Experience Monticello

What's Happening

Step into the fascinating and complex world of Monticello, Thomas Jefferson’s mountaintop home and plantation.

Natural holiday decorations on the mantle in Monticello's Parlor

November-December

Get Ready for the Holidays at Monticello

From wreath-making workshops to our evening tours of Monticello, we have a variety of stories and traditions to share as we celebrate the 2024 holiday season.

Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

Thomas Jefferson

Get to know Thomas Jefferson—author of the Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, third president of the United States, and founder of the University of Virginia.

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The House and Gardens

Monticello is the autobiographical masterpiece of Thomas Jefferson—designed and redesigned and built and rebuilt for more than forty years. Its gardens were a botanic showpiece, a source of food, and an experimental laboratory of ornamental and useful plants from around the world.

Slavery at Monticello

Thomas Jefferson enslaved over six hundred people throughout his life. Learn about the men, women, and children who lived and labored on this plantation.