Arthur S. Brockenbrough to Thomas Jefferson, 29 March 1821
From Arthur S. Brockenbrough
University March 29h 1821
Dear Sir
In reply to your note of yesterday enquiring the cost of a Tuscan base & cap,—the Doric base & capitol, & the Ionic & Corinthian bases, and also an exact estimate of the cost of the Library as near as I can come—I send you the within calculations which are accurate as I can make them—
| $ | . cts | ||||
| Cost1 of Tuscan base— | for Quarrying | 1 | .60 | ||
| 〃 Waggonage | .42 | ||||
| 〃 cuting | 6 | .44 | $8 | .46 | |
| 〃 Tuscan Cap— | Quarrying | 0 | .84 | ||
| Waggonage | 0 | .32 | |||
| Cuting | 5 | .17 | 6 | .33 |
The2 cost of the Doric, bases & caps of Pav: 4 West nearly the same
| Doric of Pavilion No 1 W. | Base for | Quarrying | 12 | .80 | ||
| Waggonage | 1 | .67 | ||||
| Workmanship | 31 | .50 | 45 | .973 | ||
| 〃 | Cap | Quarrying | 11 | .20 | ||
| Waggonage | 1 | .67 | ||||
| Working | 26 | .50 | 39 | .37 | ||
| Ionic Base | Quarrying | $10 | .75 | ||
| Waggonage | 1 | .67 | |||
| Working | 29 | .06 | 41 | .48 | |
| Corinthian Base | Quarrying | 10 | .50 | ||
| Waggonage | 1 | .67 | |||
| Work | 27 | .50 | 39 | .674 |
we have had a considerable number of door sills worked & a quantity of Steps—a 25c the Superficial foot—5
Estimate of the cost of the Library—
| 1.050.670 bricks at $11 p M | 11.567 | .37 | |
| 10 Bases, 8. half do—24 Window sills—2 door do—1056 feet of steps runing measure—Pedestal Caping & base & flaging for portico |  |
2.884 | .30 |
| Covering dome & Portico with Tin | 1840 | .00 | |
| Carpenters Work & Materials 20 circular Window frames 2 door—4 front Window do—2 floors Joists & the entire external finish of Portico, Entablature, dome roof, attic &c &c | |
9031 | .19 |
| Total for the Walls & external finish | 25.322 | .86 | |
| Carpenters & Joiners work internally 2 Stories | 7.176 | .30 | |
| do6 do & materials for terras on each side | 2.500 | .00 | |
| Iron railing | 1.500 | .00 | |
| Painting & Glazing | 1.800 | ||
| Plastering | 2.000 | .00 | |
| Iron mongary about | 1.000 | ||
| $41.299 | .16 |
the foregoing estimate is agreeable to my best judgement.7 I may8 have unintentionally omited some of the charges—in what I have put down I have endeavored to com[e] as near as I could to the cost. I submit the whole to your better judgement & am sir most respectfu[ly] your obt sert
A. S. Brockenbrough
RC (ViU: TJP-PP); edge trimmed; endorsed by TJ as received the day it was written and so recorded in SJL. Dft (ViU: TJP-PP); on verso of TJ to Brockenbrough, 28 Mar. 1821; incomplete; endorsed by Brockenbrough: “An Estimate of the cost of Stone work,” with his additional notations on verso: “Cost Caps bases &c sent to Mr Jefferson” and “Perry Ware Dinsmore Spooner.”
Pavilion IV West (pav: 4 west) was later renamed pavilion VII.
1. Dft begins with this word.
2. Superfluous ditto mark preceding this word editorially omitted.
3. Adjacent to this total in Dft Brockenbrough added 180 to 180 to get 360.
4. Dft ends here with Brockenbrough’s additional notation: “
| 11 | Front door sills |
| 23 | back do |
| 268 | p steps |
| 22 | cellar window sills. |
5. Recto ends here.
6. To left of this word is a question mark probably added by TJ.
7. Omitted period at right margin editorially supplied.
8. Word interlined.
Index Entries
- Brockenbrough, Arthur Spicer; as University of Virginia proctor search
- Brockenbrough, Arthur Spicer; letters from search
- building materials; bricks search
- building materials; door and window frames search
- building materials; iron search
- building materials; ironmongery search
- building materials; stone search
- building materials; tin search
- Dinsmore, James; as builder for Central College–University of Virginia search
- marble; for University of Virginia search
- Spooner, George Wilson; as builder for University of Virginia search
- tin; for University of Virginia search
- Virginia, University of; Books and Library; plans for search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; building costs search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; building materials for search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; capitals for search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; carpenters and joiners search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; marble for search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; painters and glaziers search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; Pavilion I search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; Pavilion VII search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; plasterers search
- Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; Rotunda (library) search
- Ware, Richard; as carpenter for University of Virginia search