Preface

Pr eface this is a book about Thomas Jefferson and race, using his writings over his very long and eventful life to try to understand his views on a subject that has bedeviled the country he helped to found before it was even in existence.This book will also, necessarily, contain a few documents written by Jefferson's friends, family, and acquaintances describing his actions and views on various subjects.Jefferson was an intensely private individual who was not given to frequently expressing his real emotions on paper.He did not keep a diary, viewing letters as the most important window into his thoughts.Diaries can be misleading, but there is no doubt that letters, which Jefferson took great pains to write, allowed him to present himself in just the way he wanted.Letters from his grandchildren describing in detail events that Jefferson mentioned only in a perfunctory fashion reveal much about the man that he preferred to keep secret.Slavery in North America was racially based; therefore, documents related to slavery will inevitably play a major role in this work-and not just Jefferson's formal pronouncements about the subjects of race and slavery.In addition to his letters, I include notations about his plantation as well as financial and legal records.Because the cliché "actions speak louder than words" reveals an important truth-particularly when dealing with one not given to speaking openly about important aspects of his life-I will also consider Jefferson's actions and what reasonable inferences can be drawn from them.Racial attitudes are reflected not only in what people have to say on the topic.Often, people say things to influence how others view them, to create a particular image of themselves.Even in Jefferson's time, expressing rank prejudice was frowned upon.On the other hand, what people actually do can tell a different story than the words they utter.So, drawing reasonable inferences from Jefferson's overt actions must be a part of this inquiry.Jefferson wrote a lot, and he was an inveterate record keeper.Not everything he said, or did, that was related to race can be included