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The Land is Recieved By Ambrose Madison
In 1723 he received a patent for 4,675 acres in the largely untouched Piedmont region, he sent a group of slaves and an overseer to begin clearing the land and planting tobacco. -
Madison Family Moves In
Ambrose and his wife, Frances Taylor Madison, arrive with their three children. The family called the plantation Mount Pleasant. -
James Madison Sr. Inherits the Plantation
In 1741 James would inherit the plantation after his mother and father died. He would add several new crops, a large blacksmith shop, a brandy distillery, and a store to sell goods to neighbors. -
James Madison Sr. Welcomes New People
In 1749 James Madison Sr. married Nelly Conway and in 1751 they had their first child, James Madison Jr. a man whose ideas would shape a nation not yet born. -
James Madison Jr. Leaves Mount Pleasant
In 1761 James Madison Jr. would leave Montpelier to study at the highly respected school of Donald Robertson in King and Queen County. During this time he embraced mathematics, geography, and languages, both ancient and modern. In 1769 he would attend the College of New Jersey (Now know as Princeton University). -
Main House Is Built
In 1764 the main Montpelier house we know today was built. It had 493 square feet. It had a Parlor, Dining Room, Chamber, and a Back Room. -
Mount Pleasant is Renamed
The first recorded use of the name comes from a 1781 James Madison letter. Madison personally liked the French spelling of the name Montpellier. The city of Montpellier, France was a famous resort. But to this day we don't know who renamed it. Or even why it is spelled with one L instead of two. -
Montpelier Gets Renovations
The renovations begun in 1797 soon after James Madison Jr. lost the 1796 presidential election to John Adams. He decided to move him and his wife to Montpelier. These additions include another dining room, another chamber, and a portico. The portico was used to bring together the 2 "pieces" of the house. -
More Renovations
James Madison would inherit the the plantation after his fathers death in 1801. In 1808 (The year James Madison was elected) even more renovations were added. This time it would be two wings added to both sides and a colonnade added to the back of the house. He also added a main doorway to the house. -
Montpelier Gets A New Family
In 1844 after James Madison's death in 1836 Dolly Madison (James's wife) sold Montpelier out of the Madison family after she decided to move permanently to Washington, D.C. Montpelier was sold to a ton of people but in 1901 it was bought by a man by the name of William duPont. The duPonts would make the most significant post Madison-era changes to Montpelier. -
The duPont's BIG Plans
Starting in 1901, the duPonts undertook a massive renovation campaign that would double the size of Montpelier and make major changes to the interior. -
The Huge Renovations are Completed
In 1910 the duPont renovations would be completed. They built a large, two story kitchen wing to the northern end of the house. On the interior they added several large parlors and bedrooms as well as extensive staff housing on the northern end of the house and in the garret. The duPonts would also replace both interior stairs, and subdivide rooms -
The duPonts Exit
William duPont owned Montpelier until his death in 1928 and at his death his daughter Marion duPont Scott inherited the estate. She would make many significant changes to the landscape around the mansion, including the existing steeplechase track found in front of the mansion. -
The National Trust for Historic Preservation
After Marion duPont Scott's death in 1983, Montpelier was passed to the National Trust for Historic Preservation (although they would not take possession until 1984). The goal was to turn Montpelier back to its Madison-era appearance. The restoration began in 2004 and was completed in 2009. From then Montpelier has been open to the public.
