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Leave It To Levy

How a Jewish family came to own Monticello.

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR

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38

Q: Can Tell Me Why tell me any- the U.S. Navy, becoming a ticello to his sister, Amelia. She
thing about the Jewish family that lieutenant and later a captain. sold the estate to the Jefferson
Because of anti-Semitism Memorial Association, and
purchased Monticello following
and
Levy's rambunctious char- Monticello became a national
the death of Thomas Jefferson?
acter, he faced constant trou- monument.
From reader R.B. in Southfield ble in his Navy career. He
Uriah P. Levy was a mem-
A: Thomas Jefferson, Amer- fought a duel and killed his op-
ber
of Congregation Shearith
ica's third president, first elect- ponent. He was court-mar-
ed in 1800 and re-elected in tialed six times, but defended Israel in New York and of
1804, entered office as a well- himself so well that he was Washington Hebrew Congre-
gation. He is buried in the
to-do country gentleman.
promoted to commodore. In Shearith Israel section of Cy-
He left office, however, with 1850, Levy became well known
press Hills Cemetery in Brook-
debts of $20,000, due to an ex- in Washington, where he suc- lyn,
N.Y.
travagant lifestyle and overly cessfully lobbied for a bill to
generous hospitality (his estate outlaw corporal punishment
Q: Correct me if I'm mistaken —
at Monticello often was filled on Navy vessels (as a captain,
to capacity with guests who Levy never whipped his well, of course you will, won't
you? You're the brilliant Tell Me
stayed for days, weeks and sailors).
Why, right? — but wasn't it a Jew-
even months). A few months
Levy retired from active ish mobster who made public
after Jefferson's death on July duty and built a fortune in
4, 1826, almost all his belong- New York real estate. After he those-famous love letters between
that babe of all babes, Lana Turn-
ings, including his house, Mon-
er, and Johnny Stompanato?
ticello, near Charlottesville,
A: It was none other than
Va., were sold to pay his
Mickey Cohen, born in 1913,
debts.
who gave the letters to the
The new owners of
press, and all because he was
Monticello neglected
mad.
Clearly, Mickey was not
the building, and it
the kind of guy you wanted to
gradually fell into de-
make mad.
cay and ruin. In
Cohen moved up the mob
1836, Uriah P. Levy,
ladder
following the death of
one of early Ameri-
Bugsy Siegel, taking over the
ca's most unusual
Mafia's gambling interests on
Jews, purchased
the West Coast. He was quite
Monticello.
a dandy, with a wardrobe of
On his mother's
more than 200 suits, and quite
side, Levy was de-
a character. "I have killed no
scended from the
man that in the first place
Phillips family, origi-
didn't deserve it by the stan-
nally from Germany,
dards of our way of life," he
where their name was
said
in an interview.
Pheibush. The family's Amer-
Cohen was in jail twice —
ican branch was founded by
Jonas Phillips, who came here bought Monticello, he spent an for income tax violations. He
in 1756. About 20 years later, enormous amount to have the promised to go straight after
he settled in Philadelphia, house restored. He tracked the second stay, and spent his
years advocating prison
where he became a prosperous down and purchased many of latter
reform.
merchant and fought the Jefferson's original furnishings
Before his death of natural
British in the Revolutionary and reinstalled them at Mon-
causes
in 1976, Cohen was in
War. He and his Sephardi ticello. Levy married his niece,
wife, Rebecca Mendez Macha- Virginia Lopez, and they the spotlight many times,
do, had 21 children, among resided at Monticello. Levy's which was just the way he
liked it. In 1974 he claimed to
whom was Rachel.
mother died in 1859, and she have been in contact with the
In 1787 Rachel married was buried along the walk ap-
Michael Levy, son of Benjamin proaching the main house. Uri- kidnappers of Patty Hearst.
Levy, a Philadelphia merchant ah's brother, Jonas, erected a And, in 1958, he made public
and American patriot. In 1765 monument at the grave, which the love letters between actress
Benjamin was a signatory to continues to be maintained to Lana Turner and her boyfriend
Johnny Stompanato, a former
an agreement not to import this day.
Cohen bodyguard. The reason:
merchandise from England
Virginia and Uriah had - no Somehow, Cohen had ended
until the repeal of the hated children. Uriah died in 1862,
up with the bill for Stompana-
Stamp Act.
and in his will, left Monticel-
Rachel's and Michael's son, lo to the government, to serve to's funeral.
Uriah Phillips Levy, was born as an agricultural school for
in Philadelphia in 1792. At 10 the orphaned children of naval Send questions to Tell Me Why,
he ran away to sea and became officers. The will was chal- The Jewish News, .27676
a cabin boy. Later, he was ap- lenged by his family and in- Franklin Road, Southfield, MI
prenticed to a ship owner; then validated.
48034, or fax to (810) 354-6069.
he attended naval school. He
Uriah's nephew Jefferson All letters must be signed and in-
passed through every grade of Levy (Jonas' son) inherited clude the writer's address. Ques-
service, and by 20 he was cap- Monticello, which he used as a tions answered in the column will
tain of a ship. In the War of summer home. J.M. Levy died feature only the writer's initials
1812, he won a commission in in 1924 and bequeathed Mon- and city of residence.

❑

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