New visitors center opens at Monticello

On a day when Thomas Jefferson likely would have admired the autumnal beauty of his estate, Monticello offered visitors something new to enjoy at the historic tourist destination.

The Thomas Jefferson Visitors Center and Smith Education Center were officially opened Saturday, introduced by a fife and drum corps and Leslie Greene Bowman, the new Thomas Jefferson Foundation president.

“This is a historic moment,” Bowman told a crowd of about 100 during a brief ceremony. “This is the most ambitious educational initiative ever undertaken in the foundation’s 85-year history.”

Soon after the brief 11 a.m. ceremony, a steady flow of visitors roamed through the center — an impressive 42,000-square-foot cedar and stone structure situated around a serene courtyard.

The $43 million facility offers a pavilion, where visitors can purchase tickets to tour the estate and get information; a cafe, which offers a selection of lunch and picnic foods, as well as beer and wine, and is open year-round; the museum shop, which boasts a wide selection of Jefferson-related items, including 250 books about and by one of the country’s founding fathers; and an educational center, with three classrooms for curriculum-related study tours and workshops, talks and the like.

On April 15, the center will offer even more when it opens sections dedicated to interactive exhibitions. Among the new offerings will be a theater and the Griffin Discovery Room, which will offer young visitors a chance to take part in fun learning activities.

“After 10 years of planning and two years of construction, we’re happy to open this to the public,” said Wayne Mogielnicki, director of communications. “It’s a vast improvement over our past facilities.”

He figures the new visitor center will serve as a vehicle for word-of-mouth advertising.

“This is a nw reason to come.”