Thomas Jefferson marked Christmas as the high point of a social and religious season that extended from Advent through Christmastide. Although gift-giving played a minor role among holiday customs in his day, in 1809 Jefferson received a Christmas present that held great meaning to him.
In the year he retired from his second term as President of the United States, Jefferson received a walking stick from his protégé, Joseph C. Cabell. Cabell would later be a key ally in the founding of the University of Virginia, serving on the Board of Visitors for almost 40 years. The walking stick would subsequently be engraved "TJ" and "Joseph C. Cabell to his friend Christmas 1809." The walking stick was a keepsake indicative of the personal relationship between Jefferson and Cabell and is one of the many unique artifacts in the Thomas Jefferson Foundation’s curatorial collection.
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