THE
MONTICELLO
ASSOCIATION
Comments from James Truscott, President of the Monticello Association
I would like to provide some background data regarding the Monticello Association and the issues facing it which have recently been reported in the press.The Monticello Association is a non profit organization whose members are descendants of Thomas Jefferson. Its primary purpose is to maintain the family graveyard at Jefferson’s estate, Monticello, located near Charlottesville, VA. Membership in the Association is open to any lineal descendant of Thomas Jefferson who applies for membership and pays annual dues.
On the weekend of May 15 and 16 the Monticello Association held its annual meeting in Charlottesville. On Saturday members and guests attended a reception at Monticello hosted by the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, the owners and operators of Monticello. This was followed by a supper at Historic Michie Tavern near Monticello. On Sunday the Association held a short memorial service at the family graveyard where Mr. Jefferson is buried. This was followed by the business meeting held at the Omni Hotel in downtown Charlottesville.
All of these events were heavily covered by the national news media who were interested in whether or not the Association would admit as members the descendants of Sally Hemings, one of Mr. Jefferson’s slaves with whom he may have had a long standing affair. About 35 descendants of Ms. Hemings were guests at all of the functions.
The Association is firmly committed to doing what is right concerning membership. However the issue before the Association is not a simple one. First of all it has not been properly defined by the media. The question is not "Are we going to admit Hemings descendants?" The question is "How do we determine who is a lineal descendant?"
In the past that has been relatively easy. A lineal descendant was one descended from Mr. Jefferson’s two daughters Martha and Maria. The question became more complicated when Dr. Eugene Foster’s DNA study, made public last November, showed that "a Jefferson" fathered Eston, Ms. Hemings last child. Other data suggest that it was most probably Thomas. This supports the oral history of Eston’s descendants but it is not certain proof. Dr. Foster’s study also showed, based upon evidence then available, that a Jefferson did not father Thomas Woodson; this does not support the Woodson oral history. The study did not test DNA from Ms. Hemings' other sons, Madison and Beverley, because the methods it used can only trace Y chromosome DNA from male line descendants and none have been identified from Madison or Beverley Hemings.
The current members of the Association clearly are lineal descendants. There is a "paper trail" (court records, marriage and birth certificates, etc.) leading back to Mr. Jefferson. The Hemings descendants lack a complete "paper trail". To fill in the gaps they must use other means to show they are lineal descendants. Their oral history is one such means; DNA testing is another. There well may be others.
The Association must determine what "other means" are acceptable - what criteria are to be used for determining a "lineal descendant". These criteria must apply to everyone, including current members of the Association, other acknowledged descendants of Mr. Jefferson, the Hemings descendants currently seeking recognition as acknowledged descendants, and others that may turn up in the future. The DNA evidence is strongly suggestive but not conclusive. Oral histories also are strongly suggestive, but they are not conclusive either. Other data may be uncovered which might shed more light on the subject.
The Association has quite rightly refused to be stampeded into making a hasty decision. The Association has created an advisory committee to examine all available data and recommend to our Executive Committee and the membership those criteria which may be used to determine if one is a lineal descendant of Thomas Jefferson. The results of the committee’s work will be most important, not only to the Monticello Association, but to others having an interest in genealogical issues. It is my intention to see that the committee completes its work as rapidly as possible and in any case no later than the next annual meeting of the membership; that will take place in Charlottesville, VA in May, 2000.
Comments about the author:
James J. Truscott graduated from West Point in 1954. He retired from the United States Air Force in 1981 as a lieutenant colonel. He subsequently worked for the Northrop (now Northrop Grumman) Corporation as an analyst and manager of a logistics integration and analysis department, retiring in 1992. He is a volunteer consultant with the Executive Service Corps of Western PA which is based in Pittsburgh. He was elected President of the Monticello Association at the annual meeting on 16 May 1999 in Charlottesville, VA.