Those biographers born north of the Mason-Dixon line, particularly in Massachusetts, have leavened the loaf of praise, showing less tolerance for the slaveholder who provocatively yoked equality and liberty in the Declaration of Independence.

Since then, biographies of Jefferson have abounded. With former Princeton librarian Julian Boyd at the helm, this edition set the standard for all subsequent editions of presidential papers. Jefferson’s luck turned when the publishing family of the New York Times and Princeton University underwrote an edition of his voluminous collections of letters, reports, speeches and legislative notes.

Not counting himself a devoted adherent, Ford struggled to account for Jefferson’s success, finally conceding that the people in some subtle way had understood him and realized that his controlling aim was neither national independence nor state sovereignty, but rather to secure for them “the ever enduring privilege of personal freedom.” Writing when Jefferson’s reputation was still dwelling at its post-Civil War nadir, Ford retailed every nasty thing that had ever been said about Jefferson, telling readers that his subject had been charged with “contradictions and instability,” “with hypocrisy, opportunism, and even lack of any political principles,” to the embarrassment of “his most devoted adherents.” A man who hated contention, Jefferson has remained a controversial figure from the time he left the presidency.įorty years later Paul Leicester Ford brought out a fuller, more professional edition, but Ford, a crusty Northern conservative, lacked the political imagination to grasp that Jefferson’s presidency might actually have had merit.

Whereas an admiring grandson of his great rival, John Adams, saw his paper into press, Jefferson’s initial editor tampered with his manuscripts, omitted important items and studded the nine volumes with conspicuous inaccuracies. The published papers of the founding fathers served as the bedrock for the first accounts of American nation-building, starting with John Marshall’s “Life of George Washington” in 1803. Even though Jefferson meticulously saved his papers, he was singularly unlucky in his first editors. Thomas Jefferson has not lacked for biographers or editors, fans or detractors. Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power by Jon Meacham (Random House) Digital Replica Edition Home Page Close Menu

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