On the 50th anniversary of its designation as a National Historic Landmark, Middleton Place continues to reveal the essence of the American story.  In her new book, American Landmark:  Charles Duell and the Rebirth of Middleton Place, Virginia Christian Beach traces three centuries of American history in this one place, as well as its stewardship and transformation over the past 50 years by the last family member to own it.  Her talk will focus on the men and women, both free and enslaved, who built and cared for Middleton Place, including America’s oldest landscaped gardens. Although the survival of Middleton Place was at times uncertain, today it has evolved into a leading center for research and historic interpretation – its venerable landscape serving as meeting ground, community resource and platform for contemporary debate.

Middleton Place: A Lens into the Nation's Story at America's Oldest Landscaped Gardens