Forest in Bedford County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Crafting a Masterpiece, Longing for Home

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, May 17, 2022

1. Crafting a Masterpiece, Longing for Home Marker

Inscription.

Crafting a Masterpiece, Longing for Home. . Except for Jefferson himself, no one deserves more credit for the ornate character of the retreat house than his enslaved craftsman John Hemings. He apprenticed as a joiner under James Dinsmore, an Irish immigrant. "There is nothing superior in the US," Jefferson wrote of the skills of the two men., Hemings' first trip to Poplar Forest to work on Jefferson's retreat house was in 1816, his last in 1825. In 1819 he worked here for several months, leaving his beloved wife, Priscilla, at Monticello. He kept busy reconstructing the skylight, which was destroyed in a hailstorm, constructing shutters and hanging doors., Because Hemings was literate, Jefferson could convey instructions directly to him and get updates. On November 27, 1819, Jefferson wrote: “Write to me every Wednesday, and put your letter the same day into the post office of New London or Lynchburg and it will be sure to be in Charlottesville on Saturday evening.”, As the end of the year approached, Hemings wrote about installing doors inside the house: “l have got new jambs of 2 inches thickness and flush them out to repare both door and sash I have put up the jambs and the architraves.” But he missed his wife and was eager to return home, writing to Jefferson “l still keep the Day in vue of seting out from Poplar forest for Monticello.”, The first known correspondence between Jefferson and Hemings began in 1819. That same year the Virginia General Assembly passed a law discouraging slave literacy by prohibiting "any school or schools for teaching [enslaved people] reading or writing, either in the day or night. " We don't know who taught Hemings to read and write., (caption) , 1) Thomas Jefferson Drawing, Poplar Forest, specifications for the roof in Jefferson 's handwriting, ca. 1819, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library , 2) From Thomas Jefferson to John Hemings, 27 November 1819. Collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society. , 3) From John Hemings to Thomas Jefferson, 8 December 1819. Collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society.

Except for Jefferson himself, no one deserves more credit for the ornate character of the retreat house than his enslaved craftsman John Hemings. He apprenticed as a joiner under James Dinsmore, an Irish immigrant. "There is nothing superior in the US," Jefferson wrote of the skills of the two men.

Hemings' first trip to Poplar Forest to work on Jefferson's retreat house was in 1816, his last in 1825. In 1819 he worked here for several months, leaving his beloved wife, Priscilla, at Monticello. He kept busy reconstructing the skylight, which was destroyed in a hailstorm, constructing shutters and hanging doors.

Because Hemings was literate, Jefferson could convey instructions directly to him and get updates. On November 27, 1819, Jefferson wrote: “Write to me every Wednesday, & put your letter the same day into the post office of New London or Lynchburg & it will be sure to be in Charlottesville on Saturday evening.”

As the end of the year approached, Hemings wrote about installing doors inside the house: “l have got new jambs of 2 inches thickness & flush them out to repare both door & sash I have put up the jambs

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and the architraves.” But he missed his wife and was eager to return home, writing to Jefferson “l still keep the Day in vue of seting out from Poplar forest for Monticello.”

The first known correspondence between Jefferson and Hemings began in 1819. That same year the Virginia General Assembly passed a law discouraging slave literacy by prohibiting "any school or schools for teaching [enslaved people] reading or writing, either in the day or night. " We don't know who taught Hemings to read and write.

(caption)
1) Thomas Jefferson Drawing, Poplar Forest, specifications for the roof in Jefferson 's handwriting, ca. 1819, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library
2) From Thomas Jefferson to John Hemings, 27 November 1819. Collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society.
3) From John Hemings to Thomas Jefferson, 8 December 1819. Collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society.

Erected by Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, Daughters of the American Revolution.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Architecture. In addition, it is included in

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, May 17, 2022

2. Crafting a Masterpiece, Longing for Home Marker

the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1819.

Location. 37° 20.84′ N, 79° 15.89′ W. Marker is in Forest, Virginia, in Bedford County. It can be reached from the intersection of Poplar Forest Drive and Foxhall Drive, on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1542 Bateman Bridge Road, Forest VA 24551, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southwest Virginia.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: “I have this summer built a wing of offices...” (within shouting distance of this marker); Mounds Made of Ideas and Sweat (within shouting distance of this

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marker); Poplar Forest Planting Memorandum 1812 (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Transforming a Plantation into a Private Retreat, 1806—1826 (about 300 feet away); Plantation Worker Housing (about 400 feet away); "A Culture Productive of Infinite Wretchedness” (about 400 feet away); St. Stephen's Church (approx. 2.4 miles away); Samuel Miller (approx. 3.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Forest.

Other markers no longer nearby. What happened to Poplar Forest after Jefferson's death? (was here, next to this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Why is the lawn sunken? (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Why build the mounds? (was within shouting distance of this marker but has been replaced with another marker now near it); Commemorating Lewis and Clark (was about 300 feet away but has been replaced with another marker now near it); How was the landscape partitioned? (was about 400 feet away but has been replaced with another marker now near it).

Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. Old Marker At This Location titled "What happened to Poplar Forest after Jefferson's death?".

Also see . . . Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest. (Submitted on May 18, 2022.)

Credits. This page was last revised on May 19, 2022. It was originally submitted on May 18, 2022, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 424 times since then and 10 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 18, 2022, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.