The Washington times., 1935-07-20
NOW
Dolly MadisOn'S
Historic Home
MONTPELIER
BY HELEN ESSARY

genuine and personal, and
feminine wit and initiative are
esteemed as highly as masculine
craftsmanship, is Montpelier,
which James Madison, the fifth
President, built for his vivaciouS
wife, Dolly. Montpelier is
owned now by Mrs. Thomas
Somerville, daughter Of William
Dupont.
So brilliant a person was
Dolly Madison that whatever
she touched became absorbed
by her personality. The fine
mansion, with the lovely view
of mountains and valleys and
the enhancing garden, is re-
ferred to by old VirginianS and
curious tourists who peer
through the closed entrance, not
as the place where James Madi-
son rested between terms Of
public office and retired when
his term as President was fin
ished, nor as the residence OF
the Somervilles, but as Dolly
Madison's house"
It was Dolly who persuaded
James Madison to remodel the
house he had inherited from
his father. 1t was Dolly who
beguiled L'Enfant, a young
Frenchman in the suite Of
General Lafayette, when he
visited this country, to make
plan for a garden at Montpelier.
LEnfant suggested that the gar
den be laid out according to the
House of Representatives.
There were to be aisles lead.
ing to a rostrum or chair. The
aisles and the chair were to be
of box. The terraces besides
the aisles we're to be softly
graded and formed of deep grass
and flowers-these, the seats of
the Representatives. At the
back were to be willows and tall
shrubs and taller trees-these
the galleries of the House.
And. so the garden was made.
And so it is now, only grown
more exquisite with age and
care.
On the front and sides of the
house are low sweeps Of green
turf. An aisle of forest trees
leads past a Grecian temple. Be-
meath the floor Of the temple is
a glorified ice house designed by
Thomas Jefferson and the first
in Virginia.
During the year of his cleo
ton as President, James Madi-
son undertook the alteration Of
his fathers old house. The orig
inal grant for the land on which
it stood had been part Of a
patent Of 5000 acres issued in
1882 to Ambrose Madison, his
grandfather.
Dolly had spent much time in
Washington since her marriage
to Madison. While her husband
was Secretary of State to Presi-
dent jefferson, she had acted
often as Mr.. Jefferson's hostess
and had presided at many Of
ficial gatherings.
She wanted Montpelier to be
changed so that fine parties
could be held there. William
Thorton, the architect of the
Capitol and of many fine man.
sions, was called into consulta-
ton. Likewise, Benjamin La
trobe, another architect. Soon
i the house was enlarged and
made into a fine residence of
the best American Georgian
type.
7 Mr.. Madison always found life
very real and very earnest, if
Dolly did not. He seems to
have labored heavily over the
changes at Montpelier. And to
Thomas jefferson, whose gov
ernmental doctrines he followed
so concisely, he turned for ad-
vice on such difficult problems
as where to obtain "lathing
nails."s
Nails were rare in the new
country. Mr.. jefferson, who
was a determined inventor,
had set up a machine at his
home, Monticello, for the pri-
Vate manufacture of nails.
| However, Mr.. Madison did
not get his nails from Mr..
Jefferson. He asked his Vice
President, James Monroe, to
look about Philadelphia for
some. Also for window glass
and chord for the pullies." Mr..
jefferson, when he was in
Philadelphia, loved browsing
about Market Street and he,
too, was begged to search
carefully through builders and
hardware shops for the latest
improvement for Montpelier"
J To the obliging Mr.. Monroe,
Mr.. Madison wrote in stately
language that he was sending
o wagon to receive the few ar
ticles which you have been
good enough to offer from the
superfluities of your stock, and
which circumstance will permit
me to lay in"
The restoration of the man.
sion at Montpelier by Mr.. du
Pont has spoiled the graceful
symmetry Of the original struc-
ture. The wings have been
raised a story and brought up
to the level of the center
structure.
Now the mansion is just a
big house, like any other big