A centuries-old question over Thomas Jefferson's relationship with Sally Hemings, a woman he enslaved, is back in the spotlight — and new DNA evidence reinforces what historians have long concluded.The Thomas Jefferson Foundation, which owns and operates Monticello, addressed the new findings in a recent statement ahead of the publication of anthropologist Richard Kurin's book, "History by a Hair."The book details an effort to analyze strands of hair linked to Jefferson, including hair discovered between the pages of an unpublished manuscript associated with him.DISCOVERY AT MONTICELLO REVEALS CONSTRUCTION SECRETS THOMAS JEFFERSON LEFT OUT OF MAPS AND LETTERSUsing those genetic comparisons, researchers modeled competing paternity scenarios involving Jefferson, plus his brother Randolph and Randolph's sons. The analysis found the odds that Jefferson fathered neither Madison Hemings nor Eston Hemings were less than one in 1,000.Strands of hair linked to Thomas Jefferson, shown above, were analyzed using advances in genomic sequencing — providing new DNA evidence about his relationship with Sally Hemings.(Thomas Jefferson's Monticello)In a statement, the Thomas Jefferson Foundation said the findings reinforce, rather than rewrite, the historical record."The study doesn't change what we know about Thomas Jefferson, Sally Hemings, their children or their world," the foundation said.
"But it offers occasion to reflect on how we came to know it, and why we share that knowledge."DNA CRACKS CENTURIES-OLD MURDER MYSTERY INVOLVING ONE OF HISTORY'S MOST FAMOUS FAMILIES"Together, these histories give us a fuller picture of Monticello, of Jefferson and his world, and of the generations of Americans who have worked to realize the Declaration's promise," the foundation added.Fox News Digital reached out to the Thomas Jefferson Foundation for further comment.Researchers used modern genomic sequencing techniques to recover Jefferson's DNA from strands of hair linked to the nati...