Trailblazer. Newspaper publisher. Civil rights titan. Meet William Monroe Trotter, one of the most influential descendants of Monticello’s enslaved community—and someone who too many people have never heard of. In this episode we discuss Trotter’s life, legacy, and determined (but ultimately unsuccessful) effort to stop the release of the notoriously racist 1915 film “Birth of a Nation.”

Monticello guide Kyle Chattleton looks at the extremely close relationship of Monticello's enslaved joiner John Hemmings and his wife, Priscilla, an enslaved domestic servant owned by Jefferson's son-in-law and at the couple's complex relationship with the Jefferson family.

Music was an important part of life for enslaved people at Monticello and particular individuals within the enslaved community were noted for their artistic talents. Monticello guide and Ph.D. candidate in Musicology, Kyle Chattleton looks at the ways enslaved people at plantations across the United States used music and at the foundational role they played in creating a distinctly American musical tradition.

Monticello historian Niya Bates describes the Getting Word African American Oral History Project and how it has helped transform interpretive experience at Monticello since its inception in 1993.

Thomas Jefferson’s Cabinet was a personal office space where he wrote his letters, read books, and engaged in scientific pursuits. In this segment, Mikey Amos explores the many curiosities of this space, including the polygraph. He also discusses what Jefferson’s time in this room might have looked like during his retirement years, as well as his never-ending search for knowledge.

Monticello guide Justin Bates discusses Jefferson's interest in the Louisiana Territory, his hopes for an "Empire of Liberty" across the North American continent, and the Purchase's lasting legacies for the United States and for the indigenous nations that existed prior to the arrival Europeans.

Monticello guide David Thorson looks at how members of the Lewis and Clark Expedition celebrated the holiday season. He notes how different circumstances resulted in different experiences, and draws much of his discussion from William Clark’s journal.

Monticello guide Ariel Armenta explores Thomas Jefferson’s intentions for the Corps of Discovery and Merriwether Lewis’s preparations. She also focuses on the diverse character of this Corps, and the Expedition's lasting scientific impacts.

What was a visit to Jefferson's home back in day? In her diary from 1802, prominent Washington, D.C., socialite and diarist, Anna Maria Thornton, described a difficult trek up Monticello mountain and her disappointment in the conditions she found there. Monticello guide Danna Kelley tells the story with help from two colleagues.

Monticello's Kyle Chattleton discusses one of the few moments in Monticello’s history where an enslaved individual was freed by Jefferson. We can only imagine Robert Hemings’s feelings after being released from Jefferson on Christmas Eve 1794, but historical documents show that Jefferson was not too happy about the manumission.