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 February 18, 2010 at 7:42 pm. Add a comment
Have you ever wondered what happens to artifacts once they come out of the ground? Now you have the chance to learn first-hand through Montpelier’s Ceramics Workshop, January 24-29. The ceramics workshop is the complement to Montpelier’s popular Expedition program that brings people to Montpelier to excavate during the spring, summer, and fall.
Participants will practice the three steps of artifact analysis-cataloguing, labeling, and assembling-under the guidance of Montpelier’s staff archaeologists. There will be three work stations set up to help participants get valuable hands-on experience in each of the steps throughout the week.
They will also engage in several lectures and get a behind-the –scenes look at the role ceramics play in “A Presidential Detective Story: Rediscovering the Furnishings and Décor of James and Dolley Madison.” Many of the ceramics that are reassembled will be displayed in the mansion. Continue Reading…
Posted January 5, 2010 at 11:55 am. 2 comments
The holidays are upon us and things are busy at the mansion. The staff is making final preparations for the upcoming Christmas Candlelight Tour at Montpelier. This special tour is new this year and will take place on December 5 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Visitors will stroll through the luminaries to the Montpelier mansion for a special evening tour of James and Dolley Madison’s home. Civil War reenactors will tell period stories and play music beside a burning Yule log near their weekend-long campsite, by Mr. Madison’s Temple. The reenactors’ presence will represent the period in which General Samuel McGowan’s South Carolina Brigade occupied Montpelier’s grounds during the winter of 1863–1864. Continue Reading…
Posted November 25, 2009 at 10:33 pm. Add a comment
The holidays are a time to welcome family and friends home and enjoy your favorite traditions. Here at Montpelier, we are getting ready to welcome back some of our good friends from the 3rd Regiment of the Army of Northern Virginia. The reenactors will visit Montpelier for a Christmas Civil War Living History on December 5 and 6. 
Montpelier and the 3rd Regiment of the Army of Northern Virginia have a strong partnership. The regiment is currently working to rebuild some of the huts at the Montpelier Civil War Encampment Site. General Samuel McGowan’s South Carolinians occupied the site during the winter of 1863-64. The reenactors also visited Montpelier this past summer for Civil War Weekend. Continue Reading…
Posted November 19, 2009 at 12:34 am. Add a comment
The last few weeks at Montpelier have been busy. The staff is gearing up for three very exciting events—The Running of the Montpelier Hunt Races, Freedman’s Farm, and Confederate Winter Camp Site Walking Tour, and the all-new Christmas Candlelight Tour at Montpelier. 
The Running of the Montpelier Hunt Races will celebrate its 75th anniversary this Saturday, November 7. Marion duPont Scott founded the Hunt Races at Montpelier in 1934. Today, the Montpelier Hunt Races remain a beloved tradition in Orange County, Va. Continue Reading…
Posted November 4, 2009 at 7:49 pm. Add a comment
