Secret Jefferson-Era Chemistry Lab Discovered in UVa Rotunda

[n2doc]

It was curiosity that lead Matt Schiedt to crawl into a brick hole in the Rotunda's wall.

Schiedt, a project manager for John G. Waite Associates, specializes in historic buildings. He is overseeing the renovation of the University of Virginia Rotunda and wanted to know how thick the walls were.

"I was laying on my back looking up inside this little space. I saw that there was a piece of cut stone which is very unusual to have in this location. You could see that there was a square cut in the stone and that there was a finished space around that with plaster and painted walls," Schiedt said.

Upon further investigation, he realized he uncovered a piece of history. A chemistry lab designed by Thomas Jefferson and built in the early 1820s, toward the end of the Rotunda's construction.

Two brick niches were uncovered during renovations in the 1970s, but researchers didn't realized there was more to the work space.

"The experiments would be done at the higher level where the stone is almost like a counter top, there may have been an iron plate or grill there," said Schiedt.

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