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Who Was Sally Hemings? (3:47)

Thomas Jefferson had a 37 year relationship and fathered several children with one of his slaves, Sally Hemings.

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Videos (12)

  • Who Was Sally Hemings?
    Who Was Sally Hemings?

    Video Clip (3:47)

    Thomas Jefferson had a 37 year relationship and fathered several children with one of his slaves, Sally Hemings.

    Video Clip (3:47)
  • Jefferson Builds Monticello
    Jefferson Builds Monticello

    Video Clip (3:07)

    Thomas Jefferson spends years designing and building Monticello, his retreat from the demands and derision of politics.

    Video Clip (3:07)
  • Thomas Jefferson in Paris
    Thomas Jefferson in Paris

    Video Clip (1:48)

    Jefferson soaks up the culture, art and architecture of Paris while on assignment as a trade representative.

    Video Clip (1:48)
  • Thomas Jefferson's Family
    Thomas Jefferson's Family

    Video Clip (4:02)

    Thomas Jefferson marries Martha Wales Skelton in 1772 and builds a family at Monticello.

    Video Clip (4:02)
  • The Death of Thomas Jefferson
    The Death of Thomas Jefferson

    Video Clip (2:00)

    Thomas Jefferson takes his last breath on July 4, 1826, fifty years to the day after the signing of The Declaration of Independence.

    Video Clip (2:00)
  • Jefferson's Pursuit of Knowledge
    Jefferson's Pursuit of Knowledge

    Video Clip (3:09)

    As a young man in Virginia, Thomas Jefferson pursues an education based on the ideals of the Enlightenment.

    Video Clip (3:09)
  • Jefferson and the Continental Congress
    Jefferson and the Continental Congress

    Video Clip (3:33)

    Over 17 days, Thomas Jefferson writes what will become the mission statement for a revolution and a new nation: the Declaration of Independence.

    Video Clip (3:33)
  • Origins of Slavery in America
    Origins of Slavery in America

    Video Clip (3:01)

    In 1619, the Dutch introduced the first captured Africans to America, planting the seeds of a slavery system that evolved into a nightmare of abuse and cuelty that would ultimately divide the nation.

    Video Clip (3:01)
  • Declaration of Independence
    Declaration of Independence

    Video Clip (3:04)

    To many in the Continental Congress, war was unthinkable. So why did they finally create this revolutionary document?

    Video Clip (3:04)
  • Jefferson Writes the Declaration of Independence
    Jefferson Writes the Declaration of Independence

    Video Clip (2:37)

    At 33, Thomas Jefferson wrote the original draft of America's historic Declaration of Independence, which was approved by the Continental Congress after several days of debate and revisions on July 4, 1776.

    Video Clip (2:37)
  • Jefferson: Here and Now Podcast Part 1
    Jefferson: Here and Now Podcast Part 1

    Video Clip (11:50)

    The BackStory team has created two special podcasts for History Classroom about President Thomas Jefferson and his resonance in our world today.

    Video Clip (11:50)
  • Jefferson: Here and Now Podcast Part 2
    Jefferson: Here and Now Podcast Part 2

    Video Clip (11:27)

    The BackStory team has created two special podcasts for History Classroom about President Thomas Jefferson and his resonance in our world today.

    Video Clip (11:27)

Photo Galleries (4)

  • Thomas Jefferson
    Thomas Jefferson

    11 Photos

    See pictures from the life and presidency of Thomas Jefferson.

    (11 Photos)
  • Slave Life
    Slave Life

    9 Photos

    View pictures of North American slave life during the 18th and 19th centuries, featuring pictures of slaves themselves and the environments in which they worked and lived.

    (9 Photos)
  • The Battle Over Slavery
    The Battle Over Slavery

    12 Photos

    Explore images of abolitionists, the Underground Railroad and much more as you learn about the battle over slavery in the United States.

    (12 Photos)
  • The Slave Trade
    The Slave Trade

    10 Photos

    Explore images of the Atlantic and African Slave Trades, from holding cells in Africa to auction houses in Atlanta.

    (10 Photos)

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Read More about Sally Hemings

Considerable evidence now suggests that Thomas Jefferson had a longstanding intimate relationship with one of his slaves, Sally Hemings, and that he fathered several of her children.

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