Monticello, “little mountain” in Italian, is Thomas Jefferson’s mountaintop home in Virginia overlooking the town of Charlottesville, home of the University of Virginia. Jefferson spent his childhood on the mountain, property he will inherit from his father when he is 13 years old upon his father’s death. He began designing this home in 1768 as a young man and will spend most of his life building, renovating, and improving this architectural masterpiece.

In 1987, the United Nations World Heritage Committee recognized Jefferson’s preserved home as a World Heritage Site along with the Great Wall of China, the Acropolis in Athens, and the City of Venice! Jefferson loved architecture and innovation and his home includes a “unique blend of beauty and function.” I have made the pilgrimage two times in my life and am planning a trip for 2026 to celebrate the 250th anniversary. During each visit, I was in awe of the amazing beauty of the structure along with the ingenuity of the design and the many conveniences Jefferson built into the structure.

“On the world’s stage, Monticello symbolizes how Jefferson took Enlightenment ideals about the rights of man and crafted them into a new nation introducing self-government, liberty and human equality. As the creator of both Monticello and the Declaration of Independence, he introduced world-changing ideas which have given hope to people everywhere,” said Leslie Greene Bowman, President Emerita of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation. “It’s no coincidence that every year on Independence Day, we recognize Jefferson’s authorship of our nation’s birth certificate and naturalize a class of new citizens, very thoughtfully, on the steps of Monticello.” In 2025, Ken Burns was the keynote speaker for the 4th of July ceremony in anticipation of his new series about the American Revolution, this fall. His documentary about Thomas Jefferson is available to stream and is a must-watch!