Slavery and the Slave Trade

Culinary historian Michael Twitty provides insight into the development of African American foodways, the diet available to slaves in the Americas, and the creativity in African American cookery. Check out his entry on the kitchens at Monticello!

"Slaves planted the seeds of favorite foods they were forced to leave behind..."

Several extended families lived in slavery at Monticello for three or more generations. Among them were the families of Elizabeth Hemings and her children; Edward and Jane Gillette; George and Ursula Granger; David and Isabel Hern; and James and Cate Hubbard.

The Getting Word African American Oral History Project preserves the histories of Monticello’s enslaved families and their descendants.

A database of information on all known enslaved individuals owned by Thomas Jefferson and his family at Monticello.

Sally Hemings (1773-1835) is one of the most famous—and least known—African American women in U.S. history. For more than 200 years, her name has been linked to Thomas Jefferson as his “concubine,” obscuring the facts of her life and her identity.