James Madison’s Montpelier

Not Just Paper and Glue

When was the last time you tackled a home improvement project? Painting seems quick and easy. Why, you could paint every room in the house on Saturday morning and have time for flag football and grilling in the afternoon.

Then you actually dig into the project. Moving furniture, taping doorframes, laying drop cloths, and dusting. The project could be hours old before the brush even touches the wall. A whole house in one morning, flag football and grilling in the afternoon? You’ll be lucky to finish three rooms in time for Sunday’s 4:00 p.m. NFL kickoff and takeout.

The lesson: home improvement takes time. The Dining Room wallpaper installer, Patrick Shields, arrived at Montpelier last week. We expect the whole process to take approximately ten days. Patrick will hang the wallpaper almost the same way an installer would have during the Madisons’ time.

Anyone who has worked on their own walls knows it’s much easier to paint than wallpaper. But as complicated as wallpapering is now, it took even more time and skill two centuries ago. Continue Reading…

It’s FINALLY Here!

Have you ever had to wait for a package? The excitement starts when you order the latest and greatest widget– the iPhone 4 for example. You rush home from school or work each day just hoping it’s on your doorstep. Finally, there is a brown box on the doorstep waiting just for you. You scoop the precious cargo off the steps and muscle your way through the front door, leaving a disaster in your wake. Keys, unopened mail, the newspaper, your coat, and briefcase or purse are scattered in a haphazard trail from the door to the living room while you scrounge for scissors to liberate your treasure from its cardboard dungeon. Retail therapy, indeed.

That urgent sense of waiting for an important package has captivated the Montpelier staff recently. By now, you have probably read all about our curatorial team’s efforts to carefully choose the most appropriate wallpaper for the Madisons’ Dining Room. Curators spent months consulting leading historic wallpaper experts and examining period samples that were known to exist during the time the Madisons would have originally purchased their wallpaper.

Courtesy Adelphi Paper Hangings, LLC

Once the curatorial team settled on a pattern, they placed the order with Adelphi Paper Hangings, which specializes in historic reproduction wallpaper. Fulfillment of the order was anything but simple. The technicians at Adelphi used carved wooden blocks to hand-stamp the paper layer by layer, to create the finished product you can see in our previous posts. Continue Reading…

Running with the Constitution

A runner’s checklist:

Sneakers: check
Water bottle: check
Comfy shorts & tee: check
iPod: check
A copy of the Constitution: ?

Wait, a copy of the Constitution? Of course! If you’re going to race in the Constitution Run at Montpelier, why wouldn’t you be uber-prepared and bring along a copy of the Constitution?!

We’re inviting runners of all ages to come to Montpelier on September 12 to be a part of this first-ever event. The Constitution Run will be a 5K. There will also be special races for kids and dogs too. Kids ages 5–10 (and their parents) can race in Dolley’s Dash, a 1K designed for little track stars of all skill levels. Dogs and their owners can trot together in the 1K Dogathon. We have a feeling we might hear “heel” a lot during this race… Continue Reading…

Behind the Trees and off the Beaten Path

It’s been just a few months since the Montpelier Demonstration Forest Trail opened. So, just what lurks behind all of those trees and winding trails? Anything?

One of the great things about a trail like this is it allows us to see very distinct types of plants and their growth patterns . For example, the field of sunny yellow Black Eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta), seeded in the summer of 2009, is now home to partridge pea, milkweed, Appalachian beard tongue, showy tick trefoil, wild bergamot, blazing star, and blue asters nestled among native grasses (big and little bluestem as well as indiangrass).

Photo by The Montpelier Foundation

The wildlife meadow is still in its infant stages, but it is already showing a lot of progress. Our staff has noted that it is quickly becoming a popular source of food and shelter for birds, insects, and other animals at Montpelier.

We will continue to post updates on the Demonstration Forest Trail’s progress. The next time you are here, be sure to take a walk on the trail. We guarantee you’ll never have the same walk or see the same things twice!

If you are interested in developing your own wildlife meadow, contact your local branch of the Natural Resources Conservation Service or your local Virginia extension service.

What’s on the Wall III

You have read our initial wallpaper post, the comments on Facebook, and our answers to your questions. Now the moment of truth: what paper did our team of researchers and experts choose for the Dining Room?

Before we tell you, we want to provide some context for the choice. Remember that, as we mentioned in the last post on this topic, tastes in interior décor were different in the early 19th century. Period aesthetics showed a preference for strong colors, often combined in way foreign to twenty-first-century eyes. Patterns were popular, and there was little hesitation in using a different design for the carpet, wallpaper, curtains, and upholstery in the same room.

We know that when President Madison died in 1836 there were 36 engravings on the Dining Room walls. Today we would be loathe to hang so many prints on a highly patterned wallpaper. Not so in the early nineteenth century. Our team of experts believe that showing that aesthetic is important in creating the visual feel of this period room. They chose the circa 1815 paper with the green and buff pattern imitating draped fabric and originally made by the Philadelphia firm of Virchaux.

Another factor in the paper’s selection was its French-inspired design. The many ads for “Paper Hangings” in the National Intelligencer reveal that the local market followed the period predilection for fashionable French wallpaper patterns. Drapery papers frequently appear in the ads. Among the most popular papers available in the Washington region were those imported from France or produced by Philadelphia paper makers adapting French designs. A number of these paper makers were French émigrés like Henri Virchaux. Continue Reading…

Archaeology Team Digs and Finds…

For the past two months there has been a flurry of activity behind Montpelier’s Visitor Center. This area hasn’t exactly been clutter-free either. Every day, visitors have seen tents, flags, and archaeologists making exciting discoveries about the Madisons’ stables.

How do the archaeologists even know where to dig? Thankfully we have a copy of an 1837 insurance map which shows the stable in this area. Once the team had a general idea of where to look, archaeologists used metal detectors and remote sensing to pinpoint the stable location. This wasn’t just an afternoon activity. The archaeologists conducted months of metal detector surveys.

Horse shoe recovered from Stable area (please click on image to enlarge)

Horse shoe nail recovered from Stable area (please click on image to enlarge).

These surveys showed where to find clusters of artifacts– horseshoe nails, horseshoes, tools, architectural hardware, saddle parts, and carriage hardware.  Excavation units placed in the location of these artifact concentrations have shown a concentration of cobble that might represent the reinforced floor for the stable or work areas around the stable complex. Good news: these concentrations proved the team was on the right track.

The mystery doesn’t end with the concentrations of artifacts. The cobble concentrations show this was a very active equestrian area.  The broken horseshoes and worn horseshoe nails show animals were often in this area.  Had the team found whole horseshoe nails, this would mean horses were re-shoed in this area.

So far, the archaeologists haven’t found any structural features that we can tie directly to the stable of any of its outbuildings (a carpenter’s shop, for example).  But, the team did find several large post holes which might be related to outbuildings in this area. Post holes are a big deal in archaeology. They show the outline of where a structure once stood. The archaeology team once spent an entire summer looking for the post holes that showed where the original Madison fence in front of the mansion once stood.

Iron bench dog (clamp) recovered from stable area (please click on image to enlarge)

Fragment of cross cut saw recovered from Stable/Craft area

bolt for door lock recovered from Stable Area (please click to enlarge image)

So, what else did the archaeologists find? The archaeology of the site behind the Visitor Center points to this area being used for many things. It’s likely that horses lived in stables and craft activities (carpentry and other tasks) took place here. The team found furniture hardware, which means the Madisons’ furnishings were here at one time. There were several paddocks, which suggests there might have been stores (storage areas) located in this area as well.

All in all, our surveys indicate the area between the Visitor Center and the South Yard was a very busy place– with most activity being concentrated on the hill directly behind the Visitor Center. The archaeology team is now  excavating the slave quarter just down the hill from the stable closer to the mansion.

The fun isn’t just for the archaeologists. There is still time to join the team for a week.  Click here to check out the archaeology excavation programs to learn how you can come dig at Montpelier.

Spend the Weekend with the Madisons

Beginning this weekend, James Madison’s Montpelier visitors will see a couple of familiar faces when they visit the home of the Father of the Constitution. During Madison’s presidency, James and Dolley always left the muggy Washington heat in favor of Montpelier, their beloved country estate. James and Dolley Madison will once again greet visitors at their storied home July 24 through mid-September. Dolley will receive guests on Saturdays and James will be at home on Sundays.

Photo by Jen Fariello

Guests may call on Mr. and Mrs. Madison in the mansion’s south wing. “Dolley Madison’s Salon” will be held on Saturdays from 11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. Mrs. Madison, in full costume, will chat with guests about her husband’s role in crafting the Constitution. She became an expert on this subject during his retirement, when she helped James organize his papers from the Constitutional Convention. Continue Reading…

Field School Students Dig for Historic Treasure and Experience

It’s the most frequently asked question at the beginning of the school year: “What did you do on your summer vacation?” When they return to their colleges and universities this fall, 25 students will say, “I dug in the dirt and I get to put it on my resume.” These students live on the historic grounds of James Madison’s Montpelier where they dig side-by-side with professional archaeologists to find the lost Madison Stable Quarter.

This isn’t a typical classroom or internship. It teaches students basic archaeology skills and they dig right alongside our staff members. Continue Reading…

What’s that on the wall? II

The response to our last post on the wallpaper was tremendous– particularly from our Facebook fans! We are thrilled that you are all so interested and involved in the “Presidential Detective Story!” Readers asked a lot of good questions, and we hope to address them with this post.

Many people said they like the yellow wallpaper displayed in the Madisons’ Dining Room. This paper is French or American, circa 1800-1810. Of the three papers on the wall, it seems to be the most modern. Some of you commented that the yellow paper would match Dolley’s china. Although the reproductions of James and Dolley’s Nast china are yellow tinted, the original pieces are more of a salmon color, as you can see in the photograph of the Nast tureen which Montpelier owns.

Peter Meyerhof asked, “Since a speck of original scarlet wallpaper was found in the drawing room, why isn’t there a sample with a red background being considered here?” This is a great question. We know the Madisons liked red and used it in several rooms in their house, however, it is unlikely they used it in every room.  During the Madisons’ time in the President’s  House they used several different color schemes throughout the house.  We also have other fragments of Madison-era wallpapers that were found in a rats’ nest at Montpelier. Both fragments are multicolored, but not large enough to see a pattern. These are small clues, but they lead us to believe the Montpelier interiors were decorated in a variety of colors.  If we chose red for both the Drawing and Dining Rooms – the two major public rooms in the house–we could overuse that color. Continue Reading…

Happy 242nd Birthday Dolley!

It’s been said that behind every great man is a woman. In James Madison’s case, that fabulous woman was Dolley Madison. This Thursday, May 20, marks Dolley Madison’s 242nd birthday. Montpelier will celebrate with free cake in the Visitor Center, beginning at 11:00 a.m. Also, if you were born on May 20, Thursday is your lucky day because your admission to Montpelier will be free.

Now, let’s talk about just who Dolley Madison was. In her time, she was the most popular person in the country. What made her so famous?

The short answer is Dolley Madison was Washington’s first female power player. Her famous “squeezes” (very popular parties) helped political adversaries broker civil compromises in a social setting. She also showed extraordinary courage. When the British invaded Washington in 1814, she rescued George Washington’s portrait, with the help of her slave Paul Jennings, just before the White House burned. Continue Reading…