James and Dolley Madison's dining room positively glistens, as it did in 1824 for dinner guest General Lafayette. The dramatic sunflower-color wall paint, silver candelabras, glimmering china and original furnishings all combine to reflect the Madison style in Montpelier's Harvest Home Supper exhibit.

Reflections of a young nation

A 200-year-old mirror, scarred and battered by its journey through time, has returned to its original home at Montpelier where James and Dolley Madison once peered into its silvery depths. What other historical figures did the same? Thomas Jefferson or James Monroe, deep in thought? An enslaved African-American pondering his existence? Certainly, the Madisons' looking glass reflected a singular perspective on history - the comings and goings of a young nation. American leaders and foreign diplomats, master and slave, the exalted and fashionable as well as the downtrodden and barefoot - all would have cast a glance at its shimmering surface as they passed through the center drawing room at Montpelier in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

On loan from James Madison University, this large mirror (circa 1800-1820), probably one of a pair, might have been mounted on the wall beside the fireplace in the center hall/drawing room after 1790. The mirror was painted to match the woodwork in the room, with a "milk-paint" applied to the frame. The construction indicates that the mirror was made on the estate by enslaved skilled craftsmen.

Because Dolley sold Montpelier after James' death and because the estate passed through several owners thereafter, original Madison objects are rare. So this grand mirror and the other 25 pieces that have "come home" to the estate either as a loan, purchase or gift are significant. Many of the Madison items are on exhibition at Montpelier throughout this anniversary year of 2001.

The highlight of the 250th celebration at Montpelier has been the opening of several exhibits, including The Pleasure of Your Company Is Requested: A Harvest Home Supper with the Madisons.

Called "the yellow room" because of the intense sunflower yellow wall color that Dolley adored, the circa 1790 dining room has been recreated to offer the modern-day visitor the atmosphere of an intimate dinner party hosted by James and Dolley Madison in honor of General Lafayette's visit to America in the fall of 1824. The table is set for a first course of hearty soup and cold meats, and the guests are about to sit down to an evening of lively conversation and good food. Life-sized photo cutouts represent the dinner party, a house slave and Lafayette's valet.

While accurately depicting the dining room in the fall of 1824, this show also displays Dolley's famed hospitality as well as the importance of Montpelier as a setting for James' famous conversations. Here one can discover firsthand why Madison was called "The Sage of Montpelier."

James built this dining space onto the main core of the house in the 1790s. In 1809-12, while serving his first term as president, he had the room fitted with egg and dart crown molding, new carpet, and, likely, fresh paint on all four walls. We speculate that Dolley used this intense "sunflower yellow" as a wall color because she favored it in her private salon in the president's mansion (White House).

When the couple retired to Montpelier in 1817, Dolley tried to update the room from the "old fashioned" (circa 1780-1790) style that James preferred. She loved the classical designs coming from Europe and current archaeological expeditions at Pompeii. The window treatments, the use of vibrant color, and the china and silver illuminate Dolley's love of the classical influences so popular in the 1820s. James' preference for the earlier Federal style is represented by much of the furniture, especially the Windsor chairs, the Winchester (Va.) sideboard and the side tables.

Another 250th anniversary show is The Madisons' Style and Taste, a one-year gallery display of Madison family objects that have "come home" to Montpelier.

The last of the new exhibits, A Virginian's Design for Freedom, designed by Colin Brien ('00), is an interactive panel display focusing on James Madison as the "Father of the Constitution."

These shows and other new interpretations help tell the story of a young American nation, the Madison family and the enslaved African-Americans who resided at Montpelier.

For hours call (540) 672-2728 .

Story by Lee Langston-Harrison, Montpelier curator