The Jefferson-Hemings Controversy
Page 28
27. Technically, as long as they remained slaves they were not classified as “white”; but had they not been slaves, any children Sally produced with white fathers would legally have qualified as “white” in Virginia at the time. See, e.g., Lucia Stanton & Dianne Swann-Wright, Bonds of Memory, in SALLY HEMINGS AND THOMAS JEFFERSON 182 n.5 (1996) (“Until 1910 Virginia law declared that a free person with more than three-quarters white heritage was white. …Madison and Eston Hemings were listed as white in the 1830 Virginia census. … ”) See also, Gordon S. Wood, The Ghosts of Monticello, in SALLY HEMINGS AND THOMAS JEFFERSON 23; JOSEPH J. ELLIS, AMERICAN SPHINX 179 (1996). However, so long as they remained legally slaves they would not have been classified as “white” even if they had only one or two percent African blood.
28. The two most common suspects for the paternity of Sally Hemings’ children historically have been Peter and Samuel Carr, who allegedly admitted paternity in the presence of Jefferson’s grandson. Their mother was Martha Jefferson Carr, Thomas Jefferson’s sister and the wife of his best friend from childhood, Dabney Carr. After Dabney’s death in 1773, Jefferson took a special interest in the welfare and education of the Carr children and they were frequent visitors to Monticello. It would be quite logical for Thomas Jefferson to show special consideration for the grandchildren of his sister or those of Dabney Carr. Other possible fathers include Thomas Jefferson’s brother, Randolph Jefferson, or at least four of Randolph’s five sons (Thomas Jefferson’s nephews). See Chapter Ten.
29. See, e.g., WINTHROP D. JORDAN, WHITE OVER BLACK 467 (1968). While there is no record in Jefferson’s papers to support the charge, it was alleged by some that Sally Hemings and several of her siblings were the children of Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson’s father, who as a widower allegedly had a long-term affair with Sally’s mother Betty. For our purposes it is unnecessary to examine this issue, beyond noting that the issue remains unsettled. A recent book concludes that John Wayles probably was not Sally’s father. REBECCA L. MCMURRY & JAMES F. MCMURRY, JR., ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL xviii (2002).
30. Professor Gordon-Reed suggests that the only exception may have been Peter Hemings. GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 39.
31. See Chapter Four.
32. 2 JEFFERSON’S MEMORANDUM BOOKS 1408 (James A. Bear, Jr. & Lucia C. Stanton, eds. 1997).
33. In addition to twice buying cabbages from Israel, Jefferson records once paying him one dollar apparently to clean out a sewer and on another occasion giving him twenty-five cents for running an errand. Id. at 1311, 1381, 1391, 1414.
34. For information on John Hemings, see STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 135–40.
35. Mary’s son Joe Fosset was freed in Jefferson’s will. Some of his descendants have alleged that he was also fathered by President Jefferson (see Chapter Eight). For additional information on Joe Fosset, see STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 131–33.
36. Bett, also known as “Betty Brown,” was the mother of Jefferson’s most trusted servant, Burwell Colbert.
37. Reprinted in JEFFERSON AT MONTICELLO 121–22 (1967).
38. REVISED CODE OF VIRGINIA OF 1819, §§ 53 & 54 (1819).
39. GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 38.
40. JORDAN, WHITE OVER BLACK 465. More recently, Professor Jordan wrote: “He treated all members of the Hemings family as standing in a different category than all his other slaves. … ” Winthrop D. Jordan, Hemings and Jefferson: Redux, in SALLY HEMINGS AND THOMAS JEFFERSON 48 (Jan Ellen Lewis & Peter S. Onuf, eds. 1999).
41. DUMAS MALONE, JEFFERSON THE PRESIDENT—FIRST TERM, 1801–1805 at 495–97 (1970) (emphasis added). See also, James Bear’s footnote explaining the Hemings family in JEFFERSON AT MONTICELLO 123 n.3 (“This remarkable family included a number of very able craftsmen and artisans. John Hemings is perhaps the best known, for he is believed to have made much of the furniture produced in the Monticello cabinet shop during TJ’s lifetime. James was an excellent cook. … ” There is no mention here of Sally.)
42. Joe Fosset had been allowed to retain a percentage of the profits from his work as a blacksmith before being manumitted.
43. There is some speculation that Martin may have died a decade before this. There were several “Martins” at Monticello over the years, and at least one of them died in 1807. The key point is that no one alleges Martin Hemings was still alive and the property of Thomas Jefferson when the 1826 will was prepared.
44. This does not count Edwin, who was given to Thomas Jefferson Randolph a decade before Jefferson’s death.
45. JEFFERSON AT MONTICELLO 99; FAWN BRODIE, THOMAS JEFFERSON: AN INTIMATE HISTORY 459 (1974).
46. THE GARDEN AND FARM BOOKS OF THOMAS JEFFERSON 246.
47. For more information on Wormley Hughes, see STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 133–34.
48. Robert Hemings had hired himself out to Dr. George Stras of Richmond, who owned Robert’s wife, Dolly. He was manumitted by Jefferson on Christmas Eve, 1794, in return for a payment of £60 advanced by Dr. Stras. See, e.g., James A. Bear, Jr., The Hemings Family of Monticello 29 VIRGINIA CAVALCADE, Autumn, 1979 at 80; and STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 118.
49. Lucia Stanton suggests that James probably bargained for his freedom while in Paris. Id. at 126–27. There does not appear to be any serious evidence to support such speculation, and we know that in September 1793 Jefferson made an agreement to free James if James would first train another slave as a French cook. Part of this bargain may have been that James also compensate Jefferson for his investment in training James in Paris. Based on entries in Jefferson’s Memorandum Books, James seems to have stopped receiving wages from Jefferson after January 1794, and it is possible that his wages were retained by Jefferson in repayment for educational expenses. But this is entirely speculation. (The specific details are of no importance to our present inquiry other than noting there is no serious evidence of any Jefferson-Hemings “treaty” in Paris.) Jefferson manumitted James on February 5, 1796, and three weeks later gave him thirty dollars for expenses to Philadelphia. But James apparently had difficulty adjusting to the outside world. Despite his extensive training as a French chef, he soon turned to drinking and committed suicide in 1801. See 1 JEFFERSON’S MEMORANDUM BOOKS 471; 2 id. 936, 1051 n.10. Martha Jefferson wrote that John Hemings also turned to alcohol after manumission: “His liberty poor fellow was no blessing to him.” Quoted in STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 149.
50. Lucia Stanton, “Response to Bob Turner’s Questions of 14 November 2000,” question 18.
51. Id., Question 16.
52. Id., Question 18.
53. Quoted in GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 201.
54. James A. Bear, Jr., The Hemings Family of Monticello, VIRGINIA CAVALCADE, Autumn 1979 at 82.
55. “Peter Hemings continued his trade of tailor after Jefferson’s death (there are references to clothing purchased of him in Randolph and Bankhead accounts until 1838).” Lucia Stanton, “Response to Bob Turner’s Questions of 14 November 2000,” question 18.
56. See, e.g., Stanton, The Other End of the Telescope 141, 150.
57. Thus, there are numerous entries showing that Wormley was given a dollar or so for travel expenses, and a few days later Jefferson would record receiving twenty-five cents or so back from Wormley. 2 MEMORANDUM BOOKS 1260, 1261, 1302.
58. See, e.g., id. at 1384.
59. For example, in 1794, when Wormley would have been about thirteen years of age, Jefferson recorded the “actual work” done by various slaves in his Farm Book. Burwell received a score of “19,” while Wormley received the lowest number of “16.25.” THE GARDEN AND FARM BOOKS OF THOMAS JEFFERSON n. 367. The following year, Jefferson made a diary notation that the “abler boys” should be assigned as “binders,” while the “smallest boys” were to be “gatherers.” Wormley was listed in this second group. Id. at 278. Consider also a memorandum from Jefferson to overseer Edmund Bacon, dated 1807 (when Wormley would have been about twenty-six), stating that “Wormley must be directe
d to weed the flower beds about the house, the nursery, the vineyards, and raspberry beds, when they want it.” (JEFFERSON AT MONTICELLO 65.) This could suggest that Wormley lacked motivation, as a gardener might be expected to do such things without being “directed.”
60. See, e.g., STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 143.
61. I should note that, despite the common interpretation that this reference to “Sally” meant Sally Hemings, there were several other “Sallies” at Monticello and Edgehill and there is no clear evidence this referred to Sally Hemings. Indeed, since Sally was reportedly already living in Charlottesville as a free woman with her sons, a case might be made that this was a reference to a different Sally. We just do not really know.
62. STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 143.
63. Monticello Report, Appendix E.
64. Id., Appendix H at 4.
65. GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 176.
66. FAWN M. BRODIE, THOMAS JEFFERSON 249.
67. One might argue that after the Callender allegations in 1801 Jefferson would not have wanted to record special gifts to Sally, but that would not explain the absence of such notations prior to that time.
68. Monticello Report, Appendix H at 3.
69. STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 104, 121.
70. JEFFERSON AT MONTICELLO 99–100.
71. STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 129.
72. The arguable exception would be the freeing of her two sons, along with most other Hemings males still at Monticello.
73. BRODIE, THOMAS JEFFERSON 233.
74. See Chapter Two.
75. 1 MEMORANDUM BOOKS 388 n.56, 408.
76. STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 91.
77. Id. at 110.
78. Monticello Report, Appendix H at 3.
79. Jefferson’s relationship with Jupiter was so close that he occasionally borrowed money from him. See, e.g., 2 JEFFERSON’S MEMORANDUM BOOKS 1000.
80. ELLIS, AMERICAN SPHINX 28.
81. Jefferson to James Maurice, Sept. 16, 1789, in 15 PAPERS OF THOMAS JEFFERSON 433 (1958).
82. BRODIE, THOMAS JEFFERSON 243.
83. GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 180.
84. See Chapter Two.
85. BRODIE, THOMAS JEFFERSON 239.
86. Id. at 249.
87. THE GARDEN AND FARM BOOKS OF THOMAS JEFFERSON 286.
88. Id.
89. GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 193.
90. BRODIE, THOMAS JEFFERSON 438.
91. GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 194.
92. Robert Hemings, who was manumitted by Jefferson on Christmas Eve, 1794, was so trusted by Jefferson that he was permitted to travel around on his own, and Jefferson often did not even know where he was. See, e.g., 20 THE PAPERS OF THOMAS JEFFERSON 330 n.
93. See Figure 7 on page 141.
94. See Chapter Four.
95. SALLY HEMINGS AND THOMAS JEFFERSON 24.
96. ANNETTE GORDON-REED, THOMAS JEFFERSON AND SALLY HEMINGS 218 (1997).
97. STANTON, FREE SOME DAY 112.
7
The Physical Resemblance of Some of Sally Hemings’ Children to Thomas Jefferson
* * *
In a commentary accompanying the Nature report that Eston Hemings was probably fathered by a Jefferson male, Professors Eric S. Lander and Joseph J. Ellis identified three pieces of historical evidence that they claim point to Thomas Jefferson as the most likely father. The first of these was that “several of the children bore a striking physical resemblance to Jefferson. … ”1 This argument was repeatedly emphasized as well in the Monticello Report, which said of some of Sally’s children: “It was evidently their very light skin and pronounced resemblance to Jefferson that led to local talk of Jefferson’s paternity.”2
In an era when sexual relations between master and slave were often revealed by the arrival of light-skinned offspring, such local gossip would not be surprising. But speculative neighborhood gossip is hardly compelling evidence that Thomas Jefferson was sexually involved with Sally Hemings—especially when one realizes that similar gossip about the presence of “white” slave children at Monticello dates back at least to 1796, at which time it was almost certainly referring to Sally and her siblings, who had been inherited by Jefferson from his father-in-law’s estate, rather than to any children Thomas Jefferson might conceivably have fathered by Sally.
Joshua D. Rothman, at the time a doctoral candidate in the University of Virginia Department of History doing his dissertation on race relations in antebellum Virginia, observed in Sally Hemings and Thomas Jefferson:
As early as 1796, a number of French visitors noted evidence of sex across the color line on Jefferson’s resident plantation. The Duc de La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt mentioned particularly Mr. Jefferson’s slaves who had “neither in their color nor features a single trace of the origin, but they are sons of slave mothers and consequently slaves.” The Comte de Volney, also traveling during the summer of 1796, similarly noted slaves at Monticello “as white as I am.”3
Presumably, the light-skinned slaves in question were the children of Betty Hemings inherited by Thomas Jefferson upon the 1773 death of his father-in-law—including Sally herself. Thus these accounts cannot reasonably be interpreted as evidence of a sexual relationship involving Thomas Jefferson. It is certainly possible that, if Thomas Woodson was, in fact, Sally Hemings’ son, he was among those slaves being observed, as he would have been about six years old in 1796. But Dr. Foster’s DNA study has ruled out Thomas Jefferson’s paternity of Thomas Woodson.4 Sally’s first clearly documented child (Harriet I) was not born until October 5, 1795,5 and thus was unlikely to have been seen by foreign visitors to Monticello the following year.
Later, Sally Hemings did have several children, some of whom were described as bearing a strong resemblance to Thomas Jefferson. There are no known drawings, paintings, photographs, or other likenesses of Sally Hemings or any of her children,6 but there is enough descriptive evidence to establish that at least some of her children seemed to some observers to bear a physical resemblance to the President. Ironically, perhaps the strongest statement of this perceived likeness comes not from a revisionist critic but from Thomas Jefferson’s own grandson, Thomas Jefferson Randolph, whose explanation of the original rumors was reported by historian Henry S. Randall:
He [Jefferson’s grandson] asked me if I knew how the story of Mr. Jefferson’s connection with her [Sally] originated. I told him I did not. “There was a better excuse for it,” said he, “than you might think: she had children which resembled Mr. Jefferson so closely that it was plain that they had his blood in their veins.” He said in one case the resemblance was so close, that at some distance or in the dusk the slave, dressed in the same way, might have been mistaken for Mr. Jefferson.7
Note the qualifications “at some distance” or “in the dusk”—both circumstances that might obscure the ability of observers to see facial details and thus focus attention more on such features as size, build, posture, and perhaps skin tone. “Jeff” Randolph went on to explain that, in his view, the Jefferson “blood” in Sally’s children came not from the President, but from Jefferson’s nephews Peter and/or Samuel Carr.8
Unfortunately, we know little about the specific features of most of Sally Hemings’ children, and thus we must rely upon the conclusions of others in this already highly speculative task of assessing resemblances that were perceived two centuries ago. The most commonly remarked upon feature seems to be that some (but not all) of Sally’s children were very light skinned—almost white. That is consistent with the theory that Thomas Jefferson was their father, but no more so than if they were fathered by any other Caucasian. Sally Hemings, it should be remembered, was said to be “mighty near white” herself.9
The first published allegation that Sally Hemings had a child that resembled Thomas Jefferson came from the pen of James Thomson Callender, the disreputable and embittered journalist who engaged in a personal vendetta against Th
omas Jefferson and was discussed in Chapter Three. In the Richmond Recorder of September 1, 1802, Callender wrote:
It is well known that the man whom it delighteth the people to honor, keeps and for many years has kept as his concubine, one of his own slaves. Her name is SALLY. The name of her eldest son is TOM. His features are said to bear a striking although sable resemblance to those of the President himself.10
It is perhaps noteworthy that various other sources, not clearly hostile to Thomas Jefferson, described Thomas Woodson in terms that might support the supposition that Thomas Jefferson could have been his father. One observer in 1840 proclaimed: “I have never found a more intelligent, enterprising, farming family [than Woodson’s] in the State of Ohio,”11 for example; and others noted his “intelligence” and the fact that he was “tall.”12 Such accounts were clearly found persuasive by Professor Fawn Brodie in her conclusion that Jefferson and Hemings conceived Thomas Woodson in Paris at the start of a lengthy love affair.13 But, again, six separate DNA tests have conclusively ruled out any Jefferson male as the father of Thomas Woodson.14
Known Children of Sally Hemings
Sally Hemings’ first clearly documented child was born in late 1795 and survived for just two years. No physical description of “Harriet” (sometimes identified as “Harriet I” to distinguish her from an 1801 child also given the name “Harriet”) appears to have survived.
On April 1, 1798, Sally gave birth to a son named Beverly Hemings. The only known description of Beverly was that by Ellen Randolph Coolidge, Thomas Jefferson’s granddaughter, who said he was “white enough to pass for white.”15 Again, since Sally herself was very light skinned and reportedly ultimately passed for white herself,16 this description does not suggest that Thomas Jefferson, as opposed to any other Caucasian male, was Beverly’s father.