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| Thomas Jefferson was 6'2'. Jeff towered over me. |
Since we sold the estate of Andre the Giant in Ellerbe, North
Carolina, I thought that would be our celebrity of the decade transaction. But
recently Ashton & Elizabeth took a conventional listing call.
The usual took place, comp searches, sharing of our marketing plan, etc.
Everything was typical until Elizabeth asked the client to give her his full
name. He said, sure, Thomas Jefferson Randolph VIII. She kept writing and said,
Thomas Jefferson....the eighth?? He said yes, I am the 8th descendant from Thomas
Jefferson. By the way…. You can call him “Jeff."
America's third president, Thomas
Jefferson married Martha Skelton and of their six children only two girls made it to adulthood. Their first born child was Martha Jefferson who
later married Thomas Mann Randolph. 8 generations down the line enters Thomas
Jefferson “Jeff” Randolph.
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| Thomas Jefferson |
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| Martha Jefferson |
Jeff is selling his house in Davie County, NC to serve a
church in South Carolina. He and his wife Sarah have a beautiful baby girl named
Lydia.
If you know me, you’ll know I love history. So meeting Jeff
and Sarah was really neat. Ironically, Elizabeth and I had just visited Monticello this past
fall so Elizabeth and Jeff had much to talk about that day. This is his family's estate and where his family convenes for reunions. He and his wife both have a spot reserved in the family cemetery at beautiful Monticello where Thomas
Jefferson and his decedents are laid to rest.
After we met, I thought….wow!! An actual descendant of Thomas
Jefferson, an American founding father who was the principal author of the
Declaration of Independence and President from 1801
to 1809.
President Jefferson graduated
from the College of William & Mary in Virginia. He had a brief law
practice. Two years into his presidency, Jefferson convinced Congress to fund an expedition through
the Louisiana territory to the Pacific Ocean. In 1803, Jefferson commissioned the Corps of
Discovery, and named U.S. Army Captain Meriwether Lewis its leader. Lewis selected William Clark as second in command. We love the story of Lewis & Clark and have followed much of their travels in our own adventures to Montana, along the banks of the wide Missouri River.
Jefferson’s last days were at
Monticello where he died on July 4, 1826. I
thought this was almost like divine fate for a founding father to leave this
earth on independence day. On our tour, we saw the very bed in which he drew his last breath.
We appreciate Jeff and Sarah
placing their trust in our firm to sell their most valuable asset. While their
past is written about and opined by countless historians all having their own biases, I honor them for
their unique heritage. But the one thing I walked away with is despite the celebrity and
fame of their past, these are two young people who I would call salt of the
earth.
PS: If you haven’t visited Monticello….it's worth the trip!!
