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From: "Herbert Barger" <>
Subject: Re: [DNA] Jefferson-Hemings DNA
Date: Sat, 23 Oct 2004 14:44:00 -0400
References: <000601c4b92a$0f7c8400$6401a8c0@RJEMAIN>


Yes, the Hemings and Woodson families are most adamant that they descend from
Thomas Jefferson. They even applied and assembled at the annual gatherings to
join the Monticello Association. After a three year intensive study using the
Monticello Report, the Scholars Commission Report (13 well recognized scholars),
on the Jefferson-Hemings Matter, and their own family research they
overwhelmingly voted to DISALLOW the ORAL family history that these families
were claiming.

The Hemings have been offered a chance to DNA test a son of Madison Hemings
(originally unavailable), but they REFUSE to test and state they are "happy"
with their oral history. It does play well in the media, and pay well from
personal appearances and books, but is the personal legacy of Mr. Jefferson
being degraded in the meanwhile? WHY are they afraid to test William Hemings and
WHY will Dr. Daniel Jordan, Monticello President, NOT encourage them to use
further science........I informed him four months prior to release of his study
and he declined to go with this valuable research......WHAT is he afraid
of.............political correctness and historical revisionism? Monticello has
even DROPPED the word, "Memorial" from their title and did biased research as
reported in the Scholars Commission Report and the Minority Report of Dr. Ken
Wallenborn (available on the earlier cited web pages.)

Much later detailed research of the Madison Hemings interview in the Pike Co.,
Ohio newspaper reveals that certain statements are misleading and inaccurate.
Example: Madison Hemings claims he was named for James Madison when Dolly was
present at his birth at Monticello on a cold January 19, 1805. The weather was
terrible, deep snow, frozen streams, slick hills, etc. Just imagine that Dolly
drops her duties as Hostess for Mr. Jefferson in Washington, leaves her husband,
James Madison, Secretary of State, and announces that she has heard that a slave
at Monticello is to birth a MALE (only much later are we to know in advance of
the sex of a child), that she must name, James Madison Hemings. The newspaper
article continues to degrade Dolly by stating that Sally did not give a gift as
promised by Dolly BUT that is what all white folks do. This article was clearly
constructed to defile the memory of Mr. Jefferson and others. Checking Madison
family records we find that the Madisons NEVER went from Washington to Virginia
during the winter. This and other unprovable accusations were in this article
written by a famous abolitionist of the time who was using a subtitle of Harriet
Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin" for his article.

Herb Barger
Jefferson Family Historian
www.angelfire.com/va/TJTruth
----- Original Message -----
From: "Roberta J. Estes" <>
To: <>
Sent: Saturday, October 23, 2004 1:59 PM
Subject: RE: [DNA] Jefferson-Hemings DNA


> I am curious, does the Hemings family have any oral history of this and
> if so, what does it say?
>
> Roberta
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Patrick Guinness [mailto:]
> Sent: Saturday, October 23, 2004 11:41 AM
> To:
> Subject: [DNA] Jefferson-Hemings DNA
>
>
> Thank you, Mr. Barger, for your welcome comments.
>
> At 12:17 pm -0400 22/10/04, Herbert Barger wrote:
> >DNA only offers a scientific finding and UNLESS used in conjunction
> >with ACCURATE family history, etc. The truth may not be assessed
> >correctly.
> >
> "This happened with the Jefferson-Hemings DNA Study. Nature Journal
> was not made aware of other Jefferson DNA possibilities and the media
> had a "field day" finding Jefferson guilty of fathering Hemings
> children. DNA did not prove this! Please check web pages:
> www.angelfire.com/va/TJTruth and www.tjheritage.org for details of
> the study."
>
>
> I suppose the past (pre-1998) blanket dismissal by some
> Jefferson historians of Eston Hemings' family claim meant that the
> Press then went overboard when their DNA similarity was found.
>
> The Nature article headline was badly worded, considering
> that Dr. Foster had qualified:
>
> "We cannot completely rule out other
> explanations of our findings based on illegitimacy
> in various lines of descent."
>
>
> As you say, the similarity is between Jeffersons-as-a-group
> and Eston, not particularly Thomas himself. As the historical expert,
> and given what you know of the two men's characters, are you naming
> Randolph Jefferson as the likelier father, even if on a 51-49 basis?
> I quote:
>
> The Jefferson-Hemings DNA Study as told by Herbert Barger, Jefferson
> Family Historian February 12, 1999 Revised August 30, 2000: "Randolph
> was invited by Thomas to come to Monticello to visit him and Randolph's
> twin sister, who had arrived one day earlier. This was in August 1807,
> exactly nine months prior to Eston's birth. Randolph was also present at
> Monticello on May 27, 1808, exactly six days after Eston's birth on May
> 21, 1808. He may have come to see his son, Eston and Thomas even drafted
> Randolph's will on that date."
>
> There were other Jeffersons or Jefferson-fathered slaves who
> could have been Eston's father. Until a specialist historian tells us
> which is the most likely, then Thomas must remain a possible, and to
> some the putative, father.
>
> --
> Patrick Guinness
>
> Reply to:
>
>
> http://www.furness-house.com/
> =================
>
>
> ==============================
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>
>
>
>
> ==============================
> Gain access to over two billion names including the new Immigration
> Collection with an Ancestry.com free trial. Click to learn more.
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