Monticello -- Home of Thomas Jefferson

931 Thomas Jefferson Parkway
March 1 - October 31, 8am-5pm; November 1 - February 28, 9am-4:30pm. Closed Christmas.

434-984-9800

Admission Charged. Children under 6 free.

Monticello is the home of Thomas Jefferson, third U.S. President, author of the Declaration of Independence and Statute for Religious Freedom as well as founder of the University of Virginia. In 1769 at the age of 26, Thomas Jefferson began the design and construction of Monticello. Perched on a mountaintop overlooking the city of Charlottesville, Monticello is a majestic reminder of Jefferson's creativity and talent. No other home in the United States more accurately reflects the personality of its owner than Monticello, Jefferson's architectural masterpiece and beloved mountaintop home. Daily tours.

Ash Lawn- Highland

1000 James Monroe Parkway, 2 1/2 miles from Monticello on Route 795, off Route 53.

Open daily November - March 11:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.; April - October 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

434-293-9539

Admission Charged.

Restored home of the 5th president of the United States and close friend of Thomas Jefferson. James Monroe's 550- acre estate recreates the atmosphere of a working farm, with strutting peacocks, spinning and weaving demonstrations, open hearth cooking demonstrations and tours of the house and gardens

Of particular interest are the newly refurbished interiors, lovely herb and vegetable gardens, and a statue of James Monroe at one end of the boxwood gardens.

Michie Tavern

683 Thomas Jefferson Parkway

Michie Tavern is located less than one mile from Thomas Jefferson's Monticello on State Route 53, Monticello Mountain.

Museum is open year-round
Admission Charged (tours). Tours are 9-5 daily. Last tour: 4:20pm.
434-977-1234

Michie Tavern is a Virginia Historic Landmark which has welcomed travelers for more than 200 years. Established in 1784 by Scotsman William Michie, the Tavern served as the social center of its community and provided travelers with food, drink and lodging. In 1927, the Tavern was moved 17 miles to its present location close to Monticello, serving as a prime example of the Colonial Revival period. Today, crossing the threshold of old Michie's Tavern, is to enter another era. This is where our 18th-century counterparts came to dine and socialize. Visitors experience the Tavern's past through an historical journey which recreates life when Mr. Michie operated his Inn. During the afternoons, April through October, visitors may be invited to dance the Virginia Reel in the Assembly Room, drink an 18th-century tavern punch or write with a quill pen. After visiting the original Inn, the tour continues through the Tavern's outbuildings and the Virginia Wine Museum.

The Printer's Market (at Michie Tavern)

Seasonal Operation, hours: 11:00 am - 4:00 pm.

Located in an historic 1822 structure, the shop features original and reproduction Early American printed items for sale including one of the most extensive offerings of period newspapers, paper currency and vintage stamps on the East Coast. A gallery setting encourages guests to browse through the books, historic prints, posters, and exhibits.

Albemarle County Courthouse

501 East Jefferson Street

Monday-Friday from 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Closed for state and federal holidays.

434-972-4083

Admission Free.

The courthouse was established in 1762. The grounds once held a whipping post, pillory and stocks, as was typical of the time. In addition to serving as the courthouse and sole place to vote in Albemarle County, religious services for Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist and Baptists were held in this space, which Jefferson called "The Common Temple. Jefferson, Madison and Monroe were frequent visitors here, especially after Jefferson retired in 1809.

Court Square of Charlottesville

411 East High Street
877-386-1102

Admission Free.

The following sites can be explored in more detail on Saturday morning walking tours offered by the Albemarle Historical Society (April-October)

200 Second Street, NE.

Tours begin at 10:00 am, last for approximately one hour with donations accepted.

434-296-1492 for more information.

1. 300 Court Square, is the site of the Eagle Tavern, a simple wooden frame building which stood there in 1791 and provided food and lodging on court days, as well as public dances and victory celebrations within its spacious parlor. (the brick replacement, can be seen by visitors today). The building also was used as the headquarters of the Federal occupying forces after the Civil War. Operating as a hotel until the 1960s, it is now office space.

2. Adjacent to 0 Court Square and 6th Street buildings visitors can see the slave block, where auctions of slaves took place. The slave block should serve as a reminder of the shameful and racist attitudes of many communities during much of our early history.

3. The influence of Jeffersons design for the University of Virginia buildings nearby may have influenced the design of Building #0, when it was built in the 1820s. Storehouses for merchants, as well as a small town library, a whiskey dealer and a Swiss watchmaker recruited by Jefferson were all located along 6th St.

4. The Swan Tavern was located at 300 Park Street, where a brick townhouse now stands. The tavern was made famous by Jack Jouett, whose father owned The Swan. In 1781, Jefferson and Virginias government quit Richmond under threat of capture by the British, and reconvened in Charlottesville. Jouett rode through the night on back roads from Louisa County to warn Governor Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee and other members of the General Assembly of the approach of British forces under the command of Colonel Banastre Tarleton. Eluding capture, most legislators fled to safety in Staunton. Tarletons men destroyed some court records and military stores, but spared the town from destruction.

The Miller School of Albemarle

1000 Samuel Miller Loop
434-823-4805

Visitors are welcome during the day, but should check in at the Main Office in Old Main.

Admission Free.

The Miller School is one of several legacies of Samuel Miller, a native of Albemarle County who grew up in poverty but became a wealthy investor in Lynchburg. He established The Miller School in Albemarle County to provide a first-rate education for children from Albemarle County and the surrounding area, regardless of financial condition. Listed in the Virginia Landmarks Register, the Miller School complex of buildings reflect the Victorian Gothic architecture popular at the time. Situated on almost 1600 acres of land, the beautiful grounds provide ample space for the 160 students now attending the school. The Miller School, originally known as The Miller Manual Labor School, was chartered by an Act of the General Assembly approved on February 24, 1874. The architectural focal point of the campus, Old Main, was begun in 1876. It was designed by architects Albert Lybrock and D. Wiley Anderson of Richmond, and built by Thomas Woodroffe, originally from England. The school opened in 1878 with 33 students, and has been a successful boarding and day school ever since.

University of Virginia Rotunda and Central Grounds

University Ave
434-924-3239, 434-924-7969

Conducted tours of the Rotunda are offered daily at 10am, 11am, 2pm, 3pm, and 4pm. Closes for 3 weeks at Christmas time and during graduation in May.

Admission Free.

The original Grounds of the University, including the Rotunda and the Lawn, were designed by Jefferson to be what he called an "Academical Village." The Academical Village includes a rectangular, terraced green space known as the Lawn; two parallel rows of buildings, the Pavilions, connected by colonnaded walkways and student rooms; and the Rotunda, which closes off the north end of the Lawn. The Rotunda, a half-scale interpretation of the Pantheon in Rome, is the signature landmark of the University and its Dome Room originally housed the University library. The Pavilions are in the Federal style and no two are alike. The top floors of the Pavilions originally served as living quarters for the professors, while the ground-level floors served as classrooms and offices.

The Gardens are enclosed by serpentine brick walls, whose curve helps to stabilize and strengthen the walls, which are remarkable for being only one brick thick. Parallel to the Lawn and behind the Gardens are the Ranges, rows of rooms in which graduate students now live. West Range No. 13 is preserved as the Edgar Allan Poe Room. A plaque over the door of No. 31 marks the room of Woodrow Wilson.

Edgar Allan Poe's Room

University of Virginia grounds. West Range #13

434-977-1783, 877-386-1102
Admission Free.

Call for days and hours.

Author/poet's room has been restored to 1826 time period when he was a student. Features a recording about his life.

McGregor Room of Alderman Library

Alderman Library, University of Virginia

434-924-3025

9am-9pm, Monday through Thursday; 9am-5pm, Friday and Saturday.

Call to confirm Saturday hours.

Admission Free.

The Special Collections Department's exhibition space is located in the Tracy W. McGregor Room on the second floor of Alderman Library. Special Collections administers over 12 million manuscripts, 2.5 million items in the University archives, and 268,600 rare books, as well as approximately 4,000 maps, over 4,000 broadsides; more than 125,000 photographs and small prints.

Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of the University of Virginia

400 Peter Jefferson Place

434-244-0234
Tuesday - Saturday, 9 am to 3 pm.

Admission Free.

The Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection was a gift from An American businessman, John W. Kluge to the University of Virginia in 1997. Mr. Kluge began collecting Aboriginal art in 1988 and compiled one of the foremost private collections of Australian Aboriginal art in the world. In 1993, Kluge purchased the collection and archives of the late Professor Edward L. Ruhe of Kansas University

Frontier Culture Museum

1290 Richmond Ave., Staunton, VA. Located near I-64 & I-81 in Staunton, VA. I-81, Exit 222, Route 250 West, the museum is mile on the left.

540-332-7850

Open daily, 9am-5pm; Winter hours: Dec.1- March 16, 10am 4pm.

Museum closed New Years, Thanksgiving, & Christmas. Museum may close or have program changes due to weather conditions. To avoid being disappointed, call ahead.

Admission Charged

University of Virginia Art Museum

Rugby Road, located one block north of the Rotunda on the Grounds of the University of Virginia.

Tuesday-Sunday, 1-5pm

434-924-3592, 434-924-7458

Admission Free.

The University of Virginia Art Museum exhibits art from around the world dating from ancient times to the present day. In addition to its permanent collection, the Museum presents an ongoing schedule of changing exhibitions, accompanied by related programs and publications.

Leander J. McCormick Observatory

McCormick Observatory on the UVA grounds.

9-11pm, Apr. - Oct, first and third Friday night.

8-10pm, Nov.-Mar., first and third Friday night.

434-924-7494

Admission Free.

Call for schedule.

Monuments/Memorials

Robert E. Lee Monument

Lee Park, Historic Court Square

434-296-1492.

This monument was commissioned in 1917 and completed nearly seven years later. In 1924, the statue was presented to the city during a Confederate reunion held at the park. More information is available from the Albemarle County Historical Society at the phone number listed above.

Stonewall Jackson Monument

Jackson Park, Historic Court Square

434-296-1492

At the time of the artworks unveiling in 1921, the Jackson monument was considered to be among the finest equestrian sculptures in the nation. More information is available from the Albemarle County Historical Society at the phone number listed above.

Confederate Memorial on Court Square

Albemarle County Court House in Charlottesville. Court Square

877-386-1102 or 434-977-1783

Admission Free.
Charlottesville and Albemarle County were among the last communities in Virginia to erect a monument honoring Confederate soldiers from their area. The bronze statue, whose sculptor remains unknown, is most likely a mass- produced copy of a Confederate soldier "at ready."

Lewis, Clark and Sacagawea Statue

At the intersections of W. Main Street and Ridge Street Charlottesville. Just northwest of the downtown mall.

434-293-6789

This impressive and historic statue commemorates the 1803-1806 journey of the Lewis and Clark Expedition. The statue of Meriwether Lewis, William Clark and Sacagawea was sculpted by Charles Keck, who was a prominent sculptor of his day. The statue was commissioned by Paul Goodloe McIntire and given to the citizens of Charlottesville in 1919.

Confederate Monument, University Of Virginia Cemetery

At the intersections of Alderman and McCormick Roads in Charlottesville.

877-386-1102 or 434-977-1783

Admission Free.

Unveiled on June 7, 1893, the monument is in memory of approximately eleven hundred Confederate Soldiers buried at the University of Virginia. The piece consists of a gray granite pedestal twelve feet high on which stands an eight foot bronze statue of a young Confederate solider, hat in hand and rifle at the rest position. Four encircling bronze tablets carry the names of the soldiers buried at the cemetery. Seventeen blank spaces represent unknown soldiers.

Cemeteries

Maplewood Cemetery

400 Block Lexington Avenue

7am-8pm.

877-386-1102, 434-977-1783
Admission Free.

Like many cemeteries in cities across the nation, Maplewood Cemetery offers a glimpse of the lives of past citizens. As the oldest public cemetery in Charlottesville, with interments beginning in 1777, Maplewood Cemetery is a priceless reminder of Charlottesville's rich and varied history. At least three Confederate Generals, as well as other local citizens who distinguished themselves in the Civil War, are buried in Charlottesvilles Maplewood Cemetery.

Oakwood Cemetery

Elliot Avenue & First Street SE
434-293-6789, 434-970-3589

7am-8pm

Admission Free.

As the second-oldest public cemetery in Charlottesville, with interments beginning in 1883, Oakwood Cemetery is a peaceful and welcoming space for visitors. The graves of many prominent and historic citizens are here.

Vineyards & Wineries

Jefferson Vineyards

1353 Thomas Jefferson Parkway,

located on Hwy 53 between Monticello and Ash Lawn-Highland.

800-272-3042, 434-977-3042

Daily, 11 am to 5 pm; tours on the hour between noon and 4 pm.
Admission Free. Fee charged for tastings.

When Thomas Jefferson and Italian Filippo Mazzei decided to establish a vineyard, they chose the land between Monticello and Ash-Lawn the site of present day Jefferson Vineyards.

First Colony Winery

1650 Harris Creek Road

434-979-7105

11am-5pm.

Open daily, closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day.

Admission Free.

Complimentary tours and tastings are offered at the winery. Five Wines are produced: Chardonnay, Vidal Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Oakencroft Vineyard & Winery

1486 Oakencroft Lane

434-296-4188

Open daily, April to December, 11-5, January and February by appointment, March weekends only 11-5.

Admission Charged. (Tasting fees)

Spectacular views of the Blue Ridge Mountains are seen from the vineyards. A lake, home to five species of waterfowl, fronts the Winery Courtyard. Wines: Countryside White, Blush, Chardonnay, Cabernet, and Merlot.

McGuffey Art Center

210 Second Street, NW

Tues-Sat, 10am-5pm.; Sun., 1-5pm. Closed Mondays.

Holiday closing schedule: New Years Eve/Day, July 4th, Last two weeks in August, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve/Day.
434-295-7973

Admission Free.

The McGuffey Art Center is a co- operative, non-profit organization that has been in existence since 1975 and is housed in the former McGuffey Elementary School building. The schoolrooms were transformed into forty studios, three galleries, and a gift shop All studios are open 17.5 hours per week in order for the public to observe work in progress.

Old Hardware Store Building

316 E. Main Street, Historic Downtown Mall
434-977-1518

Call for hours of operation.

Admission Free.

This Charlottesville landmark since 1895 is now an exciting complex of boutiques, restaurants, and art and exhibition galleries.

Fortune's Cove Preserve

490 Westfield Road
434-295-6106

Open daily, dawn to dusk, year-round.

Admission Free

Fortune's Cove Preserve (The Nature Conservancy) provides a challenging hike that rewards visitors with stunning mountain vistas. Fortune's Cove straddles Virginia's Piedmont and Blue Ridge. Here, these two ecological regions meet to form a unique collection of flora from both areas. The 5.5-mile loop trail climbs steeply from the parking area, gaining some 1,500 feet in elevation before reaching its highest point. Hikers should be in good physical condition and should allow six hours to complete the entire loop. A gravel parking area and kiosk with trail map are at the preserve entrance; there are no restrooms.

Thomas Jefferson Parkway and Kemper Park

Located on Route 53 (100 yards from Route 20S).

434-984-9822

Daily, sunrise to sunset.

Admission Free.

Visitors are invited to stroll along the Thomas Jefferson Parkway located on Route 53. The trail is 3.2 miles round-trip on a gentle grade. Limited parking is available at the base of Route 53.

Rivanna River

Winds through Albemarle County, the City of Charlottesville and Fluvanna County. Access points include U.S. 29 Bridge at South Fork, Darden Towe Park, Riverview Park (fishing), Palmyra and Columbia (at James River).

434-293-6789

Admission Free.

The beautiful and gentle Rivanna River flows through Albemarle and Fluvanna counties as well as the City of Charlottesville. Named for Queen Anne of England, the Rivanna is home to countless birds, fish, turtles and other creatures, as well as providing a wonderful place for human residents to fish, canoe, swim and boat. The river begins about six miles northeast of Charlottesville where the North and South Forks of the river are joined, and flows about 42 miles to Columbia where it joins the mighty James River. The Rivanna is considered safe for canoes in winter, spring and early summer, with few hazards, and no whitewater.

Hardware River

Carter's Bridge on Route 20 south
434-293-6789

Admission Free.

The Hardware River begins about 15 miles south of Charlottesville, just above the Route 20 Bridge. The Hardware flows south for 26 miles to join the James River just above Bremo Bluff. Typically, canoeists divide the trip into two sections, the first being from Route 20 at Carter Bridge to the Temperance Wayside at Route 6, and the second being from the Temperance Wayside at Route 6 to the James River at the take-out bridge.

The Hardware River is rich in wildlife, including deer, turkey, fish and a variety of other birds and mammals. The banks are mostly tree-lined and shady, with the high clay banks so typical of Piedmont streams. Though often crossed by roads, the traveler is certain to enjoy the peace and quiet afforded by the river.