Building Tradition Episode 11: The Story of Master Builder John Hemmings

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Host Peter H. Miller Hon AIA tells the story of Master Builder, joiner and millwork craftsman John Hemmings, an African American slave who helped build and maintain Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. 

Building Tradition Episode 11: The Story of Master Builder, John Hemmings

We observe Black History month by telling the story of John Hemmings, 1776-1833, who was one of at least 87 slaves who lived on Mulberry Row, a collection of primitive log cabins inhabited by several members of the enslaved Hemmings family at Monticello. Hemmings began working on the Virginia plantation felling trees, which he later crafted into millwork and fine furniture. Several architectural features of Jefferson's classical designs at Monticello were built by John Hemmings thus securing his place in the building traditions of early America. Listen to the story of an important American craftsman.

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