Corner Terrace, Garden Wall, and Kitchen Dependency Field Report
This is the technical report on the
1997 excavations at the Corner Terrace, Garden Wall and
Kitchen Dependency. All three excavations were conducted
in conjunction with the Restoration and Buildings Departments.
The Corner Terrace excavations were concerned with determining
whether Thomas Jefferson built the four corner terrace stairs
out of brick (as was originally planned) or out of wood.
The excavations also shed light on whether the corner triangles
were used as planters during Jefferson's lifetime. The Garden
Wall excavations documented the construction sequence of
the thousand foot long terrace when a wall section collapsed
in the fall of 1996. The Kitchen Dependency excavations
tried to determine the kitchen's layout and specifically
if Jefferson ever installed "stew stoves" during his lifetime.
