BLAMO RV Travels

While staying in Virginia and Maryland in April 2026, we visited the homes of three of our Presidents: James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington.

Our first stop was James Madison’s home called Montpelier in Orange, Virginia. Besides being the President, Madison is the author of the Constitution. Madison’s grandfather built a house on the property and moved into it in 1732, but it was Madison’s father who built the current house in 1764. Madison added to the home after he married Dolley beginning in 1797. We had a guided tour of the house, which has 11 rooms. On the tour we were able to see a downstairs bedroom where Madison died in 1836; his mother’s bedroom; the drawing room; his stepson’s bedroom; a guest room; and Madison’s library, where he wrote the frameworks of the U.S. Constitution. As we left the home, we saw the exhibit called The Mere Distinction of Colour; an emotional and moving exhibit about the legacy of slavery, both in America and at Montpelier. Several cabins have also been reconstructed on the property, including smokehouses and slave cabins. James Madison is buried on the grounds and we visited his gravesite.

Next, we drove to Charlottesville, Virginia, to visit the home of Thomas Jefferson, which he designed, called Monticello. Construction on the house began in 1768, with major expansions between 1796 and 1809 that doubled the size of the original house. We had a guided tour of the house, which has 43 rooms filled with Neoclassical art, French-inspired alcove beds, scientific instruments, and an extensive library collection. The entrance hall displays artifacts, including Native American items, fossil bones, and maps, intended to educate his guests. The parlor is designed as an art gallery with 57 works of art. We also saw the study where Jefferson worked on the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson died in the home on July 4, 1826. We remarked how surreal it was to be in the bedroom where the author of the Declaration of Independence died when we were about to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of that document. We then toured the exterior of the house. The land was a working plantation encompassing 5,000 acres. Jefferson had over 600 slaves during his lifetime, notably having at least six children with one of his slaves, Sally Hemming. The exhibits at Monticello do not sugar coat this controversial relationship, and our tour guide noted that because of the slave and slave-owner relationship, Sally (who was about 14 years old when it started) would not have been able to say no to sexual advances. The grounds had many different types of gardens: flower gardens, vegetable gardens, fruit gardens, and vineyards; as well as a tree grove. Mulberry Row was the 1,000-foot-long "main street" of Monticello, serving as the industrial and residential hub for dozens of enslaved and free workers. At its height, it contained over 20 structures, including workshops for woodworking, ironworking (notably a nailery), and weaving. It was the heart of slave life on the mountaintop, housing enslaved domestic workers and artisans. We were also able to walk down to the cemetery at Monticello, where Jefferson is buried along with his wife, daughter, and numerous relatives and friends.

For the third Presidential Home visit, we drove to Mount Vernon, Virginia, to visit the home of George Washington. Our first stop was the Visitor Center where we watched a short film on Mount Vernon, which lies on the banks of the Potomac River, approximately 15 miles south of Washington, D.C. The estate contained 8,000 acres when George Washington lived there. Construction on the present mansion at Mount Vernon began in approximately 1734. George became owner of the estate in 1761. George Washington expanded the house twice, once in the late 1750s and again in the 1770s. It remained Washington's home for the rest of his life. We had some time to walk around the grounds, which included several buildings and garden areas since it was a working farm. Buildings include a Stove Room, Shoemaker’s Shop, Blacksmith Shop, Spinning House, Salt House, Smokehouse, Wash House, Overseer’s House, and Slave Quarters. We also had a guided tour of the interior of the mansion, which included the front parlor, Washington’s Study, two dining rooms, the kitchen, and bedrooms (including the bedroom where Washington died of strep throat). Again, we found it surreal to be in the room where our first President died. Up the stairs to the bedrooms, we touched the bannisters that Washington, Jefferson, General Lafayette, and many others would have touched. The rooms contain some portraits and former possessions of George Washington and his family, and efforts have been made to restore the rooms and maintain the atmosphere of the 18th century. The tour included a view from the back porch of the mansion, which looks out to the Potomac River. After the tour, we walked down to the original tomb and the current tomb where George and his wife, Martha, are buried. Then we visited the Slave Memorial and graveyard. At the time of his death in 1799, George Washington held 317 enslaved people at Mount Vernon. In his will, Washington ordered that the 123 slaves he owned outright be freed upon Martha’s death. We also visited the museum on the property. The museum includes displays of hundreds of original items, including George Washington’s Revolutionary War bedstead, clothing, weapons, and ceramics. There were also extensive exhibits on the Revolutionary War.