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Monticello ( ) is a village located in Thompson, Sullivan County, within the Catskills region of New York, United States. The population was 7,173 at the 2020 census. It is the seat for the Town of Thompson and the county seat of Sullivan County. The village was named after the residence of Thomas Jefferson.

The Village of Monticello is in the central part of Thompson, adjacent to New York Route 17. Monticello is one of the largest villages in the county.

History

Pre-Civil War

On March 20, 1801, an act was passed authorizing the building of a new turnpike road from the Hudson River to the Delaware through what was then Ulster and Orange counties. There were two important reasons for this undertaking. One was to facilitate travel between Newburgh and the rich coalfields of Pennsylvania and the other was to provide a suitable passage for large droves of cattle and wood products taken from the virgin forests of Sullivan County. The proposed Newburgh and Cochecton Turnpike ultimately brought about the founding of the village of Monticello.

Two brothers, Samuel F. Jones and John Patterson Jones, built Monticello. The turnpike company entrusted Samuel F. Jones to explore the vast forests west of the Mamakating valley to find the best route for the new turnpike. While so engaged, Jones foresaw that Ulster County would undergo many changes and growth when the new turnpike was completed, He also realized that because of this growth a new county would ultimately be formed out of the southwestern part of the county. He predicted the county seat for this new county would be located along the new turnpike. Returning home, Samuel related his predictions and vision to his younger brother, John.

John joined his brother and in the early part of 1803, they bought two tracts of wilderness totaling for which they paid $4,613. Since Samuel was occupied surveying the route for the new turnpike, it was left to John to start making immediate improvements to their land. John arrived later that year with eleven men, and after putting up a temporary shelter east of Monticello, they commenced working on a sawmill. The work halted when the brothers returned to their New Lebanon, Connecticut, home for the winter but resumed the following spring. John returned to his work on their lands in early April 1804, while Samuel continued working for the turnpike company. After John put the sawmill in operation, he started clearing and seeding the land west of Monticello. He also built a gristmill that was used mostly for grinding their grain.

The final route for the Cochecton-Newburgh Turnpike was determined that spring, and it was precisely where Samuel Jones wanted it. The brothers then determined where to build their intended city. It was at this time that the name Monticello was given to the planned village. The brothers were ardent admirers of Thomas Jefferson, who invented the word from two Latin words meaning "heavenly mountain", which Mr. Jefferson gave to his home place.

Before the log house was built in Monticello or the first tree cut, the brothers first surveyed their planned village, laying out broad streets and a central park. Trees were marked to indicate the lines. Consequently, Monticello became a town of wide streets, shade trees, and with a "public square." In addition, as Samuel Jones planned, the Newburgh and Cochecton Turnpike ran straight through the village.

Soon after the survey was completed, John Jones selected a lot for his residence, and on September 4, 1804, with his own hands, he felled the first tree that marked the site of his future home. The house was located on the turnpike (on the corner of Broadway and Saint. John's St) across from the park and was completed by December. John lived there until he died. Samuel was still involved with the turnpike, so John later built the first part of his brother's house. In 1807, Samuel built a large addition to his dwelling.

As an inducement to inhabit their village, the brothers offered lots to anyone who would build and settle there. Advertisements were inserted into many newspapers of southern counties that enticed many to take advantage of