February 2000 Newsletter
President, James J. TruscottPresident's Comments
This is the second newsletter to be distributed to the Association membership. I hope and expect to publish another before the annual meeting in May 2000, since there will no doubt be a number of issues surfacing which will be of interest to the membership.
The Descendancy Question
Many of you will recall that in November 1998 the results of a DNA study conducted by Dr. Eugene A. Foster showed that "a Jefferson" almost certainly fathered the last child, Eston, of Sally Hemings, one of Thomas Jefferson's slaves. The study also indicated that "a Jefferson" almost certainly did not father Thomas Woodson despite the very strong oral histroy of Thomas Woodson's descendants that Thomas Jefferson did. The parentage of Ms. Hemings' other children could not be determined because of the limitations of the DNA testing methods used. Unfortunately most of the media assumed that Dr. Foster's study proved that Thomas Jefferson was Eston's father. This resulted in a great deal of media coverage of our 1999 Annual Meeting to which we had invited a number of Hemings descendants. The media wanted to know if we would admit Hemings descendants into the Association and allow them to be buried in the graveyard.
Since Dr. Foster's study was released the Executive Committee has taken several actions concerning this issue. The Committee obtained an independant legal review to confirm our ownership of the graveyard and verify the deed's restrictions to burial there. This study is essentially complete and should be delivered to the Executive Committee in the near future. The president (then Bob Gillespie), with Executive Committee approval, created a Membership Advisory Committee to prepare a recommendation defining criteria for determining if a person who is seeking burial in the graveyard or membership in the Association is or is not a descendant of Thomas Jefferson. The committee is chaired by V. R. ("Shack") Shackelford, III. The Executive Committee is monitoring closely the status of these and other activities some of which are described herein.
Summary of Terms
Here is a brief description of some of the terms we are dealing with today. It is important for the membership to be aware of these definitions so that each can make an informed judgment about any actions the Association may take or which he/she may be asked to vote upon.
Membership in the Association is defined in Article III of our constitution. A Regular Member is any lineal descendant of Thomas Jefferson who applies for membership and pays annual dues. An Honorary Member is an official who has assisted the Association, has been nominated by the Executive Committee, and elected by a two-thirds majority of members present at a meeting at which a quorom is present. An Associate Member includes adopted children, step children and spouses of regular members who assist the Association and are elected by a majority of members present at a meeting at which a quorom is present. Note that "the right to vote and to hold office is limited to regular members in good standing who have reached the age of 18 years." (Article III, A of our constitution). One must be current in dues payments to be a member in good standing.
Right to burial in the graveyard is limited by the terms of the deed under which the graveyard property was transferred to the Association. Some members may not be aware that there are two sections to the graveyard. One is a small segment (c. 1/6 acre) at the front of the fenced area; it encompasses Mr. Jefferson's grave and others. Legally this segment is owned by the descendants of Mr. Jefferson's grandson, Thomas Jefferson Randolph, and the Association is committed to defending those property rights. (See Article II, para. B of our constitution). The graveyard was expanded by approximately half an acre in 1923 by the owner of Monticello, Mr. J. M. Levy, at the same time that he sold Monticello to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation. The deed placed a restriction on the property; it was to be used :for the burial purposes only of the descendants of Thomas Jefferson." The definition of descendant under Virginia law has evolved somewhat over the years. The potential for ambiguity led the Executive Committee to commission the independent review mentioned earlier.
Membership Advisory Committee
As mentioned above, since the evidence concerning the Hemings descendancy was not conclusive we have formed a Membership Advisory Committee to recommend criteria that the Association should use to determine if one who seeks admission to the Association or burial in the graveyard is or is not a descendant of Thomas Jefferson. The committee has had two formal meetings in Charlottesville, VA. In addition its members have been engaged in extensive research concerning legal and genealogical determination of "descendancy" as well as other historical data of Mr. Jefferson's activities.
Unfortunately the committee's work is far from complete. Although the intent was to have a final recommendation for presentation at the Annual Meeting in May 2000, it now appears that the committee will be unable to do so. The delay has been caused by the unavailability of certain elements of information that the committee considers vital before arriving at its recommendation. One such key element is a study conducted by the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation which has just been released. Another is a comprehensive review of applicable genealogical standards. Thus, the question of how we determine descendancy may not be answered for several more months. The committee expects to release an interim report in time for the Annual meeting in May.
Annual Meeting
The annual meeting is tentatively scheduled for 6-7 May 2000. We expect the format to be essentially the same as previous years. The meeting notice will be published in mid-March with the details.
Web Page
Thanks to David Works the Association now has an Internet site on the World Wide Web.
The address is: http://www.monticello-assoc.org.
Visit the site; David has done a superb job in setting it up.
Executive Committee Changes
Our treasurer, Ed Taylor, announced at the annual meeting last year that he would be retiring. He submitted his resignation effective January 1, 2000. Fortunately he has had an able assistant, Ms. Cynthia Hubard Spangler. The Executive Committee has named her to be the Acting Treasurer pending the election of officers at the next membership meeting.
Administrative Matters
The Collected Papers of the Monticello Association, Vol. II, published in 1984, contain
a wealth of data about the Association including the Constitution and By-Laws. This hard
bound book can be obtained for $30 from The Monticello Association, P.O. box 6421,
Ellicott City, MD 21042-6421.
Copies of only the Constitution and By-Laws are available from the same address for $2.50.