Monticello - Thomas Jefferson Country Tour

 Monticello is an autobiographical masterpiece of Thomas Jefferson's life. The home was designed, redesigned and built by Jefferson for over forty years. Within that time, Jefferson also rebuilt and remodeled the home numerous times as well.  It was here at Monticello that Jefferson featured his own museum of American natural history, created several different inventions, raised a family, and much more. Jefferson's personal library of over 6,000 books was sold to Congress in 1815 to form the basis for the Library of Congress, but each one of those books was housed right in the bookroom of Monticello.

The gardens, grounds and plantation area of the home are unique as well. The gardens provided a source of food as well as a botanical laboratory. Jefferson's vegetable garden featured over 330 vegetable varieties in a 1000 foot long garden terrace. The fruit gardens featured over 170 fruit varieties in two orchards featuring apples, grapes and peaches. The Monticello plantation is over 5,000 acres; a center of agriculture and industry.