Uriah P . Levy Uriah Phillips Levy ( April 22 , 1792 – March 26 , 1862 ) was a naval officer , real estate investor , and philanthropist . He was a veteran of the War of 1812 and the first Jewish Commodore of the United States Navy . He was instrumental in helping to end the Navy ' s practice of flogging , and during his half - century - long service prevailed against the antisemitism he faced among some of his fellow naval officers . An admirer of Thomas Jefferson , Levy purchased and began the restoration of Monticello in the 1830s ; he also commissioned and donated a statue of Jefferson that is now located in the Capitol Rotunda ; it is the only privately commissioned artwork in the Capitol . Early years . Levy was born on April 22 , 1792 , in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania to Michael and Rachel Phillips Levy . He had two older siblings . Uriah Levy was close to his maternal grandfather , Jonas Phillips , who had emigrated to the United States in 1756 from Germany , and fought with the Philadelphia militia in the American Revolution . His maternal great - great grandfather , Dr . Samuel Riberio Nunez , a Portuguese physician , was among a group of 42 Sephardic Jews who escaped the Spanish Inquisition of the early 16th century and migrated to England , where they settled . Descendants of that group sailed from London in 1733 and helped found the city of Savannah , Georgia , where they lived for generations . Levy ' s younger brother was Jonas Phillips Levy , who became a merchant and sea captain . He was the father of five , including the Congressman Jefferson Monroe Levy . Family stories have it that Levy ran away from home at the age of ten and ended up serving on various vessels as a cabin boy , returning home to Philadelphia at age 13 for his bar mitzvah . Career . In 1806 , he apprenticed as a sailor . Later he became a sailing master in the U . S . Navy , and fought in the Barbary Wars . At the age of 21 , he volunteered for the War of 1812 , in which he was a supernumerary sailing master on the , which interdicted British ships in the English Channel . The " Argus " seized more than 20 vessels before being captured ; her captain was killed , and the crew , including Levy , were taken prisoner . They were imprisoned by Great Britain for sixteen months until the end of the war . During his captivity , Levy had difficulty obtaining a subsidy and parole because his status as a supernumerary was not understood by the British Transport Board . Upon return to the United States , Levy served aboard the as second master . Levy was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in 1817 , master commandant in 1837 , and captain in 1844 . During his tenure in the U . S . Navy , Levy faced considerable antisemitism . He reacted to slights and was court - martialed six times , and once demoted from the rank of Captain . Twice , he was dismissed from the Navy , but reinstated . He defended his conduct in his handling of naval affairs before a Court of Inquiry and in 1855 was restored to his former position . Later , Levy commanded the Mediterranean fleet . He was promoted to the rank of Commodore , then the highest rank in the U . S . Navy . Levy was instrumental in abolishing flogging in the U . S . Navy , although his position was considered controversial at the time . He also helped gain the support of the U . S Congress in passing an anti - flogging bill in 1850 . Levy became wealthy due to investing in New York City ' s real estate market . Philanthropic activities . Levy undertook various philanthropic endeavors , many of which were in support of Jewish - American life . In 1854 he sponsored the new Jewish seminary of the Bnai Jeshurun Educational Institute in New York . In 1833 , New York City gave Levy the Key to the City after he presented the city with a patinated plaster statue of Thomas Jefferson , the one used to cast the bronze version he gave to the U . S . Congress . Before the statue was set up in New York City Hall , Levy installed it in a building on Broadway and charged admission to view it . The proceeds were used to buy bread for the city ' s poor . Monticello . Levy was a great admirer of Thomas Jefferson : " I consider Thomas Jefferson to be one of the greatest men in history , the author of the Declaration and an absolute democrat . He serves as an inspiration to millions of Americans . He did much to mould our Republic in a form in which a man ' s religion does not make him ineligible for political or governmental life . " In 1834 , Levy paid $ 2 , 700 for the 218 - acre Monticello — which is equivalent to $ in today ' s dollars . Levy undertook to have the long - neglected home repaired , restored , and preserved . He also bought hundreds of additional acres that had been part of the plantation . Levy never made Monticello his permanent residence , as his Navy career and business commitments kept him primarily in New York . He used Monticello as a vacation home and moved his widowed mother , Rachel Levy , there in 1837 . She became the steward of the estate until her death in 1839 . She is buried along Mulberry Row , the 1000 - foot - long main plantation street adjacent to the mansion . In his will , Levy left Monticello to the American people to be used as an agricultural school for the orphans of Navy warrant officer s . Upon his death in 1862 , however , Congress refused to accept the donation due to the American Civil War . During the war , the Confederate government seized and sold the property . Levy ' s lawyers for his estate recovered the property after the war . Following two lawsuits by family members over Levy ' s will , with 47 parties to the suit , in 1879 his nephew Jefferson Monroe Levy bought out the other heirs for $ 10 , 050 , and took control of Monticello . The war and lengthy lawsuits had caused further neglect . Jefferson Levy also spent an enormous amount of money repairing , restoring and preserving Monticello . He sold it in 1923 to a private non - profit group , the Thomas Jefferson Foundation ( then called the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation ) , which adapted the home and associated property as a museum . It began additional restoration and preservation work as well . The history of the Levy family ' s role in preserving Monticello was downplayed by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation through much of the 20th century . Historians believe that is due to anti - Semitic views among its board and members , although the Levys had roots in the South since 1733 . Not until the 1980s were the facts rediscovered about the critical private roles of two Levy men in preserving and restoring Monticello for the American public . In 1985 , the Thomas Jefferson Foundation restored the gravesite of Rachel Levy and recognized descendants of the family in a special ceremony . Since then , officials have created additional occasions to welcome members of the Levy family . The Foundation now openly celebrates Uriah P . Levy ' s role in helping restore a landmark of Virginia and United States ' history . It includes information on site about his and his nephew Jefferson Monroe Levy ' s roles in preserving the presidential home . Jefferson statue . In another tribute to Jefferson , Levy commissioned a bronze statue of the President while studying naval tactics in France ; he donated it to Congress in 1834 . T . The statue , which currently stands in the Capitol Rotunda is the only privately commissioned piece of artwork in the Capitol . Personal life . Levy served as the first president of the Washington Hebrew Congregation in Washington , DC . At the age of 61 , Levy married his 18 - year - old niece Virginia Lopez . Levy died on March 26 , 1862 , and was buried in Beth Olom Cemetery , Queens , associated with the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue .