Sally Hemings’ Legacy of Freedom and Motherhood
Mireicy Aquino
Ms. Aquino is an eighth grade student at Montclair Kimberley Academy in Montclair, NJ
Sally Hemings led an extraordinarily complex life, yet her story inspires thousands of women, myself included. Despite the intricacies, she fought against the notion of becoming just another enslaved individual in her family’s generational cycle. Sally sought to change the trajectory of her children’s lives, offering them opportunities beyond enslavement. Instead of securing her own freedom, she made a selfless choice to promise freedom to her future children—a decision that stands out as a remarkable act of heroism. Sally Hemings’s life, sacrifices, and ability to persuade Thomas Jefferson into making her a promise was an act of heroism towards her children. Her story is a testament to the profound strength of a mother’s love and the power of quiet rebellion against an oppressive system.
Born into slavery, Sally began her journey as one of Polly’s , Thomas Jefferson’s daughter, maid, and caretaker. Over time, she developed a close relationship with Polly, potentially even her aunt as well.[1] During their time in Paris, where Sally accompanied Polly in her studies, Thomas Jefferson expressed reservations about Sally’s ability to care for his daughter because she was so young, fourteen at the time. However, although she was well-trained in caring for people, Thomas Jefferson expressed that she was “wholly incapable of looking after” his daughter and could not do it “without some superior to direct her.”[2] Despite Jefferson’s doubts about her abilities, Sally gracefully navigated the unfamiliar Parisian landscape and spent twenty-six months in Paris, also reuniting with her brother James. She contracted smallpox but received proper care and was compensated for her work. Sally also learned French during her stay, though her literacy in both languages remains uncertain.[3]
In Paris, at the age of fourteen, Sally’s involvement in a sexual relationship with Thomas Jefferson, whose wife died in 1782, resulted in her pregnancy, which shifted her trajectory dramatically. While accompanying Thomas Jefferson’s daughter, Polly, to Paris, Hemings was caught in a complex web of power dynamics and his unspoken desires. Yet, a fateful encounter with Jefferson forever altered her life. Madison Hemings, Sally Hemings’s son, stated that his mother became Mr. Jefferson’s concubine in France. Though in France, slavery was not legal, so Sally was considered a free person. Torn between the possibility of freedom in Paris and the promise of a better future for her children, Sally made a heart-wrenching choice. She negotiated an extraordinary deal: freedom for her future children at 21, sacrificing her own chance at escape. In the face of unimaginable hardship, this selflessness began her quiet rebellion. She did not try to negotiate for freedom for herself.[4] Additionally, Thomas Jefferson wrote about Sally as they continued their “relationship” after returning to Monticello. He wrote, “It is well known that the man whom it delighted the people to honor, keeps, and for many years past has kept, as his concubine, her name is Sally.”[5] Jefferson clearly stated that Sally was his concubine, his mistress. In his eyes, Sally was just another woman.
After returning to Monticello with Jefferson and his daughters in 1789, she became a household servant and lady’s maid.[6] In addition, Madison Hemings stated, “It was her duty, all her life which I can remember, up to the time of father’s death, to take care of his chamber and wardrobe, look after us children and do such light work as sewing.” As well as being a maid, Sally’s job was cleaning Jefferson’s closet and sewing. Also, upon returning to Monticello, Sally’s relationship with Jefferson, though shrouded in secrecy, was an undeniable reality. Sally Hemings’s relationship with Thomas Jefferson was well-known throughout Monticello. Some of Jefferson’s friends and even political colleagues knew about them. However, this new sexual relationship did not come as a surprise to people. It was, unfortunately, widespread for white men to have sexual activity with enslaved women, let alone enslavers with enslaved women. However, society could ignore Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings if he kept them discreet, so he never acknowledged the rumors, and they continued their “relationship.”[7] Their relationship lasted until Jefferson died on July 4, 1826.
She bore him six children, each carrying the weight of their father’s legacy and the burden of slavery. Although, only four survived to adulthood, Harried, Beverly, Madison and Eston. Despite her duties as a servant and Jefferson’s “concubine,” Sally nurtured her children with unwavering love and a fierce determination to see them free. Madison Hemings said, “She gave birth to four others, and Jefferson was the father of all. They were Beverly, Harriet, Madison (myself), and Eston – three sons and one daughter.”[8] The oldest, Beverly Hemings, worked as a carpenter for the duration of his enslaving. He was also into music, more specifically, the violin.[9] Harriet Hemings was born a few years after Beverly in 1801. She grew up enslaved, spinning wood. After Harriet, Madison is the child that had the most to say about his mother’s life and what he thinks about their relationship. Lastly, there is Eston Hemings, the youngest son out of them all. He obtained knowledge in woodworking and was granted freedom in 1829. After Jefferson’s death, Martha, his daughter, allowed Sally to leave the plantation to live with her younger sons, Madison and Eston, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Madison and Eston gladly took their mother in with open arms and loving hearts. They initially passed as white for the U.S. Census, but later Sally identified as “free mulatto.” Sally lived freely with her sons until she died in 1835.[10]
Throughout her life, Sally Hemings made decisions that transformed her children’s lives and impacted women at large. Her selfless act in Paris, negotiating freedom for her unborn children, inspires women and their own children. In the course of her life, just like many other enslaved women, Sally Hemings’s children were fathered by her owner. In the context of the era where enslaved women lacked legal rights,[11] Sally’s story reflects the harsh reality of exploitation. The dynamic between her and Jefferson can vary, though, taking into consideration age and consent. Sally was fourteen, and Jefferson was about forty years old.[12] Additionally, enslaved women often were raped and sexually harassed without being able to speak up or say no. Despite these challenges, she rose above and stands as a stark motivation for women across the globe.
Sally Hemings’s story is a personal triumph and a beacon of hope for all who fight against injustice. Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Annette Gordon-Reed also said, “Though enslaved, Sally Hemings helped shape her life and the lives of her children, who got an almost 50-year head start on emancipation, escaping the system that had engulfed their ancestors and millions of others. Whatever we may feel about it today, this was important to her.” The measures Sally took to ensure emancipation for her children were significant and display the unconditional love she had for them. For a mother to surrender her own freedom, her only chance to escape, for her children was selfless. Her quiet defiance, her unwavering love for her children, and her ability to negotiate freedom within the confines of slavery inspire generations of women and mothers. Her life, sacrifices, and ability to persuade Thomas Jefferson into making her a promise was an act of heroism towards her kids. While inspiring many women worldwide, the most significant impact was on her children. Ones who exclaimed the great things she did for them. On the other hand, her children were not the only ones who spoke highly of her. Her story carries a historical significance and profound lessons about the human spirit’s capacity for resilience and love. A woman who defied the odds and shaped the destiny of her children, leaving behind a legacy that continues to resonate with many women and children today.
Primary Sources
Hemings, Madison. “Sally Hemings” [Sally Hemings]. https://monticello.org. Accessed November 9, 2023. https://www.monticello.org/sallyhemings/.
“The Memoirs of Madison Hemings” [The Memoirs of Madison Hemings]. https://www.pbs.org. Accessed December 17, 2023. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/jefferson/cron/1873march.html.
Secondary Sources
Adams, William Howard. The Paris Years of Thomas Jefferson.
Gordon-Reed, Annette. The Hemingses of Monticello.
“Life Story: Sally Hemings” [Life Story: Sally Hemings]. https://nyhistory.org. Accessed December 14, 2023. https://wams.nyhistory.org/building-a-new-nation/american-woman/sally-hemings/#:~:text=Sally%20lived%20in%20Paris%20long,together%20when%20they%20reached%20adulthood .
Thorson, David. “Beverly Hemings” [Beverly Hemings]. https://www.monticello.org/. Accessed December 17, 2023. https://www.monticello.org/research-education/thomas-jefferson-encyclopedia/beverly-hemings-2/.
The University of Virginia. “The Hemings Family” [The Hemings Family]. https://monticello.org. Accessed November 6, 2023. https://www.monticello.org/slavery/paradox-of-liberty/enslaved-families-of-monticello/the-hemings-family/ .
[1] William Howard Adams, The Paris Years of Thomas Jefferson, Page 220
[2] William Howard Adams, The Paris Years of Thomas Jefferson, Page 220
[3] Madison Hemings, “Sally Hemings” [Sally Hemings], Monticello.org, accessed November 9, 2023, https://www.monticello.org/sallyhemings/.
[4] Hemings, “Sally Hemings,” Monticello.org.
[5] Hemings, “Sally Hemings,” Monticello.org.
[6] Hemings, “Sally Hemings,” Monticello.org.
[7] “Life Story: Sally Hemings” [Life Story: Sally Hemings], nyhistory.org, accessed December 14, 2023, https://wams.nyhistory.org/building-a-new-nation/american-woman/sally-hemings/#:~:text=Sally%20lived%20in%20Paris%20long,together%20when%20they%20reached%20adulthood.
[8] Hemings, “Sally Hemings,” https://monticello.org.
[9] David Thorson, “Beverly Hemings” [Beverly Hemings], https://www.monticello.org/, accessed December 17, 2023, https://www.monticello.org/research-education/thomas-jefferson-encyclopedia/beverly-hemings-2/.
[10] Life Story,” https://nyhistory.org
[11] Hemings, “Sally Hemings,” https://monticello.org.
[12] Hemings, “Sally Hemings,” https://monticello.org.
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