06-09 Michie Tavern near Charlottesville, VA

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

On Friday we decided to go touring in the afternoon in spite of the rain. The campground has a nice brochure with several day-trips laid out. They range in drives of about 80 miles to almost 200. We are not likely to make any of the long drives because that would take us away from Clay too long. We decided to look for something we could do inside and selected a visitors center and museum about Thomas Jefferson. However the brochure map does not have specific addresses and the person working at the office Friday was new to the area. So we started out only having a vague idea of the center’s location.

We stopped in Charlottesville for lunch and ended up in a very nice shopping center. We wondered around there for a while. It was at least dry inside. We stopped in a Barnes and Noble, and I picked up a tour guide. That helped me decide on some places to visit while we are here. We also wondered through a really nice gardening store just to look around. I still love gardening.

We decided to drive toward Monticello thinking the museum was somewhere along the route. We ended up driving right through the UVA campus, and it looks lovely – but oh so crowded. We would like to tour the Rotunda and other buildings designed by Jefferson, but parking will be a real issue.

We never saw the museum, but came upon the Michie Tavern, which was a recommended stop. So we pulled in and ended up having a great tour. The building was constructed around 1774 and then opened as a Tavern in 1784. It was originally located about 17 miles from the current location. It was taken apart and moved to the current spot just down the hill from Monticello in 1927.

The tour guide explained about life in a Tavern. The first room was used as a gathering place to have some locally brewed beer, cider or wine; sit and talk to other travelers; smoke your clay pipe; or play cards and games.

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

Next was a bedroom where a guest could rent room on a bed he shared with another guest, a spot on the floor or perhaps he just rented a chair. The bed “springs” were rope. The phrase “sleep tight” comes from the need to occasionally tightened the ropes to remove the droop. The ropes were covered by a straw mattress. (That would have been a killer for my allergies!)

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

Usually only men stayed at Taverns. Women traveled much less than men. When they did travel they hopefully found a nearby boarding house. However this tavern had a room you could rent for more money that had a private door and could be used by a woman.

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

The kitchen was in a separate building primarily due to the higher risk from fire. Cooking in front of a fire place was a hot job, especially in the middle of summer.

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

Upstairs was a room used for meetings, dances, etc. It did not look large enough for a dance to me, but the guide says she gets about 50 people in the room from a tour bus and sometimes has them learn to dance a Virgina Reel. So it can be done.

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

Attached to the Tavern is an old log cabin that was already on the site and dates from about the same period. It is used to serve a noon day buffet meal.

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

There are several other buildings on the grounds including a clothier that was closed the day we stopped and a general store and grist mill. We may go back and visit some of these buildings while we are in the area.

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia

We returned Saturday to tour Monticello and stopped for lunch at the tavern. It was outstanding but a bit expensive for a lunch time meal. More about Monticello in the next post.

From 06-09 Michie Tavern Virginia