1991 Annual Meeting Minutes
Start of Activities
Minutes of the Business Meeting
Treasurer's Report
Trustee's Report
Historian's Report
Nominating Committee Report
Acceptance Speech
Secretary's Report
Custodian's Report
Family and friends met at Monticello outside the house in nice weather for our reception, and as usual we are deeply indebted to Dan Jordan and the staff of Monticello for making the grounds and house available to us. After about an hour or more at Monticello, the members went to the Michie Tavern for supper, and on the morning after to the family graveyard for a short service led by President Steve Moyer. After that, we went to the Alumni Hall of the University Virginia for lunch and the 1991 business meeting.
MINUTES OF THE
BUSINESS MEETING
June 9, 1991
Alumni Hall, University of Virginia
Steve Moyer presiding. Steve introduced Susan Stein, Curator at Monticello, who described a few of the current projects at Monticello. Among them were the roof renovation at a cost of one million dollars, approximately, to replace the 1924 roof which had at least 80 patches and was not done according to the original specifications, which of the new roof will be as nearly as possible. Monticello will have a loan exhibition of at least 100 objects that came from Monticello. A Madison bust will also be on display. The meeting was formally called to order and a tribute was paid to Professor George Green Shackelford who is retiring as Editor of the Collected Papers and who has managed the sale of them since 1984 when they came out. The reading of last year's minutes was dispensed with by unanimous vote.
The Treasurer's report came next as read by Edmund Taylor and will be published separately. Gerald Morgan, Jr. Trustee reported on the Trust Account for the year April 13, 1990 to April 15, 1991 and stated that the account had started with a value of $58,605.73 at the beginning of its fiscal year and ended up with a value of $69,246.44. The increase is due to $4,393.20 in interest and dividends, $3,600 in funds added, less $658.77 in expenses plus $3,306.28 in market appreciation. The Trustee stated that we seldom disburse any funds from this account and that is why it continues to grow in value. The historian, Bob Coolidge, then gave his report and commented on Thomas Jefferson's activities 200 years ago this month. His report will be published separately. The President then asked for nominations from the floor for Associate Membership in the Association and 6 new members were proposed and elected unanimously. They were:
Verna Ruth Bankhead, wife of William Marion Bankhead
Melissa Holt Hinton, wife of Robert S. Hinton III
James Mackay-Smith Keirstead, husband of Alexandra Mackay-Smith Keirstead
Nancy D. Ruffin, wife of Virginius Ruffin
Carolyn M. Thompson, step-daughter of Denise Bankhead Thompson
Stephan M. Thompson, husband of Denise Bankhead Thompson
The Secretary then reported that he had had $1450 less expenses in the current year , due to lesser printing costs for the Annual Report and one mailing rather than two. He apologized for the lateness of the Annual Report mailing and promised that it wouldn't be so late again and that we would have a separate mailing of the Notice of the Meeting to avoid confusion in the future. He mentioned several bad gaps in the genealogy specifically on pages 225, 227 and 245 of the Collected Papers. There are extra copies of Henry Soane, Progenitor of Thomas Jefferson which were handed out later in the meeting. There was no old or new business to be discussed so the report of the Nominating Committee by acting Chairman, Frank Walker was read.
For President: John Hubard
For Secretary: Gerald Morgan, Jr.
For Treasurer: Edmund R. Taylor, Jr.
For Vice President: Margaret Hope Show
For Historian: Robert Tytus Coolidge
Jane Rotch, Custodian and Gerald Morgan, Jr., Trustee agreed to re-appointment for the coming year.
Steve Moyer then turned over the official gavel to John Hubard with his thanks to John and the Executive Committee and the custodian, and John Hubard read his acceptance speech, published separately. Katherine Ermisch thanked Jane Rotch in the most complimentary fashion for her help and comfort when her late husband was buried at Monticello within the last year. The date of next year's Annual Meeting was set for June 7, 1992. The meeting was adjourned at 2:25 by President John Hubard.
Appointments by the new President were:
Jane Rotch, Custodian
Moncure Taylor and Joy Boissevain, Interments
Steve Moyer, Nominating
During 1990, 465 adults and 190 junior members paid dues. There were 7 new Life members. So far this year, 384 adults and 198 juniors have paid dues. There are 4 new Life members.
The Treasurer's current bank balance is $16,762, which is comparable to previous recent years.
Please remember to notify either the Secretary or the Treasurer of any changes in family status or address, as it is of great help in keeping the records correct. Please remember that Associate members are expected to show interest in the Association by attending meetings, corresponding or making contributions.
Gerald Morgan, Jr. reported as Trustee that the value of our Trust Account on April 13, 1990, its inception date, was $58,605.73. Its value on April 15, 1991 was $69,246.44, this figure arrived at as follows:
| $58,605.73 | April 13, 1990 figure |
| $ 4,393.20 | interest and dividends added during the year |
| $ 3,600.00 | cash deposits added during the year |
| $ -658.77 | expenses for the year |
| $ 3,306.28 | market appreciation for the year |
| $69,246.44 | Value at end of the Trust's fiscal year April 15, 1991 |
The number of new entries in the genealogy, that is recorded births of new descendants, is not I am sure keeping pace with the obviously geometric increase in the number of descendants. We are falling behind, in other words. Since the membership in the Association has remained fairly constant in recent years, each member must therefore increase the scope of inquiry among his or her own relatives if we can hope to keep up with the increasing numbers. Please consider this in sending in your information with your dues, and in responding to requests for information by the Secretary or the Historian about relatives who are not members, even though you may have little or no contact with them.
You will be glad to know that Mr. Jefferson, two hundred years ago today, was on vacation. As you heard last year, he was bothered by recurring headaches. As Secretary of State, he was involved in a number of important political matters during the previous year, and in a letter to his daughter Martha on June 23, he gives getting rid of these headaches as the main purpose of his trip. Today, June 9, he and James Madison were probably traveling down the Connecticut River by boat, somewhere in Massachusetts or Connecticut. In a letter to Maria on May 8, he says he planned to leave Philadelphia on May 15, meet Mr. Madison in New York and together go to Albany, Lake George, Bennington (Vt.), across to the Connecticut River, then down to Hartford, New Haven, New York and back to Philadelphia, where he actually arrived on June 19. In a letter to Martha on May 31, he calls Lake George "unquestionably the most beautiful lake I ever saw". He also complains that "the weather has been as sultry as could be found in Carolina and Georgia" and suspects that "the heats of northern climates may be more powerful than those of southern areas in proportion as they are shorter. Perhaps the vegetation requires this." He goes on to say that he prefers the more moderate climate of Virginia.
This was not Jefferson's first visit to New England, since he had left for France from Boston as Ambassador. It may have been his first and only visit to Vermont and (possibly) New Hampshire. The Republic of Vermont was becoming a State this year, and this informal visit by the future third and fourth Presidents must have been an interesting experience for them both.
NOMINATING
COMMITTEE REPORT
Frank S. Walker, Acting Chairman
For President: John B. Hubard
For Vice President: Margaret Hope Shaw
For Secretary: Gerald Morgan, Jr.
For Treasurer: Edmund R. Taylor, Jr.
For Historian: Robert T. Coolidge
The slate of officers was elected unanimously.
ACCEPTANCE SPEECH BY INCOMING PRESIDENT JOHN BOLLING HUBARD
I shall be brief. I have been told to say it, then sit down. First, many thanks to Steve Moyer, who has been our President for the last two years. During his term in office the Association finally started and has nearly completed the repairs to the graveyard, which have been needed for so long. He will now assume the equally important role of Nominating Committee Chairman.
Second, I'll mention a few things about our course for the next two years, over and above the maintenance of the graveyard. 1993 will be the 250th anniversary of Jefferson's birth. We would like to celebrate it by taking another family photo. We need to talk this up so a maximum number of family members will be present. Next, the Foundation has asked us to "do something" to commemorate this 250th Anniversary event. We do not know what they have in mind, so have not committed ourselves to anything yet. There are some limitations on what we can do because of our tax free status, so this statement is merely to let you know what is afoot. Obviously, we will need your input as members in making this decision, if it comes.
I am happy to make the following appointments:
Custodian of the Graveyard-Jane Rotch
Chairman of the Interments Committee-Moncure R. Taylor II
Assistant to the Chairman-Joy Boissevain
Nominating Committee Chairman-Stevens M. Moyer
Lastly, I am honored to be elected as President, and pledge to do my utmost to uphold the purposes and spirit of the Association. Thank you and please have a safe trip home.
My apologies for getting the Annual Report out so late and for having to include it with the notice of the meeting in the same mailing. There was, however, a savings in mailing costs as a result, and in addition a saving in Annual Report printing costs of about $450 over the previous year. My thanks to all of you who have taken the trouble to send me family information, vital statistics of any kind, changes of addresses, and so forth. All of this information is vital to the Association. Any information anyone can give me on the following people would be most appreciated:
Urbina/Bankhead/Bell people on page 225 of the Collected Papers Bankhead/Moyer/Waers people on page 227
Decker/Smith people on page 245
SECRETARY'S FIGURES FOR THE 1990 FISCAL YEAR
| Opening Balance January 1, 1990 | $ 96.35 |
| Addition of budgeted funds from Treasurer | 2,800.00 |
| Postage expense | -500.67 |
| Supplies expense | -93.14 |
| Copying expense | -195.63 |
| Printing expense of Annual Report | -1,818.30 |
| Closing balance December 31, 1990 | $ 287.62 |
CUSTODIAN'S REPORT TO THE ANNUAL MEETING
Welcome to the graveyard! Since our last meeting there have been two burials- Edith Randall Kotz and William Joseph Ermisch. Another will take place shortly. that of Harriet Ruffin. Five stones have been set in the graveyard during the past year .
We have made several improvements since you were last here. As you may have noticed, the narrative plaque near Mr. Jefferson's grave is now much easier to read. We had it cleaned and then covered with a protective coating to make the good effects of cleaning last longer. On a much larger financial scale, we have almost finished a project of fence renewal which involved spot painting and some repairs. This has been done by a local ironwork firm, rather than by family labor. I appreciate the assistance of The Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation staff in helping me find appropriate firms to do the work.
The Foundation also cooperated with us in placing our granite markers out in the field to reflect more accurately the corners of the additional unfenced land owned by our Association. To help you visualize our remaining land more clearly, I have marked the corners with stakes and balloons today. Anyone who likes is welcome to pace the boundaries. In spring narcissus bloom in "our" part of the field. The plat of the graveyard published in the Collected Papers includes as tiny sketch of our total property, fenced and unfenced, in its left hand corner. The unfenced land is not precisely rectangular because we exchanged adjoining quarter-acre parcels of land with the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation in 1979 through a complicated court procedure. A result of the exchange is that most of the many tourists walking down from the house to see the Graveyard (and continuing on through a path in the woods to the parking area) traverse Foundation land rather than the Association's land (of the four brick paths surrounding the graveyard, only the one at the back, furthest from the street, crosses the Association's land).
Last fall I continued planting spring flowering bulbs and perennials which made a cheerful show at the time of the Annual Jefferson's Birthday Observance on April 13th and for some weeks afterwards. The characteristic twin leaves of the plant named for Mr. Jefferson, jeffersonia diphylla, are still visible at the side of his monument-I hope that this will in time become an established clump, though the present drought makes it an uncertain prospect. After the peonies have finished blooming in May the graveyard is deeply shaded and becomes a green garden for the rest of the summer. My predecessor as Custodian, the late Charlotte Rafferty, told me that these peonies were brought from Edgehill. She always fed them with sheep manure and wood ashes and counseled me to do the same-there, now you've learned a "family recipe", which has so far proved a successful one !
I'll close my report by reiterating some of the basic "rules" of our graveyard, especially for those who are first time visitors. Any lineal descendant of Thomas Jefferson may be buried in the graveyard, as may that descendant's spouse, or parent (if the descendant requests burial for the parent.) While membership in the Monticello Association is encouraged, it is not a prerequisite. There is no charge or fee for burial, although contributions to the Association are appropriate and are always gratefully received. By the same token, we cannot offer guaranteed "reservations" of a particular location to any person, since all descendants have an equal right. It comes down to "first come, first served". The Custodian keeps an Expressed Preference List which indicates the names and preferences of all descendants and spouses who have spoken or written to her, e.g. "Would like to be buried near my parents if possible;" or "No special preference as to location." At the time of burial we do the best we can to suit your wishes in choosing a location.
When the Custodian is out of town the name of whoever is the Acting Custodian can always be obtained from the office at Monticello. I am again most grateful for the wise counsel and frequent assistance of Ena Whitmore and the reliable backup presence of Frank Walker who have stood in for me many times.