Montpelier- James and Dolley Madison's House!

Today I went to Montpelier, the home of James and Dolley Madison in Orange, VA. I've been meaning to get myself there for a while now and it just turned out that today I could and I am glad I did!  I learned a lot about James Madison, some of which I will write about below. 

 This is the main door of the house, although it wasn't always.  The house has gone through a few phases. At first it was a duplex, then they made it into one big house, then after the Madison family sold it and the duPont family bought it, they made it a lot bigger.  But now they have it back to the original size as when the Madison's lived in it, trying to make it as authentic as possible.

 The view from the front porch!

 The front of the house!  We weren't allowed to take pictures inside the house, but it was beautiful!  They have a few original pieces of furniture and paintings that James and Dolley Madison owned which is pretty awesome! They have tried to make it look as authentic as possible.

 Me in the back of the house!

James Madison seemed like a genuinely good guy. He was a smart fellow who actually went to Princeton and was able to test out of his first year.  He learned 6 different languages while there.  He learned a 7th language later.  He read a lot and owned over 4000 books! He is known as the Father of the Constitution. It is said that he seemed a little reserved when in big crowds but when around people he knew he was more open.  He and Dolley entertained a lot of guests in their home at Montpelier and would often have 25 people sleeping over from 1 night up to 2 weeks.

 Madison's temple! He would sit here and contemplate and enjoy the view of the beautiful mountains in the distance!

 James and Dolley Madison! I must admit I did not know much about either of them before this tour. I learned that Dolley loved to entertain guests and everyone loved her. They sometimes had over 100 guests over for dinner and Dolley would remember each of their names and faces.

 I loved this butterfly!  Isn't it beautiful?!

 And this one?!

 I liked this lion in the Annie duPont garden!  It looks so sad.

 Look at that tree!

 The front stone is the grave of James and the back one is Dolley's grave.

On the grounds!

Today was  lovely day! The drive to the house, the tour of the house, the grounds, the weather were all just awesome!  I am glad that I was able to go and learn more about our 4th president and his wife.

I must say that I really like living in this area where I can go and visit the homes and buildings and sites that we read about in the history books and so much happened there. Going to Montpelier today made James and Dolley Madison more real.  They existed. They had personalities. They had imperfections.