Steve
While journalists have certainly perpetuated mistaken conclusions from the
DNA tests, ("the Carrs were cleared," "Thomas Jefferson fathered Hemings'
children"), the failure in putting the DNA results in context with the
known historical facts lies with the academic community. Journalists write
stories, not history, and if they make a mistake, they move on, and we are
left with the uncertain remedy of a letter to the editor. Much has been
made of the Nature headline that trumpeted Thomas Jefferson as the father
of a slave child. That certainly created an exciting story line and the
journalists jumped on it. But it was the Monticello Report, about 14 months
later, touted as a "the most extensive compilation ever of what is known
and not known" about the paternity story, which firmly convinced the
academic community that the issue was finally settled. This Report was
compiled by the staff at Monticello and it concluded that Jefferson "was
most likely the father of all six of Sally Heming's children." Other than
the DNA tests, the Report presented no new evidence, and relied on the
"birth pattern," the Madison Hemings "Memoirs," the "resemblance" claim,
the "proximity "argument, and the "oral history" of the Hemings and Woodson
families. The most astounding claim by the Monticello report was the
"single father" postulate. The report observed that the Hemings siblings
had a "closeness" that could only come from a single father. Since the
report concluded that Jefferson must be Eston's father, and since they all
had the same father,  Jefferson must be the father of them all. This
"closeness" is supposedly demonstrated by siblings naming their children
after each other. I doubt many on this list have actually read the
Monticello report, but because of Monticello's prestige and influence, it
is reason enough for most to accept the conclusions without dissent or
further study. Later, when the Scholars Commission report was released,
composed of independent historians, which studied the matter for over a
year,concluded that it was "unlikely" that Jefferson fathered any of the
Hemings children, many academics had become paternity believers.   

Richard E. Dixon
Editor, Jefferson Notes
Thomas Jefferson Heritage Society
4122 Leonard Drive
Fairfax, Va 22030
703-691-0770 fax 703-691-0978

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