America's First Daughter: A Novel

To friendship and perseverance

D
URING HIS LIFETIME
Thomas Jefferson wrote more than eighteen thousand letters. It is through these that we framed this story, and took almost all of his dialogue. Whenever possible, for Jefferson, his daughter, and other historical figures, we quote directly from letters and other primary sources, all of which reflect the biases, prejudices, and political opinions of the time period. However, because the language of the eighteenth century was so stilted and opaque, we’ve taken the liberty of correcting spelling, grammar, and otherwise editing, abridging, or modernizing the prose in the interest of clarity.

Monticello, 5 April 1823

From Thomas Jefferson to Robert Walsh

The letters of a person, especially of one whose business has been chiefly transacted by letters, form the only full and genuine journal of his life.