DOCSLIB.ORG

Treatment for "Sally Hemings: an American Scandal"

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Treatment for TREATMENT FOR "SALLY HEMINGS: AN AMERICAN SCANDAL" Part One Monticello, Charlottesville, Va., 1787 After Sally Hemings' sister, Critta (Klea Scott), gives birth to a son by Jefferson's mean-spirited nephew, Peter Carr (Chris Stafford), her mother, Betty (Diahann Carroll), the matriarch of the Hemings family of Jefferson house servants, informs Sally (Carmen Ejogo) that she will soon escort Jefferson's daughter, Polly (Jessica Townsend), to Paris to join Jefferson -- who is serving there as Ambassador to France. Jefferson's other daughter, Martha (Mare Winningham), is already in Paris. Sally resists going and leaving her boyfriend, Henry (Larry Gilliard Jr.), but Betty insists it's a privilege to go. Her son, James (Mario Van Peebles), who is serving as a chef in Paris for Jefferson, has gotten word to Betty that "Negroes" are free in France. In Paris, James enthusiastically welcomes Sally, who is surprised by the well-appointed quarters and well-made outfits that await her there. She also finds it unusual that the white servants are following James' orders. James tells the somewhat overwhelmed Sally that she will benefit greatly from the freedoms and educational opportunities there while serving as a maid. At Jefferson's dinner party with guests such as Thomas Paine (Kevin Conway), Pierre Du Pont (Paul Kandel) and Lady Cosway (Kelly Rutherford), Jefferson first sees Sally -- and is surprised by how much she has grown to look like his beloved late wife. Later, Jefferson tells Sally that he plans to educate her. Passing by a rally with James, Sally first learns how much the French peasants are suffering under the French king and queen. At a dinner party that follows, Lady Cosway, who is frustrated that Jefferson isn't giving her a romantic commitment, informs him that she has decided to depart to London to reconcile with her husband. Over the next nine months, Sally and Polly are schooled together. Sally is coached on the manners of society and learns to read and write in French and English. Sally asks Jefferson if when he wrote "All men are created equal" in The Declaration of Independence, did he also mean slaves? He responds that "slavery is an abomination and there's no easy answer" -- and recommends that she read Thomas Paine's pamphlet "Common Sense" Serving as an attendant to Martha and Polly at a party at Versailles, Sally surprises Paine by quoting from "Common Sense." Later, Paine remarks that the educated Sally shows how all slaves, if freed, could become productive members of society. He encourages Jefferson to return to the States and use his influence to push an anti-slavery bill through Congress. Jefferson and Sally share a romantic moment during a brief dance at the party -- which is interrupted by a grand entrance by hosts King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. After Martha and Polly leave for boarding school at a convent, Jefferson admits to Sally that he has feelings for her. Their romance begins shortly thereafter. Three months later, the dangerous conditions of the French Revolution force Jefferson to retrieve his daughters and prepare to return to Monticello. Sally informs Jefferson that she is pregnant. James entreats Sally to remain with him in France and is baffled by her choice to give up her and her future child's freedom in order to remain by Jefferson's side. Before making the decision, however, Sally tells Jefferson she won't give birth to a slave -- and gives him her condition for returning. James reluctantly returns with Sally to the United States -- and is promised freedom from Jefferson prior to their departure. Upon their arrival at Monticello, the outspoken Betty is angry and saddened to see that Sally is following in her own footsteps -- for Betty had become pregnant by her owner, Master Wayles. A forgiving Henry offers to help raise Sally's unborn baby -- and is heartbroken when Sally tells him she's in love with the baby's father. Meanwhile, the disheartened James finds it harder than ever to take orders from Jefferson's belligerent nephew. At a welcome home party -- which also serves as a congratulatory party regarding Jefferson's newly assigned post as secretary of state -- Martha becomes reacquainted with her cousin, Thomas Mann Randolph (Zeljko Ivanek), who is obviously attracted to her. Shortly before Jefferson's departure from Monticello, Sally gives birth to his son. He looks white and is named Thomas Jefferson Hemings. One year later, Martha marries Randolph and moves to his plantation with a gift of 20 slaves -- including Henry. When Henry and other slaves are temporarily transferred to Monticello, he tells Sally that Randolph is crazy -- that he mutters and forgets to put on his clothes. Sally secretly begins to teach Henry to read. Martha comes to Monticello to give birth, but her child is stillborn. Sally shepherds an abused runaway slave from a nearby plantation and when she is caught by the slave's master, she must call herself Jefferson's property in order to escape from his clutches. The next day, Jefferson tells her he has handed the president his resignation and will remain at Monticello. During the course of the next four years, good times include the birth of Martha and Sally's baby girls and Jefferson's plans for a domed Monticello. But sad times soon follow as Sally's baby falls ill and dies -- and James, who had lost his spirit and started drinking upon his return to the plantation, finally tells Jefferson that he will be leaving as per their agreement in Paris. One year later, Polly marries Jack Eppes (Duke Lafoon) and Jefferson gives them a plantation and "twenty-six slaves in service to (their) happiness." Henry tells Sally that he wants to take part in slave revolts. When she says that killing is wrong, Henry responds that a somewhat pampered Hemings house slave wouldn't understand. He also tells her that Vice President Jefferson spends time with a woman named Margaret Bayard Smith when he is in D.C. When Sally confronts Jefferson about Margaret, he says she's just a social companion. She says she's keeping similar company which enrages him. When Henry gets caught among a group of armed escaped slaves, the local authorities end up killing him -- to Sally's horror. Sally demands an answer on where Jefferson stands on slavery. He references his first draft of The Declaration of Independence. She says that he must try again to end it. Sally gives birth to another son (Beverly) and Jefferson decides to run for president. At Monticello, Jefferson hosts a dinner for James and Dolly Madison (Reno Roop and Kathryn Meisle) and Richmond Recorder writer James Callender (Rene Auberjonois). The smarmy Callender makes a point of commenting on how they are being served by fair-skinned, red-haired slaves. Callender then unsuccessfully tries to blackmail Jefferson for a position of post master of Virginia in exchange for not writing about Jefferson's slave children. Sally and Jefferson's daughter, Harriet, is born the year Jefferson becomes the third president of the U.S. Following his election, Callender runs scandalous stories about Jefferson and Sally, but Jefferson steadfastly refuses to discuss it. Madison begs him to deny the claims -- but Jefferson will not. Martha urges Jefferson to sell Sally to bring an end to the speculation and protect his legacy. Feeling that he is to blame for the scandal, their child Tom (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) chooses to run away -- nearly breaking Sally's heart. Part Two Monticello, Charlottesville, Va., 1802 Martha tries to unite the family to end the rumors of Jefferson's relationship with Sally. Unbeknownst to Jefferson -- who is living in Washington, D.C. as president -- Martha works to rid the house of any letters and evidence of the liaison. Later, a drunk James crosses Callender's path and makes a scene while warning him to stop defaming his sister. James is then seen taking his own life and is buried at Monticello. Sally's eulogy notes that James' skills, education, manners and ultimate freedom were not enough to get him the respect he desired -- which is why he died in despair. When Gabriel Lilly (Mark Joy), a hired white slave master, starts to hit the slaves -- and eventually Sally -- Jefferson's nephew, Samuel Carr (Peter Bradbury), fires him on the spot. Lily then orchestrates a ruse to get Sally -- after which he savagely beats and whips her. Samuel ends up rescuing her -- and her family nurses her back to health. Meanwhile, Jefferson proudly writes to Sally of the finalization of the Louisiana Purchase. Shortly thereafter Callender is found drowned in the shallow part of a river. Concerned about Polly's failing health, Jefferson returns to Monticello. Samuel tells Sally that Jefferson doesn't care for her. He gives her some specific Jefferson writings and makes an unwanted advance. Sally reads the negative observations Jefferson made about blacks 25 years earlier and shares her disgust with Jefferson. He counters that he was ignorant when he wrote it -- and declares his love for her. In the next 12 years, Polly and Betty die, Sally and Jefferson have two more sons (Madison and Eston), and after serving two terms as president, Jefferson again retires to Monticello. Because of a long drought, Monticello has not been prosperous in years. However, Jefferson cannot contain his enthusiasm regarding retirement, the completion of the dome at Monticello and the beginning of his next project -- the creation of the University of Virginia. When Jefferson's builders come to collect money he doesn't have, Jefferson holds out hope that he will be able to get his old friend DuPont to back the university during his upcoming visit.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Mr. Jefferson S Private Life
    Mr. Jefferson s Private Life DUMAS MALONE IHE ATTACHED letter of Ellen Randolph Coolidge is in the Alderman Library at the University of Virginia in a volume containing copies of her letters to Henry S. Randall and other papers relating to her adored grandfather, Thomas Jefferson. It was written to her husband, Joseph Coolidge, Jr., in Boston, while she was visiting her brother in Albemarle County, Vir- ginia, and it has only recently been released for publication by her great-grandson, Harold Jefferson Coolidge. It bears par- ticularly on certain allegations that had been made against the character of her grandfather, and it has immediate relevance since some of these allegations have been recently revived and widely circulated. The story that the third President of the United States had a brood of children by one of his own slaves was first publi- cized in 1802. The distinction of having given it to the world belongs to an embittered journalist, James Thomson Callender, whose title as the most notorious and most unscrupulous scandalmonger of his generation, or indeed of any American generation, would be difficult to contest.^ It was taken up glee- fully by Jefferson's political enemies and occasioned much ridi- cule and obscenity. Rarely has a president been subjected to 'There is an account of the breaking of this story, and of Callender's relations with his former benefactor, in my book, Jefferson the President: First Term (Boston, 1970), ch. XII. 65 66 American Antiquarian Society such vulgarity and rarely have we had so sensitive a president. Nevertheless, Jefferson, following his consistent policy with respect to personal attacks, made no public response of any sort.
    [Show full text]
  • Albemarle County in Virginia
    ^^m ITD ^ ^/-^7^ Digitized by tine Internet Archive in 2008 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.arGhive.org/details/albemarlecountyiOOwood ALBEMARLE COUNTY IN VIIIGIMIA Giving some account of wHat it -was by nature, of \srHat it was made by man, and of some of tbe men wHo made it. By Rev. Edgar Woods " It is a solemn and to\acKing reflection, perpetually recurring. oy tHe -weaKness and insignificance of man, tHat -wKile His generations pass a-way into oblivion, -with all tKeir toils and ambitions, nature Holds on Her unvarying course, and pours out Her streams and rene-ws Her forests -witH undecaying activity, regardless of tHe fate of Her proud and perisHable Sovereign.**—^e/frey. E.NEW YORK .Lie LIBRARY rs526390 Copyright 1901 by Edgar Woods. • -• THE MicHiE Company, Printers, Charlottesville, Va. 1901. PREFACE. An examination of the records of the county for some in- formation, awakened curiosity in regard to its early settle- ment, and gradually led to a more extensive search. The fruits of this labor, it was thought, might be worthy of notice, and productive of pleasure, on a wider scale. There is a strong desire in most men to know who were their forefathers, whence they came, where they lived, and how they were occupied during their earthly sojourn. This desire is natural, apart from the requirements of business, or the promptings of vanity. The same inquisitiveness is felt in regard to places. Who first entered the farms that checker the surrounding landscape, cut down the forests that once covered it, and built the habitations scattered over its bosom? With the young, who are absorbed in the engagements of the present and the hopes of the future, this feeling may not act with much energy ; but as they advance in life, their thoughts turn back with growing persistency to the past, and they begin to start questions which perhaps there is no means of answering.
    [Show full text]
  • The Jefferson-Hemings Controversy Report of the Scholars Commission
    turner 00 fmt auto cx 3 3/17/11 10:54 AM Page iii The Jefferson-Hemings Controversy Report of the Scholars Commission Edited by Robert F. Turner Carolina Academic Press Durham, North Carolina turner 00 fmt auto cx 3 4/15/11 5:36 AM Page iv Copyright © 2001, 2011 Robert F. Turner All Rights Reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Scholars Commission on the Jefferson-Hemings Matter. The Jefferson-Hemings controversy : report of the Scholars Commission / edited by Robert F. Turner. p. cm. ISBN 978-0-89089-085-1 (alk. paper) 1. Jefferson, Thomas, 1743–1826--Relations with women. 2. Hemings, Sally. 3. Jef- ferson, Thomas, 1743–1826--Relations with slaves. 4. Jefferson, Thomas, 1743–1826-- Family. I. Turner, Robert F. II. Title. E332.2.S35 2010 973.4'6092--dc22 2010031551 Carolina Academic Press 700 Kent Street Durham, NC 27701 Telephone (919) 489-7486 Fax (919) 493-5668 www.cap-press.com Printed in the United States of America turner 00 fmt auto cx 3 3/17/11 10:54 AM Page v This book is dedicated to the memory of our beloved colleagues Professor Lance Banning Hallam Professor of History University of Kentucky (January 24, 1942–January 31, 2006) and Professor Alf J. Mapp, Jr. Eminent Scholar, Emeritus and Louis I. Jaffe Professor of History, Emeritus Old Dominion University (February 17, 1925–January 23, 2011) turner 00 fmt auto cx 3 3/17/11 10:54 AM Page vii Contents Preface xiii Acknowledgments xv Members of the Scholars Commission xvii Scholars Commission on The Jefferson-Hemings Matter, Report 12 April 2001 3 Summary
    [Show full text]
  • SP Bencoolynfarm D9.Pdf
    THOMAS JEFFERSON APRIL 9, 1797 View of Ben Coolyn Farm from main residence looking northwest towards vineyard and Southwest Mountains. THE FIRST EUROPEAN AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN SETTLERS arrived at the Chestnut or Little Mountains in the 1730s, gradually establishing small farms and dwellings in what was then western Goochland County, Virginia. Known today as the Southwest Mountains, an approximately 45-mile chain of northeast to southwest oriented peaks extending from Orange County on the north to the Rivanna River on the south, this geographic landmark is the easternmost BEN COOLYN ridge of the Appalachian Mountains in central Virginia. The eastern slope of the Southwest Mountains attracted many early settlers due to its fertile and well-drained soils, as well as the abundance of natural resources. In 1797 Thomas Jefferson, whose Monticello residence is located in the Carter’s Mountain ridge of the same chain, described the Southwest Mountains as “the Eden of the United States for soil, climate, navigation and health.” An area rich in heritage, this part of Albemarle County possesses numerous historic homes surrounded by agricultural landscapes. The Southwest Mountains district still retains a landscape characteristic of its agricultural past with forested mountains, rolling hills, numerous drainages and open fields, one which its original settlers would still recognize today. Many of the region’s cultural and natural place names present in the mid-eighteenth century still survive today and provide a tangible link to the past. Ben Coolyn is one of several prominent estates that occupy the foothills of the Southwest Mountains. Its siting on a low ridge with a 360-degree view make it one of the most beautiful situations in Albemarle County.
    [Show full text]
  • Wrestling with Jefferson: the Struggles of a Biographer
    digitalcommons.nyls.edu Faculty Scholarship Articles & Chapters 2002 Wrestling with Jefferson: The trS uggles of a Biographer Richard B. Bernstein New York Law School, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.nyls.edu/fac_articles_chapters Part of the Law and Philosophy Commons, and the Legal Biography Commons Recommended Citation 46 N.Y.L. Sch. L. Rev. 757 (2002-2003) This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Scholarship at DigitalCommons@NYLS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Articles & Chapters by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@NYLS. WRESTLING WITH JEFFERSON: THE STRUGGLES OF A BIOGRAPHER R. B. BERNSTEIN* INTRODUCTION As you stand before the family cemetery at Monticello, separated from the tree-shaded graveyard by a plain iron fence, the central tomb- stone draws your gaze. An obelisk of gray stone, it bears a simple inscription: HERE WAS BURIED THOMAS JEFFERSON APRIL 2, 1743 O.S. -JULY 4, 1826 AUTHOR OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE AND OF THE VIRGINIA STATUTE FOR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM, AND FATHER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA. Today's monument was erected in the 1880s to replace the original, which had eroded badly - due partly to the souvenir-lust of genera- tions of visitors armed with pocketknives. The inscription, however, is the same one that Thomas Jefferson composed in the last year of his * Adjunct Professor of Law, New York Law School. This Essay is a revised and expanded version of a talk delivered at Faculty Presentation Day, New York Law School, 3 April 2002; I have worked into the text some of my responses to questions from the audience following the original talk.
    [Show full text]
  • James Callender and Sally Hemings                Excerpted FrOm, THOMAS JEFFERSON – ACcuracy V S
    James Callender and Sally Hemings Excerpted from, THOMAS JEFFERSON – Accuracy v s. Revis ionism – A n Exposé by D r. Catherine M illard © 2020 James Callender and Sally press and republished throughout Hemmings the nation to advance their cause. Among the calumnies heaped However, the pamphleteer never upon the author of America’s proved these spurious accusations, Declaration of Independence , to nor were there any journalists who defame and destroy the highly visited Monticello to authenticate principled character of Thomas Callen- der’s fictitious charges. No Jefferson, is the following: libel laws existing in those days, The rewriting of Jefferson’s Callender precipitated his scheme of impeccable moral character began in defaming Jefferson’s character in 1802, when a dishonest, enraged order to destroy him. Scotsman by the name of James T. It is reported that James T. Callender publicized an allegation Callender was constantly at odds with against Thomas Jefferson, that Sally his fellowmen. The Federalist Rich- Hemings was his concubine. A Scot mond Recorder’s readership none- Front page sample of The Recorder, Vol. II, No. 62, in which James Callender theless increased greatly after his who fled from England in the initiated his calumnious attack on Thomas Jefferson in 1802. Callender’s calumnious attacks on Jefferson. A 1790’s in order to escape sedition fraudulent allegation w as in retaliatio n to President Jefferson’s refusal to appoint man who was often inebriated, his charges, Callender was a him Postmaster of Richmond. Courtesy of the Virginia State Library and Archives. pamphleteer who had vented his body was retrieved in the James River journalistic rage upon the British Government, distancing himself in three feet of water, in July, 1803.
    [Show full text]
  • The Myth of Tom and Sally by Kathryn Moore and D
    The Washington Times, January 8, 1999, A19 The Myth of Tom and Sally by Kathryn Moore and D. M. Giangreco Genetic scientists recently concluded that Thomas Jefferson likely fathered the last child of Sally Hemings, one of his slaves. Because of their findings, some now say that he should be removed from Mount Rushmore; others demand a revision of Jefferson’s place in history. What textbooks say about the life of Jefferson may, however, be little affected by the genetic research because of a wider range of facts that figure into the story. Sally Hemings was a slave in the household of Thomas Jefferson. His wife, upon her father’s death, inherited Sally, her mother and siblings. They were members of the Jefferson slave household by 1774. Madison Hemings, Sally’s son told a reporter in 1873 that her mother Elizabeth was a slave concubine of John Wayles, Thomas Jefferson’s father-in-law and stated that Elizabeth was the daughter of a slave and a slave ship captain. Sally was actually a year younger than Jefferson’s eldest daughter Martha and thirty years younger than Jefferson. In 1787, fourteen year-old Sally served as a last-minute replacement as the personal servant of nine-year-old Mary Jefferson when she traveled from Virginia to France to be reunited with her father and elder sister Martha. She stayed with the family in Paris then returned with them to Virginia two years later. From 1795 to 1808, Sally Hemings bore five children who were accounted for at Monticello. She continued to live and work there as a household slave until Jefferson’s death.
    [Show full text]
  • PDF of Minority Report
    DATE: March 23, 2000 TO: Readers of the Attached Reports FROM: Daniel P. Jordan, President, TJMF SUBJECT: Dr. Wallenborn’s Minority Report White McKenzie (Ken) Wallenborn, M.D., was a conscientious member of the ad hoc staff committee that I appointed in late 1998 to review, comprehensively and critically, all the evidence, scientific and otherwise, relating to the relationship of Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings and to report its findings and recommendations to me in a timely manner. Twice in the spring of 1999, during and after the conclusion of the work of the committee, Ken expressed some reservations to me, and I encouraged him to write up his concerns. It was my understanding at the time that he wanted his report to be for my review and consideration, not general circulation, but Ken now feels that it should be distributed more broadly -- and I agree. I subsequently learned that Ken gave a copy to the committee chairman. For the record, Ken’s concerns were reviewed and considered systematically and seriously. I believe the issues he raised are addressed in the research report of the committee, and I concur with the findings of the committee. I would encourage anyone interested in the general subject to read both reports and draw their own conclusions. I recognize that honorable people can disagree on this subject, as indeed they have for over two hundred years. Further, we know that the historical record has gaps that perhaps can never be filled, and mysteries that may never be fully resolved. The Foundation stands ready to review any fresh evidence at any time and to reassess our understanding of the matter in light of more complete information.
    [Show full text]
  • Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: an American Controversy'
    H-SHEAR Hellenbrand on Gordon-Reed, 'Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: An American Controversy' Review published on Sunday, February 1, 1998 Annette Gordon-Reed. Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: An American Controversy. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1997. xx + 288 pp. $29.95 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-8139-1698-9. Reviewed by Harry Hellenbrand (University of Minnesota-Duluth)Published on H-SHEAR (February, 1998) Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: An American Controversy In his unfinished essay, "The Jefferson Scandals," Douglass Adair sermonized that the "research historian follows an ancient and standard method" when confronted with conflicting evidence and contradictory claims: "The technique for extracting or distilling the creditable items from a report that may be full of error is to seek independent corroboration, detail by detail."[1] Consequently, Adair weighed the testimony of two "prejudiced witnesses," Sally Hemings (through her son Madison Hemings) and Thomas Jefferson Randolph (through historian Henry S. Randall) against the "neutral statistics" (p. 179) of Jefferson'sFarm Book and the written testimony of another key witness, Jefferson's overseer, Edmund Bacon. Along the way, Adair introduced seemingly incontrovertible assertions about Jefferson's "known character" (p. 182) that were gleaned from his private correspondence and public pronouncements. Adair concluded that "it is possible to prove that Jefferson was innocent of (James) Callender's charges that Jefferson cohabited with Sally Hemings" (p. 169). Gavel down, case closed. Of course, the case never has closed. In "The Strange Career of Thomas Jefferson: Race and Slavery in American Memory, 1943-1993"[2], Scott A. French and Edward L. Ayers reviewed the scholarly and popular literature about Jefferson and Hemings, before and after Adair's influential essay.
    [Show full text]
  • Records of Ante-Bellum Southern Plantations from the Revolution Through the Civil War General Editor: Kenneth M
    A Guide to the Microfilm Edition of Records of Ante-Bellum Southern Plantations from the Revolution through the Civil War General Editor: Kenneth M. Stampp Series M Selections from the Virginia Historical Society Part 5: Southside Virginia Associate Editor and Guide Compiled by Martin Schipper A microfilm project of UNIVERSITY PUBLICATIONS OF AMERICA An Imprint of CIS 4520 East-West Highway • Bethesda, MD 20814-3389 i Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Records of ante-bellum southern plantations from the Revolution through the Civil War [microform] Accompanied by printed reel guides, compiled by Martin Schipper. Contents: ser. A. Selections from the South Caroliniana Library, University of South Carolina (2 pts.)—[etc.]—ser. L. Selections from the Earl Gregg Swem Library, College of William and Mary—ser. M. Selections from the Virginia Historical Society. 1. Southern States—History—1775–1865—Sources. 2. Slave records—Southern States. 3. Plantation owners—Southern States—Archives. 4. Southern States— Genealogy. 5. Plantation life—Southern States— History—19th century—Sources. I. Stampp, Kenneth M. (Kenneth Milton) II. Boehm, Randolph. III. Schipper, Martin Paul. IV. South Caroliniana Library. V. South Carolina Historical Society. VI. Library of Congress. Manuscript Division. VII. Maryland Historical Society. [F213] 975 86-892341 ISBN 1-55655-561-X (microfilm : ser. M, pt. 5) Compilation © 1996 by Virginia Historical Society. All rights reserved. ISBN 1-55655-561-X. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction...........................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Statistical Study of the Relationship Between Thomas Jefferson's Presence at Monticello and Sally Hemings's Conceptions
    01/26/00 Statement on the TJMF Research Committee Report on Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings Daniel P. Jordan, Ph.D., President Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, Inc. When the DNA study was released on the evening of October 31, 1998, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation (TJMF) responded immediately. Within twenty-four hours, we held a press conference with Dr. Eugene Foster (principal author of the study), posted a statement on our web site, and instructed our interpreters to initiate conversations with our visitors about the study. The Foundation also pledged that it would evaluate the scientific results -- and all other relevant evidence -- in a systematic and comprehensive way, and that we would, in the Jeffersonian tradition, “follow truth wherever it may lead.” Shortly thereafter, I appointed a staff research committee that included four Ph.D.’s (one with advanced study in genetics) and an M.D. The mandate was straightforward: (1) to gather and assess critically all relevant evidence about the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings; (2) to consult with outside experts as well as with two long- standing TJMF advisory committees, comprised of scholars, public historians, and museum professionals who provide counsel for the Foundation’s International Center for Jefferson Studies and about African- American interpretation at Monticello; and (3) to report its findings and recommendations to me in written form and in a timely manner. The committee, headed by Dr. Dianne Swann-Wright, responded in a manner that was scholarly, meticulous, and thorough. The committee’s report is attached. I believe it represents the most extensive compilation ever of what is known and not known about this complex and consequential topic.
    [Show full text]
  • Volume 34 1 May to 31 July 1801 JEFFERSON CHRONOLOGY
    Volume 34 1 May to 31 July 1801 JEFFERSON CHRONOLOGY 1743 • 1826 1743 Born at Shadwell, 13 Apr. (New Style). 1760 Entered the College of William and Mary. 1762 “quitted college.” 1762-1767 Self-education and preparation for law. 1769-1774 Albemarle delegate to House of Burgesses. 1772 Married Martha Wayles Skelton, 1 Jan. 1775-1776 In Continental Congress. 1776 Drafted Declaration of Independence. 1776-1779 In Virginia House of Delegates. 1779 Submitted Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom. 1779-1781 Governor of Virginia. 1782 His wife died, 6 Sep. 1783-1784 In Continental Congress. 1784-1789 In France as Minister Plenipotentiary to negotiate commercial treaties and as Minister Plenipotentiary resident at Versailles. 1790-1793 Secretary of State of the United States. 1797-1801 Vice President of the United States. 1801-1809 President of the United States. 1814-1826 Established the University of Virginia. 1826 Died at Monticello, 4 July. VOLUME 34 1 May to 31 July 1801 4 May Samuel Smith reports on the status of the navy. 12 May Receives report on the War Department from Henry Dearborn. 13 May Gideon Granger reports Republican gains in Massachusetts. 14 May Appoints Albert Gallatin secretary of the Treasury. 17 May Cabinet agrees to reduction of diplomatic establishment in Europe. 21 May Writes to bey of Tripoli. 23 May Appoints Samuel Bishop collector at New Haven in place of Elizur Goodrich. 26 May Madisons leave President’s House after temporary residence. 29 May Withdraws gift of $50 and severs ties with James Thomson Callender. 1 June U.S. naval squadron departs for the Mediterranean.
    [Show full text]