In the spring of 1817, James Madison, James Monroe, and Thomas Jefferson gathered at the Albemarle County Courthouse to form the Board of Visitors of the Albemarle Academy, the predecessor of the University of Virginia. The board’s first action was to begin fund raising for this new institution. Jefferson presented sketches and pledged the first $1,000 to construct his “Academical Village.” Hearing of the meeting, John Adams wrote to congratulate the three former presidents, and noted that “from such a noble triumvirate, the World will expect something very great and very new.” From the beginning, these twin strains—”very great and very new”—have been part of the DNA of the University.