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Laurence Gouverneur Hoes Collection

The vast majority of objects housed at the James Monroe Museum are part of the Laurence Gouverneur Hoes Collection, named for one of the co-founders of the museum, and its first director. The object collections include over 1,600 artifacts ranging from personal items such as jewelry and clothing, to fine arts, to decorative arts such as furniture and china. Most of the objects placed in the museum by Rose and Laurence Hoes in 1927 descended through James Monroe's youngest daughter, Maria Hester Monroe Gouverneur and her children. Here we present just a few of our most impressive items. Check back soon - featured objects change often!

Elizabeth Monroe's Ivory Memo Pad, JM76.358

The memo pad currently on display in the new orientation exhibit is composed of 6 ivory sheets that are attached together at one end with a small grommet, so that the sheets can be fanned out, or one sheet can be selected and revealed.  Each of the ivory leaves is engraved at the top with one of the days of the week (no Sunday – one did not do work on Sundays).  Mrs. Monroe would have made notes to herself regarding household accounts, supplies, cleaning, etc. on each day’s sheet with a piece of lead or charcoal.  At the end of the week, the memo pad could simply be wiped clean, ready for the next week.  It is a clever little invention that shows us several things.  First of all, paper was very expensive during the 18th and 19th centuries, so writing daily notes had to be done on something other than paper, something reusable.  This was true for anyone living during the Monroe era, whether they could afford the price of paper or not.  Secondly, even a rather well-to-do woman in the household of a famous politician had to handle the daily business of life at that time.  While we are fairly certain that the Monroes had many servants and slaves to do the physical work of running the farm and household, Mrs. Monroe would have been at the helm, giving instructions and assigning tasks.  In looking at the memo pad, we can imagine her standing in the kitchen at Highland or at Oak Hill, lead in hand, counting the number of bags of grain in the pantry, or writing out a grocery list for the cook.  It is a far different picture of her than what we usually imagine – the beautiful and elegant young woman dressed in the finest silk gowns, draped in French jewelry and entertaining all of Washington society. 

Lancet, JM76.125

We have long told our visitors about Elizabeth Monroe’s mysterious illness, which was often mentioned in her husband’s correspondence, but was never identified.  In more recent years, some have guessed that she might have suffered from epilepsy, or that perhaps she had some sort of blood disorder that caused her frequent headaches, fainting spells, and “fits”.  Whatever the illness was, it plagued Elizabeth Monroe for years, and often lead to her inability to conduct the duties expected of the President’s wife.  In her final months of life, her condition deteriorated rapidly, and her doctor, Winfield Scott, recommended that she be bled, in order to remove toxins from her body.  We believe she was bled on three occasions during those last days, and we can only speculate that the bleedings hastened her death, rather than held it off. This little spring-loaded lancet is believed to be the instrument which Dr. Scott used to bleed Mrs. Monroe. It is pictured here with its tiny carrying case.