New DNA analysis from Thomas Jefferson’s hair adds evidence to Sally Hemings lineage

Researchers say the findings further support long-standing accounts from Hemings’ descendants about Jefferson’s children.

Researchers say DNA recovered from Thomas Jefferson’s hair provides new evidence that he fathered children with Sally Hemings, a woman he enslaved. The findings add to a history preserved by his Black descendants and examined in debates over public monuments honoring him.

A team led by Smithsonian scholar Richard Kurin compared DNA from preserved hair with samples from living descendants. The work focused on family lines descending from Hemings’ sons Madison and Eston.

Kurin told TODAY the analysis showed a 99.9% chance that Jefferson fathered a child with Hemings. His book, “History by a Hair,” released Sept. 22, describes the investigation.

The hair that yielded Jefferson’s DNA came from Monticello’s collection and was labeled as having been cut on July 4, 1826, the day he died. Earlier testing of hair discovered in his Bible found that it did not belong to him.

The findings build on evidence that predates the new project. A 1998 study linked Eston Hemings’ male-line descendants to the Jefferson family’s male line. That result identified a Jefferson male, rather than distinguishing Thomas Jefferson from his male relatives.

In 2018, the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, which operates Monticello, declared his paternity a settled historical matter. Its conclusion drew on DNA, family testimony and records placing Jefferson at Monticello during the likely conception periods of Hemings’ children.

Madison Hemings identified Jefferson as his father in an account published in 1873. Monticello describes that testimony as central evidence, supported by oral histories passed down through generations.

The new research’s publication process has drawn criticism. Hemings descendant Mary Brady-Atkins objected to the book appearing before journal publication and withdrew her DNA sample. Researchers said they removed her data and that doing so did not materially change the findings. NPR reported Sept. 22 that a scientific paper remained under review.

For descendant Clara Lee-Nutt, the research brings reassurance about sharing her family’s history. She told TODAY the findings allow her to explain that ancestry to her children without the caution she once felt.