The duality of Thomas Jefferson

Summary

The script offers an in-depth look at Thomas Jefferson's complex relationship with slavery at Monticello. Despite his high ideals and denouncement of slavery, Jefferson owned over six hundred slaves and fathered children with Sally Hemings, a slave. The tour explores the paradox of Jefferson's life, highlighting his contributions and his moral contradictions. It also delves into the lives of the slaves, including John Hemings, a skilled craftsman, and the Hemings family's legacy. The narrative challenges the traditional image of Jefferson, presenting a more nuanced view of his life and the institution of slavery.

Takeaways

• 🏰 Thomas Jefferson's Monticello was a plantation where he professed to hate slavery but still owned slaves.
• 📜 Despite being the author of the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson owned around six hundred slaves over his lifetime and freed only seven.
• 👨‍👧‍👦 He likely fathered at least six children with his slave Sally Hemings, which was confirmed by DNA evidence in 1998.
• 🏆 Pulitzer prize-winning author Jon Meacham's biography portrays Jefferson as a man trapped by the circumstances of his birth, including slavery.
• 🛠 Furniture in Monticello was made by slaves, including John Hemings, who was later freed by Jefferson and given the tools of his trade.
• 📚 Jefferson's laptop desk, where he wrote early drafts of the Declaration of Independence, also housed records of his slaves' births and deaths.
• 🔨 Monticello had a profitable nail-making workshop where young boys were whipped to increase productivity.
• 👴 Jefferson's view on ending slavery was to emancipate and then repatriate or colonize African American slaves, not integrating them into society.
• 🖼 An artist's imagined portrait of Sally Hemings, sister of John Hemings and believed to be Jefferson's lover, highlights the personal relationships within Monticello.
• 🤝 Descendants of Sally Hemings have passed down stories implicating Jefferson as their ancestor, with some even 'passing' as white.
• 🏡 The Hemings and Jefferson family reunion at Monticello in 1999 marked a significant moment in acknowledging their shared history.

Q & A

What is the main theme of the Monticello tour mentioned in the transcript?

The main theme of the Monticello tour is to explore the paradoxical life of Thomas Jefferson, who was both a champion of high ideals and a slave owner, providing a more nuanced view of his character and the institution of slavery.

How many slaves did Thomas Jefferson own over his lifetime?

Thomas Jefferson owned over six hundred slaves during his lifetime.

How many slaves did Jefferson free, and under what circumstances?

Jefferson freed only seven slaves. One of them was John Hemings, a highly skilled furniture maker, who was freed in Jefferson's will and given the tools of his trade.

What is the significance of the DNA evidence mentioned in the transcript?

The DNA evidence confirmed the long-standing claims by the descendants of Sally Hemings that Thomas Jefferson was the father of at least six of her children, providing a scientific basis to a historical controversy.

What was Thomas Jefferson's view on the integration of African Americans into society?

Jefferson did not foresee a biracial integrated society. His plan for ending slavery involved emancipation followed by repatriation or colonization, meaning African American slaves would leave the United States.

What is the connection between the Hemings family and Thomas Jefferson?

The Hemings family, including Sally Hemings, were slaves owned by Thomas Jefferson. Sally Hemings is believed to have had a long-term relationship with Jefferson, and their descendants include both Jefferson and Hemings family members.

What is the significance of the 'farm book' mentioned in the transcript?

The 'farm book' is significant as it documents the births and deaths of the slaves, as well as the work they performed, providing a detailed account of the daily operations of the plantation and the treatment of slaves.

What is the role of the nail-making workshop at Monticello in the context of the transcript?

The nail-making workshop was an extremely profitable part of Monticello's operations, where young slaves were made to work and were subjected to violence to increase productivity, illustrating the harsh realities of slave labor.

How does the transcript describe the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and his slaves?

The transcript describes an intimate relationship between Jefferson and his slaves, from birth to death, as he was raised and cared for by slaves and relied on them for various tasks throughout his life.

What does the transcript suggest about the public's evolving understanding of Thomas Jefferson?

The transcript suggests that the public's understanding of Thomas Jefferson is becoming more three-dimensional, acknowledging both his virtues and vices, including his role as a slave owner and the complexities of his personal life.

What is the significance of the 'laptop desk' mentioned in the transcript?

The 'laptop desk' is significant because it is the desk on which Thomas Jefferson wrote early drafts of the Declaration of Independence, symbolizing the contrast between his lofty ideals and the reality of his slave-owning life.

Outlines

00:00

🏰 Monticello's Dual Legacy: Jefferson's Ideals and Slavery

The first paragraph introduces Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's plantation, as a place of both high ideals and the harsh reality of slavery. It contrasts Jefferson's professed hatred for slavery with his continued ownership of slaves, including his relationship with Sally Hemings and the children he likely fathered with her. The paragraph also discusses the contradictions in Jefferson's life, such as his authorship of the Declaration of Independence and his ownership of slaves, and the DNA evidence that confirmed his paternity of Hemings' children. It highlights the work of slaves at Monticello, including the craftsmanship of John Hemings, and the economic and cultural factors that trapped Jefferson in the institution of slavery. The paragraph ends with a reflection on the necessity to understand slavery to understand Jefferson fully.

05:01

🌟 Jefferson's Complex Views on Slavery and Race

The second paragraph delves into Jefferson's complicated views on slavery and race. It discusses his plan for ending slavery, which involved emancipation followed by repatriation or colonization, reflecting a belief in the impossibility of a biracial integrated society. The paragraph also explores the personal side of Jefferson's life, particularly his relationship with Sally Hemings and the conditions she set for returning to slavery in Virginia. It includes the story of Shannon Lanier, a direct descendant of Hemings, and the emotional impact of discovering this history. The paragraph concludes with a reflection on Jefferson's legacy, noting that while he is remembered for his achievements like the Declaration of Independence, his involvement with slavery and the complex relationships within his own household also form a significant part of his historical memory.

Keywords

💡Monticello

Monticello was the plantation home of Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States and author of the Declaration of Independence. It serves as the central setting for the video's exploration of Jefferson's life and his complex relationship with slavery. The script mentions Monticello as a place where Jefferson both professed high ideals and engaged in the practice of slavery, making it a symbol of the contradictions in his life.

💡Slavery

Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be used, bought, or sold. In the context of the video, it is the institution that Jefferson owned and operated at Monticello. The video discusses how Jefferson's plantation was a site of slavery, and how this fact complicates the legacy of a man who also wrote about 'all men are created equal'.

💡Hypocrisy

Hypocrisy refers to the behavior of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. The script uses this term to describe the contrast between Jefferson's public stance against slavery and his private actions as a slave owner, highlighting the moral conflict within his character.

💡Declaration of Independence

The Declaration of Independence is a document drafted by Thomas Jefferson that declared the thirteen American colonies' independence from British rule. The video script mentions Jefferson's authorship of this document, which includes the famous phrase 'all men are created equal,' juxtaposing it with his ownership of slaves to underscore the irony of his position.

💡Sally Hemings

Sally Hemings was one of Thomas Jefferson's slaves, and the script suggests that she was also his mistress, with whom he had several children. The video discusses the long-standing传言 about their relationship and the DNA evidence that confirmed it in 1998, adding a layer of personal complexity to Jefferson's legacy.

💡John Hemings

John Hemings was a highly skilled slave who worked in Jefferson's joinery and is remembered for his craftsmanship. The script mentions that he made many pieces of furniture at Monticello and was eventually freed by Jefferson in his will. John Hemings represents the skilled labor that was integral to the functioning of the plantation and the personal relationships that Jefferson had with his slaves.

💡Nail-making workshop

The nail-making workshop at Monticello was an example of the industrial operations that took place on the plantation. The script describes how young slaves were tasked with moving nails and how older boys were whipped to increase productivity, illustrating the harsh realities of slave labor and the violence inherent in the plantation system.

💡Benevolent slave holder

The term 'benevolent slave holder' is used in the script to describe Jefferson's own view of how he treated his slaves, despite the broader context of slavery being inherently cruel and dehumanizing. It reflects the video's exploration of Jefferson's self-perception versus the reality of the institution he participated in.

💡Repatriation

Repatriation, in the context of the video, refers to Jefferson's belief that freed slaves should be sent back to Africa. This concept is discussed as part of his plan for ending slavery, which the video suggests would be considered racist by today's standards, highlighting the evolving understanding of racial equality.

💡Biracial Society

A biracial society is one that includes people of both white and black racial backgrounds living together. The script points out the irony that while Jefferson did not foresee a biracial integrated society, he himself created one at Monticello through his relationships with Sally Hemings and their children.

💡Legacy

Legacy refers to the lasting impact or influence of someone's life and actions. The video discusses Jefferson's legacy as not only being defined by his political achievements but also by his involvement with slavery and his relationships with his slaves, emphasizing the complexity of his historical image.

Highlights

Thomas Jefferson's Monticello plantation tour reveals the paradox of his high ideals and his involvement in slavery.

Jefferson professed to hate slavery but owned hundreds of slaves throughout his life.

Despite his famous words in the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson freed only seven slaves.

DNA evidence in 1998 confirmed Jefferson's paternity of at least six children with his slave Sally Hemings.

Pulitzer prize-winning author Jon Meacham's biography portrays Jefferson as trapped by the circumstances of his time.

Jefferson's early memory was of being handed to a slave, and his last words were about adjusting his pillow, showing an intimate relationship with slaves.

Slave John Hemings ran Jefferson's joinery and made much of the furniture at Monticello, and was later freed by Jefferson.

The Monticello tour emphasizes understanding slavery to understand Jefferson, highlighting the 600 slaves he owned.

Jefferson's laptop desk, where he wrote drafts of the Declaration of Independence, also housed records of his slaves.

Jefferson's plantation was profitable due to the labor of enslaved children, who were subjected to violence to increase productivity.

Jefferson's plan for ending slavery involved repatriation, not integration, showing a racist view for the time.

Sally Hemings, believed to be Jefferson's lover, was also his wife's half-sister, and her descendants have complex family ties.

Descendants of Sally Hemings have passed down stories about Jefferson, some of whom identified as white.

Reporter Shannon Lanier, a direct descendant of Sally Hemings, shares his journey of discovering his lineage.

The Hemings-Jefferson family reunion at Monticello in 1999 was a significant event for descendants to come together.

Jefferson's legacy is complex, with achievements like the Declaration of Independence overshadowed by his slave-owning past.

Transcripts

this is what Thomas Jefferson saw from

Monticello the view as perfect as his

high ideals well I'd like to welcome you

to our slavery at Monticello tour but at

Monticello today it is the imperfect

Jefferson we see Monticello was a

plantation and must judge for ourselves

Jefferson professed a hate slavery

called an abominable crime but he held

on to his slaves he freed only seven the

author of the Declaration of

Independence who wrote that all men are

created equal

owned six hundred slaves over his

lifetime and in addition to his

legitimate children almost certainly

fathered at least six other children

with his slave Sally Hemings for

generations descendants of Sally Hemings

have been telling stories implicating

Jefferson his father of her children DNA

proof of a connection came in 1998 is

Thomas Jefferson any less great because

the understanding we have of him now is

three-dimensional most human beings I

know are quite capable of denial and

hypocrisy and I think that Jefferson's

virtues were enormous and his vices were

equally enormous Pulitzer prize-winning

author Jon Meacham has just published a

best-selling new biography of our third

president look dad in full you find a

man whose life was made possible by

slavery who had misgivings who as a

young man attempted however feebly to

reform the institution but in the end he

was ultimately someone who was trapped

by allowed himself to be trapped by the

economic political and cultural

circumstances into which he was born

Jefferson said that his earliest memory

was of being handed up on a pillow as a

toddler to a slave on a horse and we

know that his last words were asking

burl Cobert to adjust his pillow here in

this room

Jefferson's but

Burrell Tolbert was also a slave there

would have been an intimate relationship

really from from birth to death

Elizabeth Chu is curator at Monticello

now are there pieces of furniture in

this room that were made by slaves yes

in the the joinery or the furniture

making woodshop in Jefferson's later

years was run by a slave named John

Hemings and Hemings ran the joinery and

made many pieces of furniture that are

in Monticello today this is an example

he was very highly skilled and he was

freed by Jefferson in his will and given

the tools of his trade John Hemings is

remembered because of his craftsmanship

unlike so many other Jefferson's slaves

to be able to sort of have an image of

Jefferson that we all know and behind

him the names of the 600 people that he

owned in his lifetime really means that

we have to understand slavery in order

to understand Jefferson Lonnie bunch

heads the Smithsonian's National Museum

of african-american history and culture

sponsor of a traveling exhibition about

slavery at Monticello and what's

powerful is quite candidly we only know

the first things and there are some that

we just have is unknown Lucy Lucy

it's almost any old name that's exactly

right this is Thomas Jefferson's laptop

desk this is the desk upon which he

wrote early drafts of the declaration

independence the first of those drafts

attacked Britain slave trade Jefferson

writing that King George the third has

waged cruel war against human nature

itself the Continental Congress took the

phrase out alongside the rejected

passage the financial reality next to it

is his farm book and here is where he

would list the births and deaths of the

slaves he would list the work that they

did so in some ways it really gives us a

full picture of the totality of

Jefferson which at times contradicts the

popular image of Jefferson as a

benevolent slave holder the male

reoccupied one

half of this site inside there were four

forges one example what went on at

Jefferson's extremely profitable nail

making workshop at Monticello as the

young child your job was to move the

nails around but by the time of year 12

13 14 your job is to make these nails

the boys were routinely whipped to force

them to be more productive that happened

while Jefferson was on Monticello it

happened when he was gone because in the

18th century you couldn't run a

plantation without using violence a man

of his time Jefferson thought he was

benevolent but even his plan for ending

slavery would be considered racist today

his view was that at best

there could be an emancipation but then

there would be repatriation there would

be colonization African American slaves

would leave the United States he did not

foresee a biracial integrated Society

one of the many ironies of his life

because he created a biracial Society at

Monticello this is an artist's imagined

portrait of Sally Hemings sister of John

Hemings the furniture maker

she was also believed to be Thomas

Jefferson's wife Martha's half-sister

the entire Hemings family ended up at

Monticello but it was in Paris in the

1780s while Jefferson by then a widower

was u.s. minister to France but he

supposedly began a nearly 40-year sexual

liaison with Sally who was there with

him by law she was free in France before

agreeing to return to Virginia to

slavery

she set conditions according to her

descendants she said I will go back with

you if any children we have are allowed

to be free to 21

Jefferson must have been totally

flummoxed by this strong-willed I think

quite courageous woman in September 1802

a Richmond Virginia newspaper outed

Jefferson say

by this wench Sally our president has

had several children after that the

Jefferson Hemings story was whispered

from one generation to the next for

nearly 200 years by descendants of Sally

Hemings many of whom passed for white

it's been an interesting journey for me

because it started out when I was a kid

me standing up in class and saying

Thomas Jefferson is my great-great-great

great-great-great grandfather and being

so happy and proud to brag about it you

know when we're studying the presidents

but then when the teacher says sit down

and stop telling lies and all the kids

laugh at you by the mid-1990s the

laughing had stopped historians even at

Monticello were becoming believers

television reporter Shannon Lanier is a

direct descendant of Sally Hemings

through her son Madison Hemings before

that reunion I had only known the

Hemings descendants from Madison line of

the family I didn't even know the

Jefferson line Shannon Lanier right in

front there was 19 when he attended the

controversial first ever combined

Hemings Jefferson family reunion at

Monticello in 1999 afterward he and Jane

Feldman the photographer who took this

picture traveled the country

interviewing four generations of Hemings

and Jefferson's for a book Jefferson's

children our journey in the Jefferson's

story kind of acts as a catalyst for

people to be able to discuss the topic

of slavery we had a family Bible a great

big thick number and my mother inherited

it from an uncle and in there was an

entry among others Brown Colvard in 2006

Bill Webb's wife doing some research

found Brown Kolbert listed as a

Monticello slave it turns out he was the

brother of Jefferson's Butler Burrell

Kolbert and as a boy worked at the nail

making workshop which Webb decided he

had to see Here I am standing on the

very same

land where my ancestor had worked as a

young preteen and now that's heavy it

was something that brought tears to my

eyes to say my god my god Thomas

Jefferson is buried at Monticello

inscribed on his monument the

achievements he wanted to be remembered

for including the Declaration of

Independence but he will be remembered

as well for the legacy that is not

written here