Thomas Jefferson to Richard Randolph, 25 January 1814
To Richard Randolph
Monticello Jan. 25. 14.
Dear Sir
Will you be so good as to send me two gross of your beer jugs; the one gross to be quart jugs, and the other pottle do. they are to be delivered to a mr William Johnson a waterman of Milton, who will apply for them about a week hence. mr Gibson will be so good as to pay for them on your presenting this letter. they should be packed in crates, or old hogsheads or such other cheap package as you use. Accept the assurance of my esteem & respect.
Th: Jefferson
PoC (MHi); at foot of text: “Mr Richard Randolph”; endorsed by TJ.
Richard Randolph (1782–1859), the eldest son of David Meade Randolph and Mary Randolph, of Tuckahoe, visited TJ at Monticello in September 1808. Five years later he established a stoneware factory a dozen miles east of Richmond on the James River in Henrico County. By 1816 Randolph’s two-story “Potters Shop” was valued at $1,200. In 1822 he sent TJ six barrels of waterproof shale cement, a substance discovered by his father, and asked the ex-president for his opinion of it. Unfortunately, TJ found that “in every instance this cement dissolved on being put into water,” and he was consequently unwilling to use it either at Monticello or for the construction of the University of Virginia (William G. Stanard, “Randolph Family,” Enquirer, 22 Oct. 1813; Vi: Mutual Assurance Society, policy no. 1955 [29 Mar. 1816]; Washington National Register, 23 Aug. 1817; , 2:1384; TJ to Randolph, 13 May 1822; Richmond Enquirer, 18 Apr. 1828).
, 1st ser., 9 [1901]: 250; Randolph to TJ, 10 Jan. 1809 [ViW: TC-JP], 18 Mar., 30 May 1822; RichmondIndex Entries
- beer; jugs for search
- Gibson, Patrick; payments made for TJ search
- household articles; beer jugs search
- household articles; earthenware search
- Johnson, William (waterman); transports goods from Richmond search
- Milton, Va.; watermen at search
- Randolph, Richard; and earthenware for TJ search
- Randolph, Richard; identified search
- Randolph, Richard; letters to search