Monticello was the primary plantation of Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father, author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third president of the United States. Jefferson began designing Monticello after inheriting land from his father at the age of 14. Located just outside Charlottesville, Virginia, in the Piedmont region, the plantation was originally 5,000 acres (20 km2), with Jefferson using the forced labor of black slaves for extensive cultivation of tobacco and mixed crops, later shifting from tobacco cultivation to wheat in response to changing markets. Due to its architectural and historic significance, the property 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. The United States nickel has featured a depiction of Monticello on its reverse since 1938.
Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in Virginia, United States. It is the seat of government of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen Charlotte. At the 2020 census, the city's population was 46,553. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the City of Charlottesville with Albemarle County for statistical purposes, bringing its population to approximately 160,000. Charlottesville is the heart of the Charlottesville metropolitan area, which includes Albemarle, Buckingham, Fluvanna, Greene, and Nelson counties.
Albemarle County is a county located in the Piedmont region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its county seat is Charlottesville, which is an independent city and enclave entirely surrounded by the county. Albemarle County is part of the Charlottesville Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 112,395.
Dare County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 36,915. Its county seat is Manteo.
The Southwest Mountains of Virginia are a mountain range centered on Charlottesville, parallel to and geologically associated with the Blue Ridge Mountains, which lie about 30 miles (50 km) to the west. The range is breached by the Rivanna River between Monticello and Pantops Mountain. Some of the more prominent peaks include Carters Mountain, Fan Mountain, Brush Mountain, Peters Mountain, Walton's Mountain, and Hightop Mountain.
Thomas Walker was a physician, planter and explorer in colonial Virginia who served multiple terms in the Virginia General Assembly, and whose descendants also had political careers. Walker explored the Western Colony of Virginia in 1750, a full 19 years before the arrival of famed frontiersman Daniel Boone.
Buildings, sites, districts, and objects in Virginia listed on the National Register of Historic Places:
Michie Tavern, located in Albemarle County, Virginia, is a Virginia Historic Landmark that was established in 1784 by Scotsman William Michie, though in Earlysville. The Tavern served as the social center of its community and provided travelers with food, drink and lodging. It remained in operation, in the Michie family, until 1910, when it came to be owned by the Commonwealth of Virginia. In 1927, the Tavern was purchased by Josephine Henderson, who had it moved seventeen miles from Earlysville to its present location, close to Monticello.
Grace Episcopal Church is a historic Episcopal church located at 5607 Gordonsville Road in Keswick, Albemarle County, Virginia, United States. The Gothic Revival building was designed by architect William Strickland in 1847. It is the only known work of Strickland in Virginia. The interior was rebuilt after a fire in 1895.
Castle Hill (Virginia) is an historic, privately owned, 600-acre (243 ha) plantation located at the foot of the Southwest Mountains in Albemarle County, Virginia, near Monticello and the city of Charlottesville, and is recognized by the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places. Castle Hill was the home of Dr. Thomas Walker (1715–1794) and his wife, Mildred Thornton Meriwether (widow of Nicholas Meriwether III). Walker was a close friend and the physician of Peter Jefferson, and later the guardian of young Thomas Jefferson after his father's death.
Earlysville is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Albemarle County, Virginia, United States, roughly 9 miles (14 km) north of Charlottesville. It was first listed as a CDP in the 2020 census with a population of 1,153.
Shack Mountain is a house near Charlottesville, Virginia, that is a tribute to Thomas Jefferson's architectural style. It was designed by and for Fiske Kimball (1881-1955), an architectural historian who was the founder of the University of Virginia School of Architecture, and who is credited with restoring respect for Jefferson's architectural ability. The house derives its name from the Shackelford family, who owned and settled the property in the 18th century.
Proffit is an unincorporated community in Albemarle County, Virginia. There is no commercial activity, with only houses lining the road and a bridge under which Norfolk Southern's Piedmont Division, Washington District line runs. It is recognized as a Virginia Landmark and the Proffit Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999.
Dabney Carr was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and was married to Martha Jefferson, the sister of Thomas Jefferson. He introduced the Committee of correspondence in Virginia which was a leading factor in the formation of the Continental Congress in 1774. Carr and Jefferson were good friends and, fulfilling a boyhood promise, was buried in the Monticello graveyard. His sons included politicians Peter and Samuel Carr and Judge Dabney Carr.
East Belmont is a historic farm and national historic district located near Keswick, Albemarle County, Virginia. The district encompasses 3 contributing buildings, 1 contributing site, and 1 contributing structure. The original house, now the rear ell, was built about 1811–1814, and is a two-story, three-bay, gable roofed frame structure. In 1834, a two-story, five-bay Federal style brick structure was added as the main house. A one-story, glass sunroom was added in the 1960s. The front facade features a two-story, pedimented portico. Also on the property are a contributing 19th-century corncrib, early 20th-century stone and frame barn, and an early 20th-century henhouse.
Dr. Charles Everett, his surname was also spelled Everette and Everard, was an American physician and planter from Albemarle County, Virginia. He was a physician to three American presidents, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and James Madison. He was also a private secretary to Monroe. He served twice in the Virginia House of Delegates in the 1810s. He purchased land from Jefferson that had been part of the Shadwell tract that became known as Everettsville. He lived his mid- and later-years on the Belmont Plantation. He owned slaves in the 1800s, and later decided that slavery was a sin. He freed them and his will stipulated creation of a community Pandenarium for them in Pennsylvania, a free state.
Belmont Plantation, also known as Belmont Estate and Belmont, is a locale in Albemarle County, Virginia, and the site of a 19th-century plantation. It was among the first patents in Albemarle County, patented in the 1730s. Matthew Graves sold a 2,500-acre-tract to John Harvie Sr., a friend of Peter Jefferson and a guardian of Thomas Jefferson. After his death in 1767, the property was inherited by his son John Harvie, Jr. Harvie lived at Belmont for several years, but after he was appointed the Registrar of Land Grants, he moved to Richmond, Virginia and John Rogers oversaw the plantation. Rogers was known for his progressive approaches to agriculture, including methods for improving the quality of the soil after years of tobacco crops.
John Harvie, often called Colonel John Harvie (1706–1767), was raised in Stirlingshire, Scotland and immigrated to the United States. He settled in Albemarle County, Virginia by 1735 and purchased Belmont that was a plantation near Shadwell and Keswick, Virginia. He had close relationships with his neighbors the Jeffersons and was the guardian of future president Thomas Jefferson for some years after Jefferson's father died.
John Rogers was an overseer of three plantations, including Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. He then owned and operated the East Belmont plantation. Rogers was a co-founder of the Albemarle Agricultural Society, and was known for his revolutionary agricultural reforms. His influence and knowledge-gathering was centered among planters in Albemarle County, as well as across the country and in Europe.
