Monticello

Thomas Jefferson, our third president, owned 5,000 acres of farm land.  He named the area Monticello -- "Small Mountain" -- for the area is quite hilly.  Jefferson paid attention to the smallest of details.  He kept explicit records.  He was an inventor.  The clock over the front door was operated with weights and pulleys.  Weights were on the end of cords that started close to the clock and as time passed, the weights receded all the way through the first floor .  He had channels created so they could pass freely to the basement.  He had an underground tunnel built so food could be delivered without walking outside.  Food and wine were brought up from the basement level to the dining room by a dumbwaiter.  He had foresight to create a skylight.  He had close to 180 slaves to run the farm.  His records show the details of good sold, seeds bought, and he recorded many facts in large journals.  Both he and John Adams died on July 4th, 1826.  Unfortunately, photography was prohibited inside the home.  Much more can be found on the internet.  Try this site Jefferson

Entering Monticello

The clock above the front door only has a hour hand.  The mechanics of the clock -- cords,  pulleys, weights -- were on the other side of the wall.

Di and Jane -- notice the windows and skylights here and below.

Monticello took years to build.  Jefferson constantly changed the design.  He was an architect besides being a lawyer, farmer, Governor of VA & President of the USA!

Neat way of keeping track of time.

Rolling hills where slaves worked from sun up to sun down, 6 days a week..  

Final resting place for Thomas and the Jefferson family.

Here are some questions to ponder.  In the Declaration of Independence it is written  "...all men are created equal."  If this is so, does "men" include women?  What about the slaves, were they "men"?  Jot me a note with the answer and you might win a prize!

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