|
In the famous painting, Washington Crossing the
Delaware, James Monroe is depicted as the young man behind George Washington
holding the flag. Monroe did not stay in the background for long. (He
wasn’t actually in the background on that icy crossing. Still a very young
lieutenant, Monroe wasn’t with Washington when the general crossed the river.
Monroe and Washington’s nephew, Captain William Washington, crossed the river
the day before to scout for British troops. The two young men spent the
night depicted in the painting spying on Hessian troops in the town of Trenton.)
Monroe had an illustrious career: he went on to become U.S. Senator, American
Ambassador to France, England and Spain, four-term Governor of Virginia,
Secretary of State, Secretary of War and two-term President of the United
States.
It is the young James Monroe who is remembered in
Fredericksburg. It was here that he began his legal practice after reading
law with Thomas Jefferson in Williamsburg. The Monroe Presidential
Center is in a brick building on the site where Monroe practiced law from
1786 to 1789. For many years it was thought that Monroe actually practiced law
in this building, but studies have shown it was not here prior to 1815.
Monroe probably worked in a wooden structure on this town lot which he sold for
a nice profit in 1792-93.
Inside the center you'll see reminders of Monroe's
long career of public service. Perhaps the most significant is his Louis
XVI desk. It was at this desk in 1823 that Monroe signed the message to
Congress containing the section that has become known as the Monroe Doctrine.
The desk has three secret compartments that were not discovered until 1906.
They held 200 letters Monroe received from Alexander Hamilton, Benjamin Franklin
and other statesmen of his day.
James Monroe, fifth president, was the first to
occupy the White House after it was burned by the British in 1814. Since
all the furniture had been destroyed, the Monroes had to fill the house with
their own pieces. While in France representing the United States they had
acquired a great many Louis XVI pieces of mahogany and brass. Today you
see the originals in this Fredericksburg museum. (The White House has copies,
made at Mrs. Hoover's direction in 1932.)
Among the museum's most popular exhibits are
selections of Mrs. Monroe's gowns. There is a stunning Empire-styled
velvet gown and citrine jewels that she wore to the Court of Napoleon and a
green velvet suit worn by Mr. Monroe.
For scholars the museum has an extensive library
about James Monroe and his pivotal foreign policy doctrine. A
reconstruction of a 19th-century Virginia gentleman’s library is also housed
here. You'll leave the museum through an old-fashioned walled garden with
a bronze bust of James Monroe. The bust was by Margaret French Cresson,
daughter of Daniel Chester French, who created the “sitting Lincoln” in
marble at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The Monroe Presidential Center is open 9:00
A.M. to 5:00 P.M. from March through November. From December through
February it is open 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. It is closed on Thanksgiving,
Christmas Eve and Day and New Year's Eve and Day. Admission is charged.
Directions:
From I-95 take the Fredericksburg exit and follow Route 3 east to the heart of
town. Turn right on Charles Street and you will see The Monroe Presidential
Center at 908 Charles Street.
|
