Disabled women in history: Elizabeth Jefferson

Today I have a story with a tragic mystery death, an epic earthquake, slavery, a possible disabled woman, and a founding father. Her badass status is fairly unknown, but I had to include it because it blew my mind I never knew that this woman existed. Her name is Elizabeth Jefferson, and she is Thomas Jefferson’s sister.

This is a story with a tragic mystery death, an epic earthquake, slavery, a possible disabled woman, and a founding father. Click To Tweet

Questions about Elizabeth Jefferson that may never be answered

  1. Was Elizabeth Jefferson disabled, and how so?

2. How was she treated when she was alive?

3. How did Elizabeth Jefferson die?

4. And what did Thomas Jefferson know or feel about his sister?

Jefferson Memorial in D.C.

Other articles in this series:

Why it’s so hard to find disabled women in history

Badass disabled women in history: Mildred and Mary Davidson

Elizabeth Jefferson’s Life

(1744-1774)

Elizabeth was the closest sibling in age to her brother Thomas. We know nothing about her childhood or their relationship except that he referred to her as Bet. Historians believe that she was “mentally deficient” because of a letter written by Wilson Miles Cary to Jefferson’s great-granddaughter, Sarah N. Randolph, where he says:

I have always understood that she was very feeble minded if not an idiot – that she and her maid were drowned together while attempting to cross the Rivanna in a skiff¹

Of course, we have no idea what that really means in the present time. Cary almost makes it sound like Elizabeth went on a pleasure cruise on the river and then just leaped out of the boat because she lost her mind. We don’t know much about what happened, but it probably wasn’t that simple.

What we know about Elizabeth’s disability

Nothing that Jefferson says in his writings sheds any light on the matter of Elizabeth’s “idiocy.” However, the scale on which colonies considered someone an “idiot” is rather sketchy. For example, the wife of the famed Patrick Henry was locked up in a cellar after the birth of her sixth child and put in a straight jacket. Nowadays we can guess she experienced postpartum depression or psychosis.

Whatever Elizabeth’s actual disability status, she was lucky in one way. Her family and their money protected her and kept her out of the public record. Additionally, as a woman, she would not need to be assigned a guardianship because of her disability, as women could not legally own anything anyway. Lucky again I guess? Elizabeth was yet another human in the possession of a founding father.

 

Elizabeth Jefferson’s Death

Elizabeth’s death is tied up with the first earthquake in Virginia’s history. Until I read this story, I had no idea that Virginia even had earthquakes. It turns out they do and the Jefferson’s experienced it. It must have been terrifying for everyone as they knew so little about earthquakes at the time. Thomas Jefferson wrote that the earthquake:

… shook the houses so sensibly that every body run out of doors²

It appears Elizabeth went missing around this time, possibly with her “maid” ( a slave, all the Jeffersons had a personal one) known as Little Sal.* Due to Elizabeth’s “idiocy” some historians believe she and Little Sal drowned a few days after the earthquake. It doesn’t make a lot of sense though. If Elizabeth’s idiocy led to a dangerous situation, wouldn’t Little Sal have protected her? I wonder if there was more to it.

Thomas Jefferson fun fact: He was a huge foodie. Some of America’s most beloved foods, like ice cream, mac ‘n’ cheese, and french fries became popular because of him.³

Thomas Jefferson’s reaction to Elizabeth’s death

Thomas Jefferson wrote of his sister’s death:

My sister Elizabeth was found last Thursday being Feb. 24³

Lots of emotion and detail there, huh? He’s clearly overwhelmed with brotherly affection.

There are still so many questions about Elizabeth Jefferson. Why did Thomas Jefferson say so little about his sister? What was Elizabeth’s disability and how did she die? Most likely we’ll never know.

 

Elizabeth Jefferson was Thomas Jefferson's little sister. She was thought to have a mental illness or disability, and no one knows exactly what happened to her
Monticello, The Jefferson Plantation

 

*It angers me that there is so little information out there about Little Sal and her life. But if you want to read what exists about her, check out “The Jefferson’s at Shadwell” listed in the sources.

This post contains affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy for details. 

 

Sources

1 Wilson Miles Cary to Miss S. N. Randolph, n.d. Privately owned.

2 Jefferson’s memorandum books : accounts, with legal records and miscellany, 1767-1826
by Thomas Jefferson 1743-1826., James A Bear Jr., 1919-2013., Lucia C Stanton
Print Book ©1997

3. Elizabeth Jefferson, Monticello.org

The Jeffersons at Shadwell by Susan Kern 

Jefferson a revealing Biography by Page Smith

The Domestic Life of Thomas Jefferson
Compiled From Family Letters and Remi, by Sarah N. Randolph

The Earthquake that drowned Thomas Jefferson’s sister

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