The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family [Taschenbuch]

 

 

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"The Hemingses of Monticello" is an extensive study of the family that worked Monticello and was intertwined with the white masters and mistresses of the plantation. Beginning with Elizabeth Hemings and focusing particularly on her daughter, Sally, and Sally's children it tells the story of generations of a family and its relations to its surroundings.

This book goes far beyond the Hemings family. It tells us much about Thomas and his white family and their life. I found the section dealing with their sojourn in France to be the most fascinating. The explanations of the interactions between the Adams and Jefferson families give another perspective on one of the most important relationships in American history. The thought that two slaves from Virginia who lived in French society and learned its language and etiquette amazes the reader with what must have been a transforming experience for both of them.

The big issue is the claim that Sally was the mistress of Thomas Jefferson and that he was the father of several of her children and hence, had a enslaved black family parallel to his free white family. The presumption is that Sally was the half sister of Jefferson's wife, Martha. Author Annette Gordon-Reed has done an excellent job of tracing legends, documentary evidence and contemporary reports to piece together the story of what really happened, and a fascinating story it is. Beyond the Jefferson-Hemings relationship, this book sheds light on the relationship between master and slave and the slave system as it existed in Jefferson's time. Although Sally and her brothers, Robert and James, and her children were treated differently than other slaves, their experience gives some insight into the lives of slaves who served as personal servants and skilled artisans. Sally's brother, James, was taken to Paris to learn to be a French chef while Robert was trained as a barber. According to this book they were often paid by Jefferson and, at times, allowed to take jobs on their own from which they could keep their earnings.

One issue dealt with at length and repeatedly is whether there was some agreement between Jefferson and James and Sally Hemings before they returned to Virginia when Jefferson's service as Minister to France was concluded. At that time the slaves could have brought suit in French courts that almost certainly would have resulted in their freedom. For some reason they returned to Virginia. Why did they do that? Were they even aware of the opportunity to obtain their freedom? Did they think that this was the best job they would ever have? Did they have a loyalty to Jefferson? Was there, as the author suggests, an agreement to let the children of Thomas and Sally go free and an agreement to free James at some future point? The speculation about the bargaining is a major them of the book, but I think that we really do not know whether or not Jefferson made any promises in exchange for their promise to return with him. This book points out that the slaves left no writings and the whites did not write about the slaves, and then tells us what inner thoughts governed their relationships.

Although long, this book so very well that the reader's attention never flags.

I found this book to be very interesting and helpful in understanding Thomas Jefferson and his life. I think that the author did an impressive job in compiling her research. The repeated reference to entries in Jefferson's diaries and financial records shows that someone must have spent an incredible amount of time pouring over them. I credit Gordon-Reed for acknowledging when the fogs of time proved impenetrable. I do think that she accepts as fact some positions that remain open to debate. She seems to assert that all or most of Sally's children were Jefferson's. While that may be true, I do not think that the historical evidence is conclusive with respect to all of the children. As I mentioned before, I think that the author drifts from historical fact into historical fiction when she posits the motivations of the personae in her drama. Again, her fiction might be historically accurate, but we will never know. This book, as does any truthful book, leaves us with questions. What did they really feel toward each other? Did they merely view each other as objects to be used? Was there a mutual affection and loyalty, or was it more a love reciprocated by resentment? Although we will never know the answers, this book leaves us wiser when we finish than when we began, but still thinking, still probing, still asking. A book that can do that is masterfully written.

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