How he loved that bird!
Margaret Bayard Smith wrote that Thomas Jefferson “could not live without something to love.” This sentiment captures his devotion (or obsession) with so many pursuits—from collecting mastodon bones to inventing the whirlygig chair to developing the finest wool in America. But Smith was referring in particular to Jefferson’s love of mockingbirds, specifically his favorite pet mockingbird, Dick.
In this episode we look at Jefferson’s study of birds and love for mockingbirds, and what that tells us about his personality. We’ll also explore just how wrong Harper Lee was she said mockingbirds were innocent, and why it’s not just a sin to kill a mockingbird—it’s also a federal crime.
Listen to the episode now:
Sources:
The First Forty Years of Washington Society by Margaret Bayard Smith
“Jefferson’s Ornithology Reconsidered” by Matthew R. Halley
“From Thomas Jefferson to Martha Jefferson Randolph, 10 June 1793,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/01-26-02-0226. [Original source: The Papers of Thomas Jefferson, vol. 26, 11 May–31 August 1793, ed. John Catanzariti. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995, p. 250.]
Mockingbirds – Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello
