On the same day we went to Lynchburg, we visited Poplar Forest, Thomas Jefferson's plantation house which he designed and treated as a private retreat. Jefferson built this house as a place to escape the hordes of visitors at Monticello and seek the "solitude of a hermit". He worked on the house continuously from 1806 until he died 20 years later, and once wrote in a letter, "It is the most valuable of my possessions". In 1773 Jefferson inherited this land, 4800 acres in all, from his father-in-law John Wayles. The property was eventually bequeathed to Jefferson's grandson who sold it in 1828 to move to Florida. Over the years, and under the influence of many different owners, the house underwent numerous alterations and the plantation's area was incrementally reduced to 50 acres before being taken over by the Corporation for Jefferson's Poplar Forest. The house is in part now surrounded by suburban subdivisions. By 2014 over 600 acres of the original plantation was purchased back by the corporation to provide a landscape easement for the house from further subdivision encroachment. During our visit we were led on a guided tour of the inside of the house which is undergoing a complete restoration to return the plantation to the same conditions that existed during Jefferson's time. This even includes using the same construction techniques that were used in that era, and as you can imagine, this is a very long term project. Although not as magnificent as Monticello, his primary residence in Charlottesville, this was nonetheless a worthy visit and another glimpse into the private life of Thomas Jefferson.
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