MONTICELLO, mOn-te-serld (It. Little Mountain), Virginia, the estate and residence once owned by Thomas Jefferson (q.v.), third President of the United States. It is in Albe marle County, Va., about two miles from Char lottesville. The estate was an unbroken forest in the early part of the 18th century, until in 1735 the land came into possession of the father of Thomas. Peter Jefferson, the father, and his brother-in-law decided to `ego West" and try a new country, so they left the tide-water set tlements on the James River and journeyed about 100 miles toward the west, to what is now Albemarle County, and located 20 miles east of the Blue Range and among the foot hills of the Southwest Mountains. Peter Jef ferson 'ipatentee a tract of land of about 1,000 acres. In looking over his new possession he found no site for a home, such as pleased him; his neighbor, Randolph, sold him from his tract 400 acres for "'Henry Weatherbourne's biggest bowl of arrack punch." The place was then called Shadwell, after Shadwell street in Lon don, and the country around Goochland. Thomas Jefferson was born in the old residence at Shadwell, and this house was his home for 27 years. From his boyhood his favorite spot on the estate was Little Mountain. Often he and his most intimate friend, Dabney Carr, afterward his brother-in-law, ascended the mountain in the twilight, and in the long vaca tions they studied many an hour under an oak tree, their favorite of the forest. They agreed that whichever one died first, the other would have buried under this tree, and at an early age Dabney Carr was here laid to rest. Later Jefferson, his wife, two daughters, and others of his descendants were buried in the little cemetery which was formed around this oak.
It was when Jefferson was a member of the house of burgesses of Virginia, to which he was elected in 1769, that he began the erection of his residence on the summit of the world-re nowned eminence, Monticello. (Jefferson changed the English name to the Italian, Monti cello). The Shadwell mansion was on a hill on the north bank of the Rivanna River, and Monticello is south, just where the stream cuts its channel through the outlying range of the Alleghanies, the Southwest Mountains. On the northeast Monticello has a steep rocky base, washed by the Rivanna, on the southwest is a dip of about one-third the height of the moun tain which connects it with Carter's, a higher peak Monticello is still covered by a dense growth of timber, mainly hardwood deciduous trees.
Before the residence on Monticello was com pleted, the Shadwell mansion was burned down, 1 Feb. 1770. The first building on Monticello was a brick story-and-a-half structure contain ing one good-sized .room and some smaller rooms; it still stands as the south pavilion. Here Jefferson brought his bride in 1772. He was often absent from this beloved home, but his own manuscripts, especially his garden-book, show his love for a quiet domestic life. This
same garden-book shows that in 1769 he planted a variety of fruit trees on the southeast slope of the mountain, many of them still in existence. The house was enlarged to suit the needs of the family, and in accordance with. the owner's plans. From his European journeys he brought back many new ideas, so that the architecture of the house is somewhat complex. It has the appearance of an Italian villa, with a Greek portico, and considerable of the features of Colonial architecture. The Marquis de Chas tellux in a book of travels mentions a visit to Monticello in 1782, and says of Jefferson: CHe is the first American who has consulted the fine arts to know how to shelter himself from the weather." Architecture in America has ad vanced since that time. Some of the plans, drawn by Jefferson himself, are still in exist ence. The part of the home that was to last was made of good material and possessed a cer tain elegance, but the furniture was most simple. His last days saw the estate of Monticello so deeply in debt that it was feared he would have to end his life an exile from his beloved moun tain. He sacrificed some of his estate hoping to save the residence and some land for his daugh ter. His friends assisted him so the estate was not lost to the Jefferson heirs until after his death; it had been his home for 56 years. No debt was allowed to defame the name of Jeffer son; Thomas Jefferson Randolph, the grandson, and his daughters paid every dollar of debt their eminent ancestor owed after Monticello had been sold. The great-granddaughters kept a school to assist their father in paying this debt. Ten years after Jefferson's death, Monti cello was purchased by U. P. Levy, U. S. N., who bequeathed it to the nation. His will was contested and Jefferson M. Levy, New York congressman, bought off the other heirs, and restored the building and estate to their original condition. From 1912 a campaign conducted by Mrs. Martin W. Littleton was carried on to induce the government to purchase theprop erty as of national interest. It was finally bought for $500,000, the owner stipulating that it should be used only by Presidents of the United States as a Virginia home and not con verted into a museum. Consult 'Century Magazine,) Vol. XII, p, 643, article by Nicolay, 'Monticello; Home of Jefferson' ; Craighill, 'The Virginia Peerage' ; Foote, 'Sketches from Old Virginia.> rnOn'te nyesiir-san'be, Belgium, town in the province Hainaut, located on the Sambre 30 miles south of Brussels and on the Lodelinsart-Givet Rail way. It is the centre of a coal mining industry and has manufactures of ovens, machinery, steel ware, etc. Its population in 1910 was 21,748.
MONTIJO, Eugenie-Marie de.
See EUGENIE, EMPRESS OF THE FRENCH.