Fall is the perfect time to escape to the rolling hills where the Father of the Constitution once walked. The leaves are already starting to turn and the temperature has been comfortable in the high seventies and low eighties all week. The new Montpelier Excursions Packages will give you the perfect blend of breathtaking fall views, interesting activities, and Southern hospitality.
There is something for everyone. Do you enjoy wine? Then, the Montpelier Wine Weekend is perfect for you. Go to tastings at six of the Piedmont’s best wineries: Barboursville Vineyards, Horton Vineyards, Keswick Vineyards, Burnley Vineyards & Daniel Cellars, Sweely Estate Winery, and Pearmund Cellars.
If adventure is your passion, check out Dig in Style. Work side-by-side Montpelier’s staff archaeologists to discover lost historic treasure.
History Enthusiasts shouldn’t miss History Weekdays and History Weekends. It’s the perfect chance to enjoy the outdoors on the nearly -2700 acre estate, including the pristine Landmark Forest and Gilmore Cabin, the only known restored freedman’s farm.
If you like being “in the know,” you will definitely enjoy the Heart of Montpelier excursion. Montpelier recently completed a $25 million architectural restoration. Take an exclusive tour of the restored mansion with the director of restoration to learn about the extensive detective work the staff undertook to ensure the authentic appearance. You will also meet the curator to learn the latest about Montpelier’s next phase in the restoration process: locating, authenticating and acquiring the mansion’s furnishings.
Excursion Packages include all meals, activities, exclusive Montpelier Museum Gift Shop savings and accommodations at one of the area’s most luxurious B&B’s, including: Inn at Westwood Farm, Holladay House, Chestnut Hill Bed & Breakfast, Inn on Poplar Hill, Mayhurst Inn, Ridge View Bed & Breakfast, Inn at Meander Plantation, Ebenezer House, and the Old Mill House.
Posted September 16, 2009 at 11:14 pm. Add a comment
The restoration crew has started to hang shutters on the exterior of the house.
Rear of the house, from the Architectural Record, Vol VI (July 1896-June 1897).
The shutters are modern reproductions based on Madison-era shutters found in a barn here on the property. There were 31 shutters found in the barn, 12 for the second floor and 19 for the first. They retained their original paint coating, a green made from verdigris pigment, which is made from weathered copper. We’ve painted the reproduction shutters the same green, basing the coloring on research by Dr. Susan Buck (see this post for a picture of the process) Continue Reading…
Posted April 29, 2009 at 7:28 am. 8 comments
Doors
Mac Ward continues to hang doors on the second floor. In the photos above he is trimming the edge of one of the doors prior to installation. The metal guide helps to ensure the circular saw stays straight through the entire length of the cut.
Gene Lyman continues to install door hinges and locks. Gene has also installed the pine threshold for the doorway that leads out to the Colonnade deck. Physical evidence for this very wide (15”) threshold was found on the surviving Madison-era flooring.
Keith Forrey continues to install the doors in the cellar. In the photos he is installing a wrought-iron “H-L” hinge on the door to a closet in the 1797 cellar.
A latch-lock was also installed on the eastern door in M-109 (South Passage). This spring-loaded lock is something of an intermediate step between the more common Norfolk latches and the more complex rim locks. The odd handles, called stirrups or axe-head handles, are based on multiple examples found on surviving locks or archaeologically. While these handles look unusual when compared to modern knobs, they were actually very common in the 18th and early-19th centuries.
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Exterior
Blaise Gaston and Paul Pyzyana are installing the North Wing’s eastern stoop and stair
Posted December 3, 2008 at 7:03 pm. Add a comment
Doors
Mac Ward continues to hang doors on the second floor.
Keith Forry is finishing the repairs to the original Madison doors.
Gene Lyman continues to install mortise locks on the doors and Bill Bichell is installing hinges and the recreated c. 1764 screws for the reproduction c. 1764 H-L hinges.
Windows
Joe Doody continues to install the interior storm windows in the Mansion.
Millwork
Blaise Gaston and Paul Pyzyana are painting the North Wing’s eastern stoop and stair, milling transoms and making a 15” threshold for the Colonnade deck door.
Colonnade
Bill Bichell is cutting holes and installing braces for the wrought-iron colonnade deck railings.
Posted November 20, 2008 at 4:39 pm. Add a comment
