Historians In Awe Over Discovery At Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello Property

The Relationship Was Revealed In The News

Rumors about such a relationship began to circulate around Virginia society for years. Their relationship came to light so quickly because Hemings’ children looked to be fathered by a white man, and some of them even had Jefferson’s features. In 1802, a less-than-reputable journalist named James Callendar published an accusation of the affair in the Richmond Recorder.

He did this in order to get back at Jefferson after Jefferson failed to return a favor. When he published the accusation, he intended his writings to cause a scandal and hurt Jefferson’s chances of the presidency. Jefferson denied such accusations and the rumors didn’t hurt his standing much in the public eye.