Thomas Jefferson Papers
Documents filtered by: Author="Jefferson, Thomas" AND Recipient="Randolph, Martha Jefferson" AND Period="post-Madison Presidency"
sorted by: author
Permanent link for this document:
https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-12-02-0179

Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 29 November 1817

To Martha Jefferson Randolph

Poplar Forest Nov. 29. 17.

My dear Martha

The calculation in my former letter of the time when Johnny Hemings would be done, was made on a guess of his own. by what he has since done I can estimate the time it will take him more exactly, and I find the cart need not leave Monticello till Thursday the 11th of December, on which day therefore I wish it to be dispatched.

I have been two days engaged from sunrise to sunset with a surveyor in running round my lines, which have never before been run round. I find that one neighbor (Cobbs) has cleared one half of his field on my land, and been cultivating it for 20. years chiefly in corn, having cut down the line trees so as to leave it nearly impossible to find out the lines. they are by no means unravelled as yet.

News from this place you will not expect. my health continues good except my sprained shoulder; and every body here well. my affectionate love attends always on yourself & the family.

Th: Jefferson

RC (NNPM); at foot of text: “Mrs Randolph”; endorsed by Randolph. PoC (MHi); on verso of reused address cover of Chapman Johnson to TJ, 30 Aug. 1817; endorsed by TJ.

A missing letter from Randolph to TJ of 10 Dec. 1817 is recorded in SJL as received at Poplar Forest the day it was written from Monticello, though it was likely received four days later with Edmund Bacon’s letter to TJ of 10 Dec. 1817.

Index Entries

  • carts; mentioned search
  • Cobbs, William; and survey of Poplar Forest boundaries search
  • corn; as crop search
  • Hemmings, John (TJ’s slave; b. ca.1776); as woodworker search
  • Jefferson, Thomas; Health; shoulder sprain search
  • Organ, John; and survey of Poplar Forest search
  • Poplar Forest (TJ’s Bedford Co. estate); slaves at search
  • Poplar Forest (TJ’s Bedford Co. estate); surveys of search
  • Poplar Forest (TJ’s Bedford Co. estate); TJ visits search
  • Randolph, Martha Jefferson (Patsy; TJ’s daughter; Thomas Mann Randolph’s wife); instructions to, from TJ search
  • Randolph, Martha Jefferson (Patsy; TJ’s daughter; Thomas Mann Randolph’s wife); letter from accounted for search
  • Randolph, Martha Jefferson (Patsy; TJ’s daughter; Thomas Mann Randolph’s wife); letters to search
  • surveying; and Poplar Forest boundaries search
  • women; letters to; M. J. Randolph search