Thomas Jefferson's copy of John Milton, Paradise Regain'd: A Poem. In Four Books. To which is added Samson Agonistes; eighth edition corrected, J and R Tonson, the Strand, London, 1742. Octaus, contemporary full leather binding, five raised bands at spine "Milton's Poetical Works". Period engraved bookplate for "Reuben Skelton Hanover County, Virginia"; inscriptions for "M. Randolph, Monticello" "V. J. (Virginia J.) Randolph", "Mary J. Randolph Monticello" and "The Randolphs Nelson Va. July 14, 1897", later bookplate for Harold Jefferson Coolidge. Notes: The profound influence of John Milton on the intellectual, political, and personal life of Thomas Jefferson has been well documented and pondered by scholars. Milton's work even influenced Jefferson's own Paradise- the Edenic house and gardens at Monticello. It has furthermore been suggested that Milton's ideology was linked to and directly influenced the Founding Fathers, and the American struggle for liberty and independence- in particular, the separation of church and state in Virginia in 1776.  The volume offered here, a previously unrecorded copy that has descended through the family, is a rare tangible link between the great American statesman and the great English poet who so influenced him. It may well be the copy listed as number 32 in Thomas Jefferson's Library: A Catalog with the Entries in His Own Order (Gilreath and Wilson, 1989). That it came from the shelves of Jefferson's library is confirmed by his annotation on pages 113 and 273, wherein he added his initials. The book likely descended to Jefferson through his first wife, either from her marriage to Reuben Skelton's brother Bathurst, or from her father, whose 3rd marriage was to Reuben Skelton's widow. In either case, his access to it likely began with his marriage in 1772. Jefferson withheld a copy of Milton's works from the sale of his library to the Library of Congress in 1815, retaining it in Monticello. For more on Milton and his influence on Jefferson, Monticello, and the struggle for American independence, see Hugh Jenkins, "Jefferson (Re) Reading Milton" (Milton Quarterly, March 1998); Lydia Dittler Schulman, "Paradise Lost" and the Rise of the American Republic (Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1992); D.L. Wilson, Jefferson's Literary Commonplace Book (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989); and Amy Tigner, Literature and the Renaissance Garden.. (University of Texas, 2012), among many others.

A heavily used and worn copy. Spine broken and covers separated at hinges, wear and losses at corners. Some interior water stains and toning. See detailed photos.