Christmas with Family in Ivy, VA

After spending Christmas with his family, Lewis and his party arrived at the Presidents House on 28 December. The annual New Year’s Day Reception at the President’s Home included Sheheke and his family, the Osage Chiefs, and their interpreters.⁽¹⁾ The Chouteau and Osage Delegation had arrived in Washington on 24 December after taking the Northern route from Lexington, KY through Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.⁽²⁾

Lewis’ letter to President Jefferson on 23 September described the route of travel in terms of town he would pass through.⁽³⁾ While the route of travel from Charlottesville to Washington D.C. was not described, the U.S. Postal Road, detailed on the Abraham Bradley, Jr. 1804 map, is the logical and most direct route.⁽⁴⁾ That route today from Charlottesville is VA 20 through Orange connecting with VA 3 at Wilderness to Fredericksburg then U.S. 1 through Alexandria to Washington.⁽⁵⁾⁽⁶⁾ Another route of travel from Charlottesville to Washington, D. C. but having more overnight stops was used by Thomas Jefferson.⁽⁷⁾ The bridge over the Potomac River is also uncertain but most likely near the historic “Chain Bridge” between Pimmit Run and Georgetown, MD. The first bridge at this location, completed in 1797, was a covered bridge and built of wood, designed by Timothy Palmer. However, that bridge collapsed in 1804 and the second was not finished until 1808, thus the crossing location is uncertain. 

The route Lewis and his group traveled through Virginia passes through the region of explorers and founders of democracy. Fry, Henry, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Meriwether, Monroe, and Walker are among the family names emblazoned in American history living in the region. Today there are countless Bed and Breakfast and other present day “ordinaries” allowing for modern-day explorers. Joshua Fry, friend, and co-surveyor with Peter Jefferson, surveyed and drew the “Map of the Inhabited Parts of Virginia”, more commonly known as the Fry-Jefferson Map. In 1726, Fry patented the land and build the Meanders Plantation. Today, The Inn and Tavern at the Meanders, Locust Dale, VA is an opportunity to visit and dine in the Fry home. Make your own exploration and understand the importance of this segment of the Lewis and Clark Story.^(8)(9)(10)