Thomas Jefferson and Sheep

A ewe, a ram, and a sheep dog serve as visual aids during Cinder Stanton's talk on Jefferson and Sheep

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» » Thomas Jefferson and Sheep

Thomas Jefferson and Sheep

In an evening talk sponsored by Scott & Stringfellow/BB&T Financial Services, Monticello's Shannon Senior Research Historian Cinder Stanton gives a talk on Jefferson's attempts to raise sheep and the stories of "greed, death, and madness" that surrounded them. (from June 29, 2000).

PART I: "A New Initiative" (5:39)
   Cinder Stanton begins her talk with the story of how sheep were integral
   to Jefferson's plan to improve the productivity and efficiency of his
   Monticello plantation.

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PART II: "This Abominable Animal" (5:51)
   Cinder Stanton describes the herd of Shetland Sheep and the
   deadly ram Jefferson kept on the lawn of the President's House
    in 1807 and 1808.

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PART III: Merino Mania (4:53)
   Ms. Stanton continues her talk on Jefferson and Sheep by describing
   Jefferson's interest in Merino Sheep and the bubble of speculation that
   formed around this once treasured breed from Spain.

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PART IV: Sheep Dogs (1:57)
Ms. Stanton notes the exception to Jefferson's strong opinions on dogs.

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PART V: Patriotism and Prices (5:34)
   Centuries before "Buy American," Americans pinned patriotism -- and
   hopes for profit -- on a domestic industry based on sheep, wool, and
   "homespun."

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PART VI: Jefferson's Merinos (4:46)
   Jefferson finally receives true Merinos as the upheavals in Spain during
   the Napoleonic Wars lead to the break-up of the once closely guarded
   flocks.

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PART VII: The Bubble Bursts (4:10)
Jefferson declares the Merino fever "entirely spent" when the trickle of
Merinos entering the United States turns into a flood, and prices plummet.

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An expanded, print-version of this talk was published along with footnotes in the Proceedings of the 2001 Conference and Annual Meeting (Vol. XXIV, 2002) of The Association for Living History, Farm and Agricultural Museums.