Pursuit of Happiness

            Long before Smith Mountain Lake became a retreat/retirement destination away from the frenzy of city life, one of the United States’ most famous presidents chose this corner of Southwest Virginia to build his own private getaway in a quiet, then-remote area just outside of Lynchburg.

            In 1773, three years before he authored the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson inherited a 4,800-acre tobacco and wheat farm from his father-in-law. Jefferson didn’t begin construction on this second, more private home – a three-day ride by horse carriage from his Charlottesville home at Monticello – until 1806, when he already was president.

            Perhaps anticipating his need for "personal time and space," a craving noted by historians, Jefferson welcomed friends and guests to Monticello, but not many knew he was building a retirement retreat at Poplar Forest. And only a few close friends were ever invited to visit.

            "I have fixed myself comfortably, keep some books here, bring others occasionally, am in the solitude of a hermit and quite at leisure to attend to my absent friends," Jefferson wrote in 1811.

            He visited Poplar Forest three to four times a year, staying two weeks to two months at a time. He often was accompanied by two of his granddaughters, Cornelia and Ellen Randolph, who willingly served as hostesses for the widowed former president.

            Discovering this nearby historic site was a special treat for Moneta resident Lib Walker when she and husband Charlie retired to the SML in 1995. Passionate about history, Lib Walker answered an ad for volunteers at Jefferson’s home, recently "rescued" from encroaching development by a fledgling nonprofit group of local residents.

            Acknowledging a slight-but-possible genealogical link to the former president (her maiden name is Jefferson), Walker said she enjoys sharing details about his life and many talents with visitors to Poplar Forest.

            "It was here he enjoyed his three favorite pastimes, according to his granddaughters: reading, thinking and studying," Walker said. "Poplar Forest reflects his creativity. He was truly a man ahead of his time."

            Before he died in 1826, Jefferson had willed Poplar Forest to his grandson, Francis Eppes, who sold the home two years later. Although it was maintained as a private residence for the next 150 years, it repeatedly was remodeled and eventually fell into disrepair.

            Now owned by the Corporation for Jefferson’s Poplar Forest, a massive restoration of the home true to Jefferson’s original design has been a work in progress since 1983. Trained as a docent (tour guide), Walker accompanies groups through the home, pointing out architectural highlights, archeological findings and dozens of unusual features.

            Jefferson indulged his self-taught architectural talents by creating a unique and innovative octagon-shaped home at Poplar Forest, built on a hilltop overlooking a view of the forest, the Peaks of Otter and the frontier beyond. Uncommon in homes of the era, massive windows allowing natural light inside and integrating the interior with the outside landscape were enhanced by the symmetry of the octagonal foundation Jefferson designed.

            "My favorite room in the house is the cube-shaped dining room," Walker said. "It’s 20-feet-by-20-by-20. There’s a huge skylight and the floor is a herring bone design," she said, sharing a small sample of the information she’s learned as a docent.

            Jefferson’s fascination with geometric design is reflected in the series of elongated octagons surrounding this center cube. Walker also reveals to visitors other special features of the home, ongoing excavations, as well as information about Jefferson as a person and his talents as a landscape gardener.

            "They’ve just recently completed the ‘wing of offices’ Jefferson added to the home in 1814," Walker said, explaining the wing was actually a collection of utility rooms including a kitchen and other service areas. Archeological digs are still being studied at the site to re-create the adjoining gardens and landscape.

Located less than an hour from most parts of Smith Mountain Lake, Poplar Forest is open April through November, Wednesday through Monday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Guided house tours and self-guided grounds tours are $10 for adults, $9 for seniors and active military, $5 for youth 12 to 18 years of age; special rates for children 11 and under apply. From Moneta, take Virginia 122 north to U.S. 460. Turn left onto Route 811 (Thomas Jefferson Road) and proceed 4.4 miles. Turn right on Route 661 (Bateman Bridge Road) and proceed one mile to the Poplar Forest entrance. For more information, call 434-525-1806 or visit poplarforest.org.