2008
Ongoing this month:- House Tours
- Plantation Community Tours
- Gardens and Grounds Tours
- Evening Signature Tours
- Montalto Tours
- Mountaintop Hands-on Activity Center
- Tours for Children and their Families
Special Events
July 4
Independence Day Celebration and Naturalization CeremonyThis outdoor naturalization ceremony for new citizens on Monticello’s West Lawn is one of America’s most inspiring July 4 events. This year's ceremony features the remarks of President George W. Bush. The Independence Day event is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. and members of the public will be admitted free of charge. See videos of the event »
July 12, 13
Plantation Community WeekendThe sights and sounds of the early 19th century come to life on Mulberry Row, the plantation “street” along which Monticello slaves lived and labored. Costumed artisans interpret the trades and domestic skills practiced by Jefferson's enslaved and free workers. Also, Henrique Prince of the leading black string band, the Ebony Hillbillies, will be playing his fiddle, bringing back to the mountain some of the dance tunes played by African-American fiddlers in the nineteenth century. 10 am to 4 pm. Included in the cost of admission.
July 12
Natural History of TreesTrees perhaps occupied first place in Thomas Jefferson's hierarchy of favorite garden plants. This two-hour walking tour explores the natural history of Monticello's exotic and native trees. Learn to identify about fifty species through an understanding of their ornamental, cultural, and historical character. Peter Hatch will lead this relaxed morning ramble through a typical Central Virginia hardwood forest. Reservations required. Meets at the Monticello Garden Shop's temporary location, 9:30 a.m. $10
July 19
Woody Plant PropagationPropagating trees and shrubs from seeds or cuttings is one of the most gratifying of the horticultural arts. CHP Nursery Manager Marc McVicker will lead this 2.5-hour workshop at the Center for Historic Plants’ propagating facilities at Tufton Farm. He'll discuss the principles of seed sowing—timing, dormancy, scarification, stratification, soil mediums—and also review the fundamentals of asexual propagation. Bring your pruning shears. Reservations required. Meets at CHP's Tufton Farm nursery, 9:30 a.m. $10
July 24
Fellows Forum: Introducing Jefferson's NotesDespite the lively debate that the publication of Thomas Jefferson’s Notes on the State of Virginia aroused among the enlightened Italian intelligentsia (Cesare Beccaria, Alessandro and Pietro Verri, Gian Rinaldo Carli), the text was not translated into the Italian language during the eighteenth century nor later. Pierangelo Castagneto, Assistant Professor of U.S. History at American University in Bulgaria will discuss his bibliographical screening of the recent literature concerning the Notes on the States of Virginia and Jefferson, in order to write an introduction as updated as possible for the first Italian translation of the Notes. 4 p.m. at Monticello's Jefferson Library. The talk is free, but space is limited. Please e-mail to register.
July 29
Fellows Forum: Jefferson, Democracy and the rise of Modern NationalismArmin Mattees, Ph.D. candidate, History Department, University of Virginia, reviews his dissertation exploring the interconnected rise of democracy and modern nationalism in America and Europe in the period from roughly 1770 to 1810. The specific purpose is to examine Thomas Jefferson’s thoughts on these issues and his role in the emergence of a peculiar American form of “democratic” nationalism in the years after 1800 in contrast to a more authoritarian nationalism that developed at the same time in France under Napoleon’s regime. 4 p.m. at Monticello's Jefferson Library. The talk is free, but space is limited. Please e-mail to register.
For More Information: (434) 984-9822