Martha Jefferson Randolph, Daughter of Monticello: Her Life and Times

Martha Jefferson Randolph, Daughter of Monticello: Her Life and Times by Kierner, Cynthia A.. paperback edition. ISBN: 9780807835524.

As the oldest and favorite daughter of Thomas Jefferson, Martha "Patsy" Jefferson Randolph (1772-1836) was extremely well educated, traveled in the circles of presidents and aristocrats, and was known on two continents for her particular grace and sincerity. Yet, as mistress of a large household, she was not spared the tedium, frustration, and great sorrow that most women of her time faced. Though Patsys name is familiar because of her famous father, Kierner is the first historian to place Patsy at the center of her own story, taking readers into the largely ignored private spaces of the founding era. Randolphs life story reveals the privileges and limits of celebrity and shows that women were able to venture beyond their domestic roles in surprising ways.Following her mothers death, Patsy lived in Paris with her father and later served as hostess at the Presidents House and at Monticello. Her marriage to Thomas Mann Randolph, a member of Congress and governor of Virginia, was