For many years, the Woodson family has contended that their relative, Thomas Woodson, was the oldest son of President Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings. Oral tradition and correspondence lent credence to this claim and helped bring it to the attention of the administrators of Jefferson’s estate, Monticello. Although DNA tests were inconclusive, after much research and discussion, Thomas Woodson was added as a potential child of Jefferson. This was due, in part, to Minnie Shumate Woodson’s research and writings.

After graduating from Dunbar High School in 1937, Woodson went on to attend Miner’s Teacher College and George Washington University. She later worked as an elementary school teacher and served as the president of the Washington, D.C. School Board. Minnie became part of the Woodson family when she married John Stanton Woodson, son of noted civil engineer Howard Woodson (the namesake of Woodson High School). She became intrigued by the family stories about Thomas Woodson and Thomas Jefferson. She began research into the family’s history and eventually published two works: The Sable Curtain and The Woodson Family Source Book.