Today we traveled back in time to visit the 18th century. We dined at a 228 year old tavern and toured the home of the third President of the United States.
Michie Tavern
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| Michie Tavern |
We had a late start for the day when we drove to
Charlottesville, Virginia to have lunch at the historic Michie (pronounced
Mickey) Tavern. The tavern offered us a real southern buffet consisting of fried chicken, homemade mashed potatoes and gravy, black-eyed peas, mashed sweet potatoes, green beans, cole claw, whole baby beets, cornbread, and biscuits.
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| We Meet Our Hostess and Waitress |
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| This is a Great Lunch |
William Michie established Michie Tavern, a Virginia historic
landmark, in 1784. The Tavern served as
the social center of its community and provided travelers with food, drink, and
lodging. It remained in operation, in the Michie family, until 1910, when it
came to be owned by the Commonwealth of Virginia. In 1927, the tavern was
purchased by the Josephine Henderson, who had it moved seventeen miles from
Earlysville, Virginia to its present location, close to Thomas Jefferson’s home, Monticello.
After dining, we had an opportunity to explore some of the shops on the Michie Tavern site.
Monticello
After our lunch at Michie Tavern, we traveled to Monticello to visit with the ghost of Thomas Jefferson.
Monticello was the
primary home of Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, who
began designing and building Monticello at age 26 after inheriting land from
his father. The plantation is located
just outside Charlottesville, Virginia, on top of a hill Jefferson explored as a child, very near the current Interstate 64
highway. The plantation was originally 5,000 acres
with Jefferson using slaves for extensive cultivation of tobacco and mixed
crops. He later shifted to wheat in response to changing
markets.
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| President Jefferson's Monticello |
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| President Thomas Jefferson Watches Over Monticello |
Jefferson, a self-taught architect, designed the main house
using principles described by Italian Renaissance architect Andrea
Palladio. Jefferson subsequently
reworked the design through much of his presidency to include design elements
popular in late 18th-century Europe and integrating numerous of his own design
solutions. The name Monticello derives
from the Italian for “little mountain.” The
plantation was Jefferson’s home from 1770 until his death in 1826.
Supper
We wrapped up our day with a dinner of heavy hors d'oeuvres prepared by food team 3. Thank you to Don & Norma P., Ron & Shirley L., and Art & Rita C.
