by Andrea Wulf
ILLUSTRATION CREDITS
Once again I would like to thank the Wellcome Library, London, for their (almost free) database and for digitalizing some more illustrations to use in this book, and the Linnean Society of London, for waiving the reproduction fees for the illustrations from their collection. Many other organizations and individuals listened to my pleas and generously provided their illustrations at a discount, for which I’m very grateful.
Prologue:
p.1 Benjamin Franklin, engraving by E. Savage after a painting by David Martin, 1767. Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
Chapter 1:
1.1 Plan of Mount Vernon by Samuel Vaughan, 1787. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
Chapter 2:
2.1 The Temple of Modern Virtue and The Temple of Antient Virtue at Stowe. A Description of the Gardens of Lord Viscount Cobham at Stow in Buckinhamshire, by B. Seeley, 1749. Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
2.2 The Temple of British Worthies at Stowe. A Description of the Gardens of Lord Viscount Cobham at Stow in Buckinhamshire, by B. Seeley, 1749. Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
Chapter 3:
3.1 A Draught of John Bartram’s House and Garden as it appears from the River, 1758. Watercolor on paper by William Bartram. © Earl of Derby.
Chapter 4:
4.1 View on Lake George, N.Y., Currier & Ives, 1866. Prints and Photographs Division, DLC.
Chapter 5:
5.1 View of the Residence of John Adams and John Quincy Adams, Presidents of the United States, drawing by Eliza Susan Quincy, c. 1831. Courtesy of the Adams National Historical Park.
Chapter 6:
6.1 Thomas Jefferson, Plan of the Federal District, 1791. Thomas Jefferson Papers, Manuscript Division, DLC.
6.2 William Thornton, Sketch of the White House, c. 1793–1805. Prints and Photographs Division, DLC.
Chapter 7:
7.1 Meriwether Lewis, photographic print, c. 1903. Prints and Photographs Division, DLC.
7.2 View on the Potomac near Harpers Ferry, Currier & Ives, c. 1866. Prints and Photographs Division, DLC.
Chapter 8:
8.1 Thomas Jefferson’s drawing of fields at Monticello, HM 9396. Reproduced with permission of The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.
Chapter 9:
9.1 Model cottage in the Communications of the Board of Agriculture, 1797, volume 1.
COLOR PLATES
bm3.1 Magnolia virginiana, Mark Catesby’s Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1731–1748). Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
bm3.2 George Washington, by Gilbert Stuart, oil on canvas, 1797. Reproduced with permission of The White House Historical Association (White House Collection).
bm3.3 John Adams, by Mather Brown, 1788. Reproduced with permission of The Boston Athenaeum.
bm3.4 Thomas Jefferson, by Rembrandt Peale, 1805, oil on canvas. Accession no. 1867.306, Collection of The New-York Historical Society.
bm3.5 James Madison, by Catherine A. Drinker after Gilbert Stuart, 1875. Reproduced with permission of Independence National Historical Park.
bm3.6 West Façade of Mount Vernon, attributed to Edward Savage, c. 1792. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
bm3.7 East Façade of Mount Vernon, attributed to Edward Savage, c. 1792. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
bm3.8 Magnolia tripetala, Mark Catesby’s Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1731–1748). Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
bm3.9 Chionanthus virginicus, Mark Catesby’s Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1731–1748). Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
bm3.10 State-House Garden, Philadelphia, by William Birch, from The City of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania North America: as it appeared in the Year 1800. Courtesy of Monticello/Thomas Jefferson Foundation.
bm3.11 George Washington at Bartram’s Garden, reprint from Calendar, The Philadelphia Bulletin Historical Series No. 23, 1929, after a painting by Jean Leon Jerome Ferris.
bm3.12 Franklinia alatamaha, F. Andrew Michaux, The North American Sylva, or a description of the forest trees, of the United States, Canada and Nova Scotia (1819). Reproduced with permission of the Linnean Society, London.
bm3.13 View of Hudson River, by William Winstanely, c. 1793. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
bm3.14 Acer saccharum, F. Andrew Michaux, The North American Sylva, or a description of the forest trees, of the United States, Canada and Nova Scotia (1819). Reproduced with permission of the Linnean Society, London.
bm3.15 John Adams’s house, drawing by E. Malcom, 1798. Courtesy of the Adams National Historical Park.
bm3.16 Life of George Washington: The Farmer, Claude Regnier, after Junius Brutus Stearns, 1853. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
bm3.17 Plan of the City of Washington, Pierre L’Enfant, 1791. Maps and Geography Division, DLC.
bm3.18 Plan of the White House Garden, probably Henry Benjamin Latrobe with additions by Jefferson, c. 1807. Maps and Geography Division, DLC.
bm3.19 George Town and Federal City, or City of Washington, by T. Cartwright after George Beck, 1801. Prints and Photographs Division, DLC.
bm3.20 Robinia hispida, Mark Catesby’s Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1731–1748). Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
bm3.21 Liriodendron tulipifera, Mark Catesby’s Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1731–1748). Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
bm3.22 Kalmia angustifolia, Mark Catesby’s Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands (1731–1748). Reproduced with permission of the Wellcome Library, London.
bm3.23 The Passage of the Pato’k thro’ the blew mountain at the confluence of that river with the Shan’h, by George Beck, 1796. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
bm3.24 Natural Bridge, copy after William Roberts, by Joseph Constantine Stadler, 1808. Courtesy of Monticello/Thomas Jefferson Foundation.
bm3.25 Monticello, West Front and Garden, by Jane Pitford Braddick Peticolas, 1825. Courtesy of Monticello/Thomas Jefferson Foundation.
bm3.26 View from Monticello looking towards Charlottesville, by Jane Pitford Braddick Peticolas, 1825. Courtesy of Monticello/Thomas Jefferson Foundation.
bm3.27 Montpelier. Watercolor by William Thornton, 1802. Private collection.
bm3.28 Montpelier at the time of Madison’s retirement. The Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, University of Virginia, rendered by Chad Keller, 2010.
MAPS
app.1 Mount Vernon, modern map of the historic landscape, c. 1786. Courtesy of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, rendered by Curt Breckenridge, 2010.
app.2 Adams Seat in Quincy, modern map of the historic landscape, 1787. Courtesy of the Adams National Historical Park.
app.3 Monticello, modern map of the historic landscape, c. 1809. Courtesy of Monticello/Thomas Jefferson Foundation, rendered by Derek Wheeler, 2010.
app.4 Monticello, modern map of the historic landscape, c. 1809. Courtesy of Monticello/Thomas Jefferson Foundation, rendered by Derek Wheeler, 2010.
app.5 Montpelier, modern map of the historic landscape, 1818–1848. Courtesy of Archaeology Department, The Montpelier Foundation, rendered by Matt Reeves, 2010.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The founding fathers lived in a “republic of letters” in which they were able to share their scientific, political and philosophical thoughts and observations with a community of thinkers across the world. During the research and writing of Founding Gardeners I have encountered the twenty-first-century version of such a “republic of letters”—never before have I learned so much from so many inspiring, fabulous and hel
pful people. Without them I would not have been able to write this book. Thank you all for sharing so generously.
My first (and huge) thank-you goes to the International Center for Jefferson Studies at Monticello, where I was a three-time fellow for four months at the most enchanting place a writer can possibly find. My stay at the ICJS allowed me to become part of an academic community that has opened my eyes, broadened my horizons and helped me to understand the founding fathers. I would like to thank all the staff at the ICJS, the Jefferson Library, and at Monticello who have all given me so much of their time, as well as sharing their knowledge and passion for the subject. In particular, I would like to thank William Beiswanger, Lucia Stanton and Gaye Wilson for answering all my questions and for reading and commenting on some of my chapters (and for pointing out my mistakes), as well as Joan Hairfield, Andrew O’Shaughnessy, Peggy Cornett, Endrina Tay, Anna Berkes, Eric Johnson, Jack Robertson, Leah Stearns, Leni Sorensen and Elizabeth Chew; and Derek Wheeler for his great maps. Monticello would not be the same without the formidable Peter Hatch, whose official title, Director of Grounds and Horticulture, doesn’t even come close to describing what he does. Thank you, Peter, for bringing Jefferson alive in his own landscape, for long walks across the estate, for generously sharing your horticultural knowledge, reading some of my chapters and for letting me read parts of your forthcoming book, Thomas Jefferson: Revolutionary Garden—thank you for taking me under your wing and becoming a friend. Thank you also to Lou Hatch for your wonderful hospitality and family dinners.
In Charlottesville and Albemarle County, I would also like to thank Billy Wayson for sharing his knowledge on eighteenth-century farming as well as reading and commenting on one of the chapters; Reuben Rainey for his clever comments on some of the chapters and for lending me Whately’s Observations; and Sara Lee Barnes for a lovely tour of the farmland between Shadwell and Gordonsville.
The wonderful Dean Norton, Director of Horticulture at Mount Vernon, invited me to stay on the estate for an inspiring week in which I had the run of the place after the tourists had left. Nothing can describe the joy of sitting alone on Washington’s porch with a glass of red wine and looking over the majestic Potomac. Thank you for your warm hospitality, friendship, your comments on the Mount Vernon chapter—and for letting me drive a John Deere across the estate (certainly one of the highlights of this entire project). I would also like to thank Curt Breckenridge for his great map of Mount Vernon, Dawn Bonner for her help with the illustrations, the staff at the Mount Vernon Library and in particular Mary Thompson for her assistance and comments on some of the chapters.
At Madison’s Montpelier I would like to thank Tom Chapman for opening his files so that I could copy and transcribe as much as I liked—and for answering my many, many questions as well as reading and commenting on the Montpelier chapter. A big thank-you to Matt Reeves, whose question “Why do you think Madison put a slave village in the middle of his garden?” shaped the chapter on Montpelier. Thank you for talking, walking and sharing your archaeological results and reports as well as the wonderful map—this chapter would have been impossible without the fantastic archaeology at Montpelier.
At John Adams’s Old House in Quincy and the National Park Service I would like to thank Robert Mackenzie for showing me around the garden and Kelly Cobble for helping me with my queries and illustrations.
This book would have been impossible to write without the help of the editors of the founding fathers’ letters: I would like to thank Ed Lengel at the George Washington Papers; Lisa Francavilla at the Thomas Jefferson Retirement Papers for dealing with all my many queries with such delight and efficiency; David Mattern at the James Madison Retirement Papers, who allowed me to read and copy his transcripts of Madison’s letters a year before the fabulous first volume of the Retirement Series was published and who patiently answered all my questions (again and again)—thank you for all your invaluable help and for your erudite comments on three chapters; Margaret Hogan at the John Adams Papers, who provided me with all the transcriptions—thank you for this amazing generosity, which saved me (and my eyes) from reading handwritten letters on microfilm, and for your great comments on some of the chapters; also a big thank-you to Sara Sikes who checked the Adamses’ quotes from these transcriptions against the originals.
The White House Historical Association and OAH awarded me with a very generous one-month travel grant that allowed me to work in the National Archives in Washington, D.C. Thank you also to Bill Allman at the Office of the Curator at the White House for a tour and Jonathan Pilska for sharing his knowledge on the White House landscape.
I would also like to thank: the staff at the London Library, Linnean Library (in particular Ben Sherwood for once again helping with the illustrations) and the British Library; the staff at the Library of Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, in particular Karen Stevens for sending me a digital copy of the entire Independence Day Book and her assistance with other queries; the staff at the Massachusetts Historical Society; the staff at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.; the staff at the Washington Historical Society; the staff at the American Philosophical Society, in particular Roy Goodman; Beth Prindle at the John Adams Library Project at Boston Public Library for immediately putting Adams’s garden books online when I contacted her; Beth Carroll-Horrocks at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; Diane Richards for her research at the North Carolina State Archive in Raleigh; Marianne Hansen at the Bryn Mawr College Library; Cornelia King at the Library Company in Philadelphia; Paula Manzella at Burlington County Library; Michelle Schneider at National Park Service; Catherine Medich at New Jersey State Archives; Kathryn Braund at Auburn University; Thomas Hallock and Nancy Hoffmann for their kind help on William Bartram; Sigrid Perry at Northwestern University Library; David Haugaard at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania; Elise Bernier-Feeley at Forbes Library; Robert Peck McCracken for showing me his flowering Franklinia; John Styles; Drew Newman for sending out a Bartram query to his colleagues at the Society of Early Americanists; and Hermann Düringer. My thanks also go to Joel Fry at Bartram’s Garden in Philadelphia, for all his help and for his comments on the Bartram chapter.
And once again, I would like to thank Rebecca Carter, who despite her incredibly busy schedule came to my rescue when I got stuck … thank you so very much!
For the permission to quote from their manuscripts I would like to thank: Albany Institute of History and Art; American Antiquarian Society; American Philosophical Society; Connecticut Historical Society; Historical Society of Pennsylvania; Massachusetts Historical Society; New England Historic Genealogical Society; Princeton University Library; Rutgers University Libraries; University of Virginia Library.
I would like to thank the wonderful team at William Heinemann: Jason Arthur, Emma Finnigan, Laurie Ip Fung Chun for their continuing support and, of course, Drummond Moir, who has been a fantastic and patient editor. At Knopf I would like to thank an equally wonderful team: Edward Kastenmeier, Timothy O’Connell and Sara Eagle; and my copy editor, Anne Cherry.
I have encountered the most generous and charming hospitality during my stay in the United States: thank you to Alisa and David Dolev in Boston, Mia Sorgi in Washington, Annabel White in New York, Joy de Menil and Laird Reed for a delightful weekend in Virginia, the lovely Keith and Linda Thomson who invited a total stranger to their house and have since then been looking after me whenever I’m in Philadelphia (and even at the ICJS)—and thank you, Keith, for the clever comments on some of the chapters. One of the greatest joys of writing this book has been to meet Regan Ralph, who has not only given me a second home in the States (of which I have made—and will make—extensive use!) but who also has become a very special friend—thank you for your love, joy, generosity and energy … and thank you, Sam, for making me feel part of the family and teaching me about Popsicles and the real America … oh really!
Closer to home, I would like to thank Tom Holland who remains the greates
t help for Latin emergencies; Saskia Manners for emergency photography and all those other things; Shefali Malhoutra for reading the first chapters and her steadfast encouragement; Mark Goldman for patiently explaining fiscal policies and for reading and commenting on the entire manuscript; Constanze von Unruh for so much—emotional support, cocktails and dinners, and for your honest and clever comments on the manuscript … poor old Ben Franklin, though; Patrick Walsh, my lovely friend and brilliant agent (in this order!) for who you are and what you do … thank you for always looking after me and for holding my hand when all went downhill. And Adam Wishart … your hand and mind is everywhere in this book—I will always be grateful that you encouraged me to be a writer—nothing will ever take that away. Thank you to my parents who were as always wonderful, supportive and clever. Thank you, Brigitte Wulf, for battling through French letters and Diderot, and to Herbert Wulf for reading all chapters in their many versions.
Founding Gardeners would have not been completed had it not been for my grown-up, beautiful, lovely, gentle and wise daughter, Linnéa, who picked me up when my world tumbled down. Thank you—you truly are the best daughter in the universe.
This book is my “anniversary present” to Julia-Niharika Sen … to forty years of friendship … because we will last forever.
INDEX
Abdrahaman
Abies balsamea (balsam fir), 1.1, 3.1
Acer saccharum (sugar maple), 4.1, 4.2, 4.3
Adams, Abigail, 4.1 5.1, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 8.1
as admirer of ornamental farms
at Auteuil
and election of 1800
as farm manager
J. Adams’s correspondence with, 2.1, 2.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 6.1, 6.2, 9.1, 9.2
land acquisitions by
in London, 2.1, 2.2, 5.1
at White House, 6.1, 6.2
Adams, Charles
Adams, John, prl.1, 2.1, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 9.1, 9.2