Randolph Jefferson

Randolph Jefferson (October 1, 1755 – August 7, 1815) was the younger brother of Thomas Jefferson, the only male sibling to survive infancy. He was a planter and owner of the Snowden plantation that he inherited from his father. He served the local militia for about ten years, making captain of the local militia in 1794. He also served during the Revolutionary War. Randolph, known as "Uncle Randolph" when he visited Monticello, has been considered as a candidate for the father of Sally Hemings's children following DNA studies that found that the Hemings children descended from the Jefferson line. The theory that Randolph Jefferson fathered Hemings' children is not affirmed by the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, nor by most scholars of Jefferson. The Monticello Jefferson-Hemings Report (2000) determined that Thomas Jefferson was the likely father of Sally Hemings' children, though other scholars nonetheless contend Randolph is a strong candidate for paternity.