Hemings or Hemmings
A look at the various spellings of the Hemings/Hemmings family name, which typically depends on the specific family member.
The "correct" spelling of the surname Hemings varies, depending on the family member. Our practice at Monticello, as well as that of the editorial teams for The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, is to use the spelling that the person themselves used, if it can be documented. If no documentary proof of a preferred spelling can be found, then we use the spelling that Thomas Jefferson used. The following are the accepted spellings for different Hemings family members:
- Robert Hemmings (signature survives)1
- John Hemmings (we have surviving letters including his signature)
- Madison Hemings (signature survives)
- Eston Hemings (signature survives)
- Betsey Hemmings (as spelled on her gravestone)2
We currently have no evidence for a preferred spelling for any other Hemings family members, so we use Jefferson's spelling of "Hemings."
- Anna Berkes, 7/18/07; updated 5/3/24
Further Sources
- Gordon-Reed, Annette. The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2008.
- Stanton, Lucia. Free Some Day: The African-American Families of Monticello. Charlottesville: Thomas Jefferson Foundation, 2000.
Footnotes
- Richmond City, Hustings Court Marriage Bonds, Microfilm Reel 123, Marriage between William Scott and Elizabeth Hemmings, August 28, 1812, film numbers 0094-0096.
- See The Hemmings Family in Buckingham County, Virginia, http://buckinghamhemmings.com/grave.html accessed 3/6/26.