Thomas Jefferson Papers

Thomas Jefferson to James Oldham, 3 January 1822

To James Oldham

Monticello Jan. 3. 22.

Sir

I1 sincerely regret that any difficulties should arise between mr Brockenbrough and yourself on the subject of your contracts, but it is totally foreign to my office to intermeddle with them. I cannot entangle myself in the labyrinth of questions between the Proctor & undertakers. as the contracts are made with him, with him they must be settled as they would be with any other employer in any private case. I should think both of you would prefer arbitration to law, but in this you must chuse for yourselves.   with respect to money, a sum of 15,000.D. became due at the treasury the day before yesterday out of which I presume a payment can be made you as soon as the Bursar has made arrangements to draw for it. I hope you will find it reasonable that I should be excused from interferences which are not within my province, and I assure you of my best wishes & friendly respects.

Th: Jefferson

PoC (ViU: TJP-PP); on verso of portion of a reused address cover from Thomas Mann Randolph to TJ; adjacent to signature: “Mr Oldham”; with unrelated calculation in an unidentified hand at foot of text; endorsed by Arthur S. Brockenbrough. Tr (ViU: Oldham Papers); in the hand of chancery court clerk William S. Eskridge; exhibit I conjoined with Tr of Oldham’s Bill of Complaint against the University of Virginia Board of Visitors and Proctor, [before 26 Sept. 1825]. Mistakenly recorded in SJL as a letter of 2 Jan. 1822, with additional bracketed notation: “inclosed it to mr Brocknbr.” Enclosed in Oldham’s Bill of Complaint.

1Preceding this word TJ canceled “It is.”

Index Entries

  • Brockenbrough, Arthur Spicer; as University of Virginia proctor search
  • Eskridge, William Scott; as chancery court clerk search
  • Garrett, Alexander; as University of Virginia bursar search
  • Oldham, James; as builder for University of Virginia search
  • Oldham, James; letters to search
  • Virginia, University of; Administration and Financial Affairs; funding for search
  • Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; disputes with workmen search
  • Virginia, University of; Construction and Grounds; wages for workmen search
  • Virginia; treasury of search