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Almost everyone knows what it’s like to prepare for a big event: a milestone birthday, wedding, graduation, etc. The host agonizes over guest lists, seating charts, entertainment, menus, etc. for months. There seems to be an endless list of things to do before the big day.
The hours leading up the party evaporate. Before you know it, you’re right in the middle of this celebration you planned and anticipated for months. Suddenly, it’s over. Just a few short hours flew by in an instant. You feel just the slightest bit of a letdown, even though your plans turned out perfectly. 
This is exactly how we feel about Constitution Day. We spend months planning the perfect day to commemorate the Constitution’s signing. We receive delighted visitors for hours. Then it’s all over in what seems like a matter of minutes. Another Constitution Day came and went, but we feel just slightest twinge of sadness, knowing it’s all over until next year.
We are happy to announce that we discovered a way to fix the letdown problem. Instead of Constitution Day, we’ll celebrate Constitution Month! That will never end, right? Continue Reading…
Posted 5 days, 19 hours ago. 2 comments
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…
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…
Posted 1 month, 2 weeks ago. 11 comments
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…
Posted 3 months, 3 weeks ago. Add a comment
We have been talking about it for a year and it’s almost ready… Montpelier’s Demonstration Forest Trail will finally open on April 17! The Trail is an outdoor exhibit that shows the best ways to manage a healthy, sustainable forest through “demonstration sites” along the trail. The Montpelier Demonstration Forest Trail runs along a one-mile loops that extends from the James Madison Landmark Forest. 
To celebrate, Montpelier will host a day of family fun with trail tours, an opening ceremony with Former U.S. Senator John Warner, reception, and barbeque dinner. The mansion and new Children’s Getaway will stay open until 7:00 p.m.
In addition to his career as a U.S. Senator, Warner also served as an assistant U.S. attorney, Undersecretary of the Navy, and Secretary of the Navy. He has also supported numerous conservation measures. The National Wildlife Federation named him its 2009 Conservationist of the Year.
Admission to Montpelier, the opening ceremony, and reception will be $16 for adults; $8 for children 6-14; $10 for Virginia Garden Club Tour Ticketholders with tickets; and free for Children 5 and under and Friends of Montpelier. The barbeque dinner will be $25 for adults and $10 for children 14 and under. For more information, please visit the Montpelier Web site.
We hope lots of old and new friends will join us for a great day of outdoor fun! Next week, we will post an insider’s view of the new forest, so stay tuned!
Posted 4 months, 3 weeks ago. Add a comment
By now you probably know 2010 is a census year. Did you also know the Constitution calls for a census? Article I, Section 2 states, “The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law direct.”
Last week, U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Groves visited Montpelier to shoot a video for the Census Web site. The Census Bureau released the video on James Madison’s 259th birthday.
The shoot happened in the Montpelier second floor library, where Madison researched past democracies. This research laid the framework for the Virginia Plan.
Posted 5 months, 3 weeks ago. Add a comment
On March 16, 1751 Nelly Conway Madison gave birth to her firstborn, James Madison, Jr. She had the baby at her parents’ Port Conway, Virginia home. Nelly or “Mother Madison” and her new baby returned to James Sr. at Mount Pleasant later that spring.
259 years later, James Madison’s Montpelier commemorated the birthday of the “Father of the Constitution.” Former Deputy Secretary of Education Eugene Hickok addressed all who gathered to remember the late president. Quantico Marine Corps Base Chief of Staff Col. Thompson Gerke laid a wreath on Madison’s grave on behalf of President Obama.
Photo by Jen Fariello/The Montpelier Foundation.
The U.S. Marine Corps has a longstanding tradition of attending this annual ceremony, due to the Corps’ founding connection with James Madison. During America’s early history, pirates of the Barbary States located along the North African coast — which included Morocco, Algiers, Tunis, and Tripoli —preyed upon the merchant ships sailing the Mediterranean Sea. In fact, these terrorist actions had been ongoing for hundreds of years. Rather than confront the pirates, the United States and European governments paid “tributes” — extortion money — to the pirates for protection. Continue Reading…
Posted 5 months, 3 weeks ago. 1 comment
On the winding roads of Route 20 in Orange County, Virginia stands a century-old train depot, home to the local Montpelier Station, Virginia post office. On February 21, 2010, it became the home of James Madison’s Montpelier’s newest exhibit— The Montpelier Train Depot: In the Time of Segregation.
More than 200 people attended the February 21 opening. Emmy-award-winning journalist Juan Williams addressed the crowd. “This is a place of power…this is a place of life.…This is a place of teaching. This is a place of healing. This is a place of understanding. This is a place that can help us in terms of imagination…help understand what took place here… in terms of how we see each other across racial lines,” said Williams.
Workers laid the first tracks for the railroad line that runs past the Depot circa 1880. This was a time when trains were the fastest way to get anywhere, for both freight and passengers. In 1910, William duPont, owner of Montpelier, built the Depot to upgrade passenger and freight service. The Depot was constructed using plans from Southern Railway, with two waiting rooms – one for “white” passengers and one for “colored” passengers. Segregation was required by Virginia law. Continue Reading…
Posted 6 months, 1 week ago. 1 comment
The past two weeks at Montpelier have been very busy. We are putting the final touches on our newest exhibit, The Montpelier Train Depot: In the Time of Segregation. Emmy-award winning journalist and NPR and Fox News analyst Juan Williams will join us to open the new exhibit at 2 p.m. on Sunday, February 21. A Reception and lectures by Peter Wallenstein, Professor of History, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; and C. Thomas Chapman, James Madison’s Montpelier Research Coordinator will follow.
The Montpelier Train Depot: In the Time of Segregation will use the authentically restored 1910-era building to teach the public about the “Jim Crow” period of segregation in the space where it was practiced. The old segregated “colored” and “white” waiting rooms will show the reality of racism that African-American travelers confronted during this period, and let visitors examine first-hand the fallacy of the notion of “separate but equal.”
The Montpelier Train Depot will be dedicated in memory of Russell Coffin Childs, former Montpelier special projects director. It was Mr. Childs’ vision to restore the Montpelier Train Depot. Thanks to his dedication, the Montpelier Train Depot will forever be a place to educate future generations about the reality of segregation, its consequences for society, and the strength of our constitutional form of government which accommodates peaceful change.
Admission to the opening is free. Admission to the lectures and reception is $30 per person for members of the general public; $10 for Friends of Montpelier and members of the Orange County African American Historical Society. Please call (540) 672-2728 x200 or e-mail ssimpson@montpelier.org for reservations.
Stay tuned for our next post in which we will take a brief look at the history of the Montpelier Train Depot.
Posted 6 months, 3 weeks ago. Add a comment
Tony Award nominee Eve Best as Dolley ©Kent Eames for WGBH
If you can’t wait for the March 1 debut of Dolley Madison: America’s First Lady on PBS’ American Experience you’re not alone. Excitement has been building here at Montpelier since Middlemarch Films announced the documentary. Anticipation really started to build when Middlemarch came to Montpelier in mid-June to film a couple of scenes!
While we can’t fastforward to March 1, we would be thrilled to have some likeminded Dolley fans join us for a special preview on February 4 at 12 p.m. at the Virginia Historical Society in Richmond. Montpelier and the Virginia Historical Society will co-sponsor the event, which will feature a special appearance by the film’s producer and director, Muffie Meyer. The preview is part of the Virginia Historical Society’s Banner Lecture Series.
The Virginia Historical Society is located at 428 N. Boulevard, Richmond, Virginia. Reservations are not required. Admission is $6 for adults, $5 for seniors, $4 for children and students, and free for Virginia Historical Society members. We hope to see you there!
Posted 7 months, 1 week ago. Add a comment
