Investigations in the Drawing Room

In the Drawing Room

Last week, Susan Buck, Architectural Finishes Conservator, visited Montpelier to continue work on two ongoing projects in the drawing room (M108): the search for curtain hanging evidence and the hunt for clues about the original wallpaper.

Small wooden markers show the depth and angle of nail holes, which might have been used to secure drapery hardware.

The search for evidence of how curtains were displayed:

 One Madison era visitor mentioned the windows in the drawing room were “hung with light silken drapery.”^[1] But, how were the curtains suspended and what design did the Madisons choose?

To learn as much as possible about the drawing room curtains, we are searching for physical clues for drapery hardware. Having already eliminated the premise that the Madisons had cornices above the windows because no physical evidence survives, Dr. Buck performed additional forensic work to see whether wooden laths were nailed directly to the top of the window frame to hold the window treatments.

A Date with White House History

It’s a big deal to go to the White House. But it’s an even bigger deal to go to the White House to honor a family member. Montpelier organized a private White House visit this past Monday for Paul Jennings’ descendants. Jennings, James and Dolley Madison’s former slave, helped Dolley rescue the Gilbert Stuart Landsdowne portrait of George Washington before the British burned the White House during the War of 1812. The visit fell on the 195th anniversary of the portrait’s rescue.

This story already generated a buzz with the New York Times and Philadelphia Inquirer. So, on Monday, 27 of Jennings’ family members passed through the White House front gates, a camera crew in tow, to honor their ancestor’s heroic contribution to saving a national treasure.

President Barack Obama made headlines when he gave Queen Elizabeth II an ipod. Montpelier had its own unique gift for the President, who was on vacation at the time: a nail fashioned by Montpelier slaves, encased in a beautiful wooden box that was carved from trees at Montpelier. Michael Quinn, Montpelier’s president, and Beth Taylor, Montpelier’s research associate and Paul Jennings expert presented the gift to William G. Allman, White House curator.

Allman led the family to the East Room to see the famed Washington portrait. They also visited the Green, Blue, and Red Rooms, and State Dining Room.

After the White House visit, the VIP treatment continued with a rare opportunity to go inside the Dolley Madison House, now owned by the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Jennings is on his way to becoming a household name. Check out CBS Evening News, National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered,” The Washington Post, and Politico’s “44” blog. The Free Lance-Star also gave a great local write-up.

The Jennings descendants gather in front of the portrait their ancestor helped Dolley Madison save 195 years ago.

New York Times features article on Madison slave

Paul Jennings is on his way to becoming a household name thanks to Sunday’s New York Times article. Paul Jennings was born a slave at Montpelier and helped Dolley Madison rescue George Washington’s portrait before the British burned the White House during the War of 1812. In fact Monday, August 24 will mark the 195th anniversary of the portrait’s rescue. Jennings went on to achieve his freedom, become a prominent abolitionist and Washington D.C. resident, and work in the U.S. Pension Office.

Dr. Beth Taylor, Montpelier’s research associate has been conducting original Jennings research. Paul Jennings’ life shows a quintessentially American story, with remarkable twists and turns that reveal an extraordinary sweep of our history in one single lifetime. Through Jennings and his descendants we see the road from slavery to citizenship; the role African-Americans played in the early White House; how freed slaves came to settle and work in an integrated Washington, D.C., newly established as the nation’s capital; the complicated relationship between the Father of the Constitution and his enslaved manservant; the story of the first White House memoirist; how a Montpelier slave became an abolitionist and tried to free slaves aboard The Pearl; and how African-Americans are re-discovering their own American history. Check out The New York Times.