Thomas Mann Randolph

Thomas Mann Randolph Jr. was born on October 1, 1768, at Tuckahoe in the Colony of Virginia. He was the first son of Thomas Mann Randolph Sr. and Anne Cary Randolph, daughter of Archibald Cary. His maternal lineage included Pocahontas through his mother, and his paternal ancestors included William Randolph of Turkey Island, Richard Randolph, and Thomas Randolph of Tuckahoe. The Randolph family was among the First Families of Virginia, with notable connections to prominent Virginian families and historical figures.

Randolph received early education from his mother and private tutors. He attended the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, and studied at the University of Edinburgh from 1785 to 1788. Although he did not graduate, he continued independent studies and became recognized as a botanist. In 1794, Randolph was elected to the American Philosophical Society.

His family's land holdings included property at Varina, purchased by his father, which Randolph managed as a plantation. On February 23, 1790, he married Martha Jefferson, the daughter of Thomas Jefferson and Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson. The Jefferson and Randolph families were related through shared ancestry, with Jefferson being a second cousin to Randolph. The marriage produced twelve children who survived childhood: Ann Cary Randolph, Thomas Jefferson Randolph, Ellen Wayles Randolph (who died young), another Ellen Wayles Randolph, Cornelia Jefferson Randolph, Virginia Jefferson Randolph, Mary Jefferson Randolph, James Madison Randolph, Benjamin Franklin Randolph, Meriwether Lewis Randolph, Septimia Anne Randolph, and George Wythe Randolph.

Throughout his life, Randolph resided at several plantations, including Belmont near Monticello and Edge Hill in Albemarle County. He and Martha often stayed at Monticello, where Randolph oversaw family business affairs. Following his father’s death in 1793 and subsequent family-related struggles, Randolph faced financial difficulties, partly due to inherited debt, poor crop yields, and issues managing his estate. His inheritance troubles, combined with personal challenges such as alcoholism and familial discord, led to the foreclosure of the Edge Hill plantation in 1825. The property was sold at auction to his eldest son, Thomas Jefferson Randolph.

Randolph’s political career included service in the Virginia State Senate in 1793 and 1794, and as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1803 to 1807. He was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates multiple times, serving from 1819 to 1825, and held the position of governor of Virginia from 1819 to 1822. His governorship was marked by support for infrastructure projects such as canals and education initiatives, as well as a proposed but defeated plan for gradual emancipation of slaves in Virginia. Randolph was the first son-in-law of a Virginia governor to be elected governor of the state in his own right.

During the War of 1812, Randolph served as a colonel of the Twentieth Infantry, seeing action at Sackets Harbor, New York, and acting as a lieutenant colonel for the Virginia militia in 1814 to prevent British advances toward Richmond.

His relationship with his family deteriorated over time due to financial hardship, alcoholism, and personal differences, resulting in a period of separation from his wife and children. Randolph and Martha briefly reconciled shortly before his death. He died on June 20, 1828, at Monticello and was interred in the Monticello cemetery. After his death, Martha moved with some of their children to Boston and Washington, D.C., and was also buried at Monticello.