The Founding of Thomas Jefferson’s University ed. by John A. Ragosta, Peter S. Onuf and Andrew J. O’Shaughnessy

A comprehensive examination of the founding and early history of Thomas Jefferson's University, now the University of Virginia, reveals its dual legacy: as a pioneering institution for higher education and a bastion of slavery and racial oppression. The study, published to coincide with the university's bicentennial in 2019, draws on extensive archival materials from Monticello and the university itself, including recently transcribed and digitized records. It uncovers the systemic role of enslaved and free Black individuals in sustaining the Academical Village, while also highlighting the pervasive violence and racial supremacy embedded within the institution's fabric. The research underscores how these historical patterns persist, as evidenced by the 2017 neo-Nazi rally on campus, and calls for further theoretical analysis to address systemic racism in U.S. institutions.

Woods, M. N. (2021). The Founding of Thomas Jefferson’s University ed. by John A. Ragosta, Peter S. Onuf and Andrew J. O’Shaughnessy. Journal of Southern History, 87(1), 117–118. https://doi.org/10.1353/soh.2021.0008