Thomas Jefferson’s mistress Sally Hemings’ secret living quarters finally discovered https://t.co/00pOYAMOqq pic.twitter.com/T1WuWM32pn
— NBC News (@NBCNews) July 3, 2017
I toured historic Monticello a couple of years ago, and the legacy of slavery permeated the place. Some of Jefferson’s letters are on display, and while reading them, it became apparent to me that his reputation as a master planter was probably grounded in the expertise of the slaves left him by his father.
Monticello recently opened a couple of small, cramped cabins that were living quarters for the house slaves, and I looked at them and thought about how the great Jefferson felt about summoning the slave Sally Hemings to his alcove bed. Now we know she was right next door, and not out back with the rest of the slaves.
I wondered how the 6″2 Jefferson managed to rape her in such a confined space. He may have been a great man in many ways, but damn. He was a slaveowner, and that makes everything else feel just a little soiled.
Thomas Jefferson founded the Democratic-Republican Party to do battle with Alexander Hamilton’s Federalist Party.