This image shows one week of food supplied by Thomas Jefferson to each enslaved adult. Click the picture to learn more. Guiding Questions:   1. What was life like for members of the enslaved community at Monticello? 2. What kind of work did members of the enslaved community do?

Enslaved workers grew their own fruits and vegetables in gardens near their living quarters to add to the rations provided by Thomas Jefferson. 

They could eat these fruits and vegetables themselves, and some even sold them to Thomas Jefferson, like Bagwell and Minerva Granger. The Grangers and other members of the enslaved community sold products such as eggs, cucumbers, squash, watermelons, hops, and even tobacco. They also sold fish caught in the Rivanna River. 

What kinds of foods could enslaved people cook with these rations and any other fruits and vegetables they could grow? 

Do you think these rations were enough for enslaved people for a week? 

Each week, Thomas Jefferson provided each enslaved adult weekly rations (portions of food) of a peck, or 4 quarts of cornmeal, a half-pound of pork or pickled beef, and four salted fish. To supplement their rations, enslaved families grew their own vegetables, raised poultry, and hunted, fished, and trapped other animals for food.  

Standards for Weekly Enslaved Rations