Montpelier Foundation - Lewis Hall — Local services in Orange

Montpelier was Madison's home and from the last time we were there it has been immeasurably improved. When we were there, there was a room (now in a separate building) dedicated to Marion DuPont's horses which was totally out of place with the rest of the building. The House is back to its original facade when Madison was there. Unfortunately a lot of the original furniture is gone (in part because of Madison's stepson - who was a nare-do-well.

We took an informative tour on the Constitution while viewing the house. Our guide was a retired lawyer who was well informed and interesting. He interwove a good basic history of the Constitution and Madison role in it with a description of the house. There are two other tours (one on Women and one on Slavery ) if that is your focus. The interpretive tours are $20 but well worth it.

Unfortunately, the Foundation does not allow pictures inside the house. I can see limiting photos to non-flash but there is no good reason for prohibiting us from...

Amazing!! I took my father-in-law and mother-in-law here when they were visiting from Boston. The estate and house were beautiful and well maintained, but the real icing on the cake was our fabulous tour guide, Nora. She was a wealth of information and was so passionate about James Madison, that it made me go home a research Madison for hours after our visit. It's a bit off the beaten path, but I'd highly recommend a visit, especially on a nice clear day when you can see...

Ground zero for constitutions and rights. Important to America and the world. Spectacularly beautiful scenery, extra-ordinary house museum, cutting edge archeology. Walking and running trails. Good gift shop and great book shop. Restaurant. Worth the trip from Washington DC or...