Plantation Work Complex

Map showing the location of sites that comprise the Madison Farm Complex.
[Click picture for larger image.]

While the Montpelier mansion was home to the Madison family and the many enslaved domestics that served them, the plantation relied upon the enslaved field workers and overseers who provided the income for the estate. Archaeological surveys and excavations have revealed that the heart of this agricultural complex stretched between the Montpelier mansion and the overseer's complex (located at the Madison's original home at Mount Pleasant). Set along the road traces that once connected these two sites are quarters for field slaves; work shops for carpenters, coopers, and wheelwrights; barns; and other work areas.

When the Madison family lived at Mount Pleasant (1732-1764), this area was one of their agricultural fields where tobacco, corn, and other crops were grown. When the Madison family moved into the Montpelier house, the use of this area changed and it became the hub of the plantation work complex. After Dolley Madison sold Montpelier in 1844, the area was abandoned and the structures decayed. Over 150 years later, archaeologists discovered this incredibly well-preserved set of sites and began investigations to locate and determine the area's use.

Excavation of the work complex area revealed three distinct areas: