to examine it alive. Pretty cool. .
i remember reading about that fiasco in the the "journals" by DeVoto. the L&C trip in a sense rivals the Manned Expedition to the Moon when put in perspective for the different eras. looking at everything that the Expedition underwent in the cross country trek not once, but twice, the thing that almost stopped them was the cactus covered prarie after they had to make the overland trip when they reached the Great Falls. it litterally scraped the flesh off their feet!!!!
Nice pictures and an interesting post. My family and I went to Monticello last fall...would highly recommend the trip, especially if you're into history. Also Mt. Vernon to learn about Washington. One minor negative is that all of these historic places seem much smaller in real life than I imagined them growing up. Still very much worth seeing though.
There were I believe 32 people on the expedition and only one of them died
and the chap that died probably died of acute appendicitis, the twist being that in that era he could have been in the largest cities most modern hospital and he'd have suffered the same fate!!! it also happened shortly after they started the trip, just out of St. Louis along the Missouri.
I wanted to bump this thread because I got a brochure in the mail yesterday about visiting Monticello. The pictures look great in the pamphlet, and I really want to visit. Unfortunately, it looks like the pictures in this thread are now red x's, but I remember from the first time that I looked at this thread that they were really interesting.
Last night, I told Mrs. L. that I wanted to make a side trip to Monticello the next time we are down in DC visiting her sister. She smirked when I said that. I asked what she was smirking at. She said that one of her old boyfriends took her on a date to Monticello, but she would be delighted to go there again with me.
Always took candy from strangers Didn't wanna get me no trade Never want to be like papa Working for the boss every night and day --"Happy", by the Rolling Stones (1972)
Numismatist. 50 year member ANA. Winner of four ANA Heath Literary Awards; three Wayte and Olga Raymond Literary Awards; Numismatist of the Year Award 2009, and Lifetime Achievement Award 2020. Winner numerous NLG Literary Awards.
I was just there a few months ago with my wife. Wonderfull place. Took the day and drove the couple of hours. We spent lunch at Mitches taverne (I think thats the name) Quite expensive for lunch. I'll try and round up a few picts and post them on here in the morning. Still cannot take picts inside the house though. I really wanted to. So much history within those walls and one of the great architectural buildings of colonial times. I want to visit Stratford Hall out east of me in a few weeks. This is Robert E. Lee's birthplace and ancestrial home. It was built in colonial times and is also considered one of the best architectural homes of the period for its European style. Of course no direct numismatic history involved in Stratford Hall, that I know of anyways.
"One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making new discoveries" -A.A. Milne
Comments
<< <i>i've had the mullet goin' on since about 1980. i'm a victim of the Orlando butcher who gave me the buzz-cut in 1975 >>
Dude - it's the 21st century. Time for an upgrade. Get therapy or something to deal with the trauma.
the guide's commentary alluded to the fact that Jefferson was close to $100k in debt at the time of his death, public service being just that 200 years ago and not some lucrative detour from the private sector. she went on to explain that many of the pet projects and programs instituted by the Jefferson Administration were funded by Jefferson himself, accounting for much of the debt. the plantation, being a self-sufficient working farm, was unable to satisy all the debt during his lifetime. the end result is that Monticello was sold to pay off the creditors upon the death of the President.
as for Sally Hemmings, it would be difficult to tell the whole story without at least a token mention of her and the relationship to Jefferson. our guide joked about the fact that there's an upcoming book project on Ms. Hemming's life, probably a book that will be about two pages long judging from what's known about her!!! as for proof of any relationship, you may recall that DNA went a long way towards affirming things several years ago and most now accept that there's much more than a grain of truth in the whole thing, but that's fodder for another thread or perhaps another forum.
another interesting tidbit-----the vegetable garden which has been recreated in it's former location and glory was quite impressive and approximately 1000 feet long by 40 feet wide on a south facing terrace. while it fed the plantation 200 years ago, it now is similarly distributed amongst the current employees!!
My #1 Low Ball Peace Dollar Set
<< <i>I visited Monticello in my youth about 40 years ago. The one thing that seems to still stand out in my mind is the clock that has some kind of weights on the chains that go through the floor. Is my memory playing tricks on me or am I correct?? >>
I remember that from just over 20 years ago. IIRC, the weights were supposed to tell the day of the week.
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evidentally Jefferson was very concerned with time as i alluded in my opening post. he kept a clock in every room of his home at a time when most told the time of day by the position of the sun!!! the clock you both recall showed both on the inside as well as the outside of the front portico and the chime could be heard as far away as six miles. there were counterweights on both sides of the entrance hall with holes in the floor for them to drop through into the basement. as you face the doors from the inside, to your right written on the wall are the days of the week beginning with Sunday near the cieling and ending with Thursday just above the floor. Friday and Saturday are in the basement because he ran out of room!!!!
like i said, it's a sad fact that we weren't allowed to take pictures inside the home. it was truly fascinating how our President/researcher/self-taught scientist arranged his living space to accomodate his needs. for instance, his bed was placed between two rooms and gave him scarcely enough space to stretch out. his head faced east and a clock was at the other end of the bed. immediately upon waking each day, he recorded the temperature/time and began his studies. no wasted time in that household!!! man, i get up and head for the coffee pot.
<< <i>Hi Al - The West portico (back porch) of Monticello was excavated in 1999, revealing the full extent of the original steps. It is likely that Schlag saw the porch as having six steps. Here's a link to the report on the archaeology of the West Portico: West Portico Archaeology You'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader to download the file and display it in your browser.
Great report! Thanks for the story and the pics!
Hoot >>
Architects were extremely concerned with balance in those days and it would
be unusual for different parts of the structure to have even small differences.
If memory serves wasn't Jefferson also architect and general contractor in the
construction of this building.
we should have more posts like this.
great photos too.
this was like watching pbs.
I must agree,
Don't know how I missed it the first time around. Thanks.
Brian
Lewis and Clark were instructed by Jefferson to record the unknown plant life, animals etc. they they came upon during their famous expedition and as part of that directive they decided to send a prairie dog to Jefferson, it took them nearly a full day to catch one (as mentioned in their journals) but they were finally successful and it survived a trip all the way back to Washington in a cage so Jefferson
was able to examine it alive. Pretty cool.
.
<< <i>Wow, the building has Full Steps!!!
Nice pics Keets!! >>
Nah. Look closely. Some of the steps have gashes in them. Therefore, it would not be considered full steps by PCGS.
the hardships they faced.
Coin's for sale/trade.
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800-624-1870
and the chap that died probably died of acute appendicitis, the twist being that in that era he could have been in the largest cities most modern hospital and he'd have suffered the same fate!!! it also happened shortly after they started the trip, just out of St. Louis along the Missouri.
Last night, I told Mrs. L. that I wanted to make a side trip to Monticello the next time we are down in DC visiting her sister. She smirked when I said that. I asked what she was smirking at. She said that one of her old boyfriends took her on a date to Monticello, but she would be delighted to go there again with me.
Didn't wanna get me no trade
Never want to be like papa
Working for the boss every night and day
--"Happy", by the Rolling Stones (1972)
I was just there a few months ago with my wife. Wonderfull place. Took the day and drove the couple of hours. We spent lunch at Mitches taverne (I think thats the name) Quite expensive for lunch. I'll try and round up a few picts and post them on here in the morning. Still cannot take picts inside the house though. I really wanted to. So much history within those walls and one of the great architectural buildings of colonial times.
I want to visit Stratford Hall out east of me in a few weeks. This is Robert E. Lee's birthplace and ancestrial home. It was built in colonial times and is also considered one of the best architectural homes of the period for its European style. Of course no direct numismatic history involved in Stratford Hall, that I know of anyways.
<< <i>Ask her if he got to second step with her......
You bad!
The name is LEE!
First off my wonderfull wife outside the gift shop overlooking the valley
from the left wing
From the end of the grassy oval
Disk in ground at end of grassy oval
And ok to keep the slow download people happy the end
I have alot more picts of the grounds and gardens. Of course not as many as from Mt Vernon