Monticello Plantation

The Monticello Plantation was originally owned and operated by Thomas Jefferson. Smith visits this location in the chapter "Monticello Plantation." While here, he attends a tour that focuses "specifically on Jefferson's relationship to slavery" (10). Throughout this experience, Smith is haunted by the ghosts of the people Jefferson enslaved on the property. He cannot help but notice the stark contrast between the landscape's beauty and its violent past.

The Whitney Plantation

In "The Whitney Plantation," Smith describes his experience visiting and touring the Whitney Plantation. Located in Wallace, Louisiana, at the time of Smith's visit, the plantation was owned and operated by John Cummings. John acquired the property in 1999, originally perceiving it as "simply another potentially profitable real estate acquisition" (75). However, the more John learned about the plantation's history, the more determined he became to use the property as a tool for educating the public. Indeed, at...