>>> [log in to unmask] 10/24/03 08:57AM >>>
Personally, I agree with Montpelier's decision.  I work at the Octagon, a temporary home of the Madisons after the White House was burned in 1814.  Having been to Montpelier, I think the restoration will better suit the property.  The duPonts took great care of the property, but the interior of the house is drastically different from the Madison interior.  The way the rooms are configured today makes it impossible to tell the story of the Madisons.  There is little hint of the original configuration of the house.  Visitors find it very difficult to imagine the rooms as they were furnished and used by the fashionable Dolley Madison.  The Visitor Center will help to tell the full history of the house, while the house itself will better tell the story of Dolley and the "great little Madison".

Wendy Wiener


Thanks Wendy for the thoughtful response.  When I looked at the link it indicated that the Dupont's had more than doubled the size of the structure, that the donor wished to have it interpreted as the Adams' home and her family's alterations removed, that the governing body's mission was to the Adams and not the Duponts.  It sounds as though they had a thorough study conducted and I would hope that this removal and restoration would be carefully documented.  Restoration always involves choices. Here it appears that they are not out to create something that never was but that they are looking at a careful and accurate restoration.

The opinions expressed in this email are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opoinions of her employer.

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