It is not an exaggeration to say that without the Levy family, Monticello as we know it might not exist today. Sold to settle his many debts, Monticello exchanged hands several times after Thomas Jefferson’s death in 1826. By the time Uriah Levy purchased the plantation in 1836, a visitor described Monticello's condition as “dilapidation and ruin.” Watch a special Q&A with Marc Leepson, author of “Saving Monticello: The Levy Family’s Epic Quest to Rescue the House That Jefferson Built.” Mr. Leepson discusses Uriah Levy, the first Jewish commodore in the United States Navy, and how Levy’s admiration for Jefferson’s stance on religious freedom motivated his purchase and preservation of Monticello.
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