Isaac Granger Jefferson (1775-c. 1850) was an enslaved tinsmith and blacksmith at Monticello. His brief memoir, written down by an interviewer in 1847, provides important, fascinating information about Monticello and its people.1 Isaac was the third son of two very important members of the enslaved labor force at Monticello. His father, Great George Granger, rose from foreman of labor to become, in 1797, overseer of Monticello — the only enslaved individual to reach that position — and received an annual wage of £20. Isaac's mother, Ursula Granger, was a particularly trusted enslaved domestic servant whom Thomas Jefferson had purchased in 1773.2 Ursula was a pastry cook and laundress; her duties included the preservation of meat and bottling of cider.
Isaac Granger Jefferson
Isaac Granger, thus, spent his childhood on the mountaintop near his mother and from a very young age, he would have performed light chores in and around the house. He himself speaks of lighting fires, carrying fuel, and opening gates.3 Because he and his parents accompanied the Jefferson family to Williamsburg and Richmond when Jefferson was governor, the young Isaac was witness to dramatic events in the Revolution. In his reminiscences he recounted his vivid memories of 1781, including Benedict Arnold's raid on Richmond and the internment camp for captured slaves at Yorktown.4
Probably about 1790, Isaac Granger began his training in the metalworking trades. Jefferson took him to Philadelphia, where he was apprenticed for several years to a tinsmith. His own account is the only source of our knowledge of this aspect of his working life. He learned to make graters and pepper boxes and finally tin cups, four dozen a day. A tin shop was set up at Monticello on his return, but he recalled that it did not succeed. He also trained as a blacksmith under his older brother "Little George" and, sometime after 1794, became a nailer as well, dividing his time between nailmaking and smith's work.5
By 1796, Granger had a wife, Iris, and a son, Joyce. At this time he worked extra hours in the blacksmith shop, making chain traces for which Jefferson gave him threepence a pair. Also in 1796, according to Jefferson's records, Isaac Granger was the most efficient nailer. In the first three months of that year he made 507 pounds of nails in 47 days, wasting the least amount of nail rod in the process and earning for his master the highest daily return — the equivalent of eighty-five cents a day.6
In October 1797, Jefferson gave Isaac and Iris Granger, and their sons Squire and Joyce, to Maria and John Wayles Eppes as part of their marriage settlement.7 Thomas Mann Randolph was in need of a blacksmith at the time, so he hired Isaac from Eppes,8 though records are fragmentary and inconclusive on this point. Isaac and his family moved to Randolph's Edgehill plantation in 1798. A daughter, Maria, was apparently born soon after.9 As some of Granger's memories indicate his presence at Monticello in Jefferson's retirement years, he may have accompanied the Randolphs to reside there in 1809.
Tragedy stuck in 1799 and 1800, when Isaac's parents and brother Little George all died within a few months of each other. The persistence of an African heritage at Monticello is indicated by the fact that, in their illness, the members of this family consulted a black conjurer living near Randolph Jefferson in Buckingham County.10 Shortly after Great George Granger's death, Jefferson gave Isaac $11, the value of "his moiety of a colt left him by his father."11
In 1812 an Isaac belonging to Thomas Mann Randolph ran away and was caught and imprisoned in Bath County.12 We have as yet no way of knowing if this was Isaac the blacksmith. Randolph owned at least one other Isaac in this period.
How Isaac Granger gained his freedom is also unknown. He reported that he left Albemarle County about four years before Thomas Jefferson's death. He met and talked with the Marquis de Lafayette in Richmond in 1824. In 1847, he was a free man in Petersburg, still practicing his blacksmithing trade at the age of seventy-two.13 His reminiscences, taken down by the Reverend Charles Campbell in that year, do not reveal whether he took the surname Jefferson by choice or whether it was imposed on him by a white official, as was the case with Israel Gillette Jefferson, his fellow member of the enslaved community.
The fates of Iris, Squire, and Joyce Granger are unknown. Isaac had a wife, apparently not Iris, in 1847. Campbell wrote that Isaac Jefferson died "a few years after these his recollections were taken down. He bore a good character."14
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Trivia and reference Cuphead Comics season 1:
Against Elder Kettle's warnings, the brothers enter the Devil's Casino and begin playing craps.
• It is possible to refer to The Cuphead Show season 3 episode 11,, The Devil and Ms. Chalice" when Cuphead mindlessly ran to the casino like it tempted him and Chalice and Mugman chase after him to stop him.
Cuphead seems to be based on Mickey Mouse and Mugman seems to be based on Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.
Elder Kettle may based on the character Mr. Coffeepot from the 1935 Van Beuren cartoon Picnic Panic. Both characters even have cup-like children that they care for.
King Dice is heavily based on Cab Calloway, a famous American jazz singer who notably appeared Betty Boop cartoons with his songs.
• he was the Devil's right-hand man in the game, while in The Cuphead Show he was the Devil's number one
The Devil's design is based on the devil from "Hell's Bells", a short from Silly Symphonies.
• He bears similarities to is Ursula from The Little Mermaid. He strikes deals with people just as Ursula strikes deals with merfolks. (Why do they keep contracts? They probably kicked his ass) Also, he said "Poor unfortunately soul" is referencing to Ursula's song "Poor Unfortunate Souls"
• He is inspired by Hades from Hercules. That's explain his quote "Going once... Going twice.".
• When the Devil is defeated by Cuphead and Mugman, he said "I hate cups" It's referencing to The Cuphead Show.
• In the finale fight, Devil call Henchman is referencing to the Cuphead Show, where starring Henchman, the Devil's assistant.
Legendary Chalice has a habit of being captured by the ghosts in mausoleums everytime. Shan Lee, Werner Werman and Goopy Le Grande telling their about mausoleums and powers named Super Arts.
• Why did they know? Because Goopy has hallucinations when he saw her. Shan Lee was curious about her. And Werner intends to kill her, but misses.
While many believe the names of the Root Pack are "Moe Tato", "Weepy", and "Psycarrot", these are unofficial names created by fans. But now they named their "Sal Spudder", "Ollie Bulb" and "Chauncey Chantenay".
The Root Pack may have been inspired by other anthropomorphic vegetables from cartoons such as The Tears of an Onion (1938) and The Fresh Vegetable Mystery (1939).
• In The Cuphead Show season 1 episode 7 "Root Pack", they are the main antagonists, because they sneak into Elder Kettle's shack, while Cuphead and Mugman have to look after his garden and then they eaten the shack's soil when the two cups catch them.
His name, Goopy Le Grande, means Goopy The Great in Italian.
• "Le Grande" is also a pun on "El Grande" (Spanish for "The Big") and "Le Grand" (French for "The Big").
Goopy Le Grande's design are homages to the Slime, a common enemy and the mascot of Dragon Quest, and cartoons such as Ub Iwer's Balloon Land.
• Cuphead call him Rocky Balboa is referencing to Rocky Balboa, the main character from Rocky starring Sylvester Stallone.
Hilda Berg is connected to Betty Boop and Pearl from Steven Universe.
Her name is a pun on the Hindenburg, an infamous German zeppelin known for its destruction at New Jersey field in 1937.
• Hilda Berg makes an appearance in The Cuphead show season 2 epidoes 2 , "Charmed & Dangerous", where she as cameo. Whereas in Cuphead (my version), she knows them. Plus she knows astrology.
Cagney Carnation is tribute to famous animated flora from the 1932 Disney Silly Symphony cartoon Flowers and Trees through the 1930s and beyond. His first name came from the famous 1930s film star James Cagney.
• Cagney reminds of Flowey the Flower from game Undertale.
Cagney's idle animation in his first phase is a direct reference to the dancing style of a ghost in the 1930 Talkartoon "Swing You Sinner!"
Ribby and Croaks are based on Ryu and Ken from the Street Fighter series
Their color schemes may also have been inspired by the Frog and Toad children's stories by Arnold Lobel.
Ribby and Croaks may have been inspired by the Battletoads.
• Ribby and Croaks are supporting and recurring characters in The Cuphead Show!. They were originally boxing champions, but their mother disapproved of it, since she hate to see her sons boxing each other. So that's why they wearing suits.
• They are the main antagonists in The Cuphead Show episode 3 " Ribby and Croaks". The funny thing is that they fight each other.
Djimmi is based off the Genie from the 1992 Disney film, Aladdin. Actually, some scenes (in my version) refer to Aladdin. For example, "I can't believe it. I'm losing to a cups". Also, Cuphead call him Robbie Williams, who voiced Gienie ( RIP Robbie Williams)
• Many also compare Djimmi to Patrick Star from SpongeBob SquarePants due to his facial expressions and shape.
The pipe in Djimmi's mouth is a mixture of the Calabash pipe (used by Sherlock Holmes portrayed by Basil Rathbone) and the Corncob pipe (commonly used by Popeye the Sailor in all of his cartoons).
Djimmi falls in love with Shan Lee. At first they're friends, but later they're couples.
Shan Lee is daughter of sun goddess. That means she is demigoddess. She prayed to the gods in a Chinese words.
She is inspired by fighting woman in fighter games such as Chun Li from Street Fighter or Li Mei from Mortal Kombat
• Her appearance resembles female Monk from Diablo 3.
Cuphead call her " Tigress". It doesn't bother her because:
• It symbolises bravery and strength, the tiger is known as the king of the beasts throughout Chinese culture.
• It's referencing to Tigress from Kung Fu Panda.
Her phase 2 with pose references to disney movie 1998 Mulan, where Mulan fighting Shan Yu.
Beppi's name is a reference to Tito Beppi, a clown portrayed by Lon Chaney in the 1928 film Laugh, Clown, Laugh.
• He reminds of Pennywise, the main antagonists of Stephen King's novel and Horror movie ,,It"
He said ,,Why so serious? " is refence to Dark Knight, when Joker say same.
Beppi is a homage to Fleischer's iconic character Koko the Clown of the Betty Boop cartoons and 1930s animation
Baroness Von Bon Bon seems to be inspired by the French queen Marie Antoinette. This is indicated by her utilization of her cake castle in her final phase, referencing the phrase "Let them eat cake".
Her name, Bon Bon, is used in various languages (like French or many Balkan countries) for candy.
She throws her head at Cuphead and Mugman could be a reference to The Queen Of Hearts in Alice In Wonderland. The Queen's popular quote is "Off with his/her head!"
• In The Cuphead Show season 2 episode 5 "Sweet Temptation" Baroness is main antagonist. Why? Because she is an evil, psychol and murderous individual that turns children who break her rules into candy so she can eat them. But in Cuphead ( my version) she is an sweet, beautiful, loving and a little aggressive and dramatic, who she is Ruler of Sugarland and Cuphead falls in love with her.
Baroness is inspired by Princess Bubblegum from Adventure Time.
• In The Cuphead Show, She very coincidentally resembles Mommy Long Legs from Poppy Playtime, as they both initially claim to help the protagonists but end up trying to kill them in the end.
Grim Matchstick was named after Grim Natwick, a legendary animator notable for his designing of Fleischer's Betty Boop and Disney's Snow White, with his stutter also being a direct reference to Natwick.
Grim's personality matches that of the Dragon from The Reluctant Dragon, as both characters are wanting to prove that they are friendly and yearn to gain acceptance into society among their peers.
• He also bears a resemblance to Taro from The 7th Voyage of Sinbad which is one of the creatures animated via stop-motion by Ray Harryhausen.
• Grim's facial structure, complete with a pointed muzzle, bears a small resemblance to that of Maleficent's dragon form the 1959 Disney film, Sleeping Beauty.
• He also bears a physical resemblance to Grimm from Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders.
His final, three-headed form is presumably based off of King Ghidorah from the Godzilla or the Hydra, a three-headed dragon from Greek mythology
Cuphead call him "Wawel Dragon". It's a famous dragon in Polish legend.
Grim have son.
• In The Cuphead Show Grim Matchstick is shown to have a child, implying that he might have a wife. Season 1 Episode 10 " Dangerous Mugman" Grim save his child from Porkrind ( How cute!)
Wally Warbles is inspired by the giant roc in Popeye the Sailor Meets Sinbad the Sailor
• Wally's name may be a reference to Walter Lantz, founder of Walter Lantz Productions and creator of Woody Woodpecker.
• Wally looks similar to the buzzards from the 1931 Silly Symphony cartoon The Cat's Out.
The vehicle that his son, Willy, uses has a similar appearance and model to Bowser Junior's clown car.
Penelope Peaowl's song " I don't want to miss a thing " is refence to Aerosmith, rock band who they singing that song.
Final phase her showtime, she resembles Harpy, a half-woman and half-bird from Greek mythology.
In knockout, her boa choking her is similar boa constrictor - a species of snake from the constrictor family, one of the representatives of the boa subfamily.
Cuphead jokingly says that she and Rumor are lesbians.They really aren't.
Werner Werman is inspired Mortimer Mouse from the 1936 Disney short Mickey's Rival.
Due to the nature of the battle and inclusion of Katzenwagen, Werner's boss fight is a reference to the iconic Tom and Jerry cartoons.
• Werner's screaming similar to the iconic screams of Tom
• In The Cuphead Show Season 2 Episode 10 " Rats All Folks!" is most likely a parody of Tom & Jerry. ( Wener Werman is the main antagonist in the episode . Also he is small)
Werner's colour scheme, the shape of his muzzle, and his habit of constructing machines make him similar to Wile E. Coyote from Looney Tunes.
He also seems to be very similar to Vladimir from Nickelodeon's My Life as Teenage Robot, as they're both villainous rats with heavy accents (German for Werner, and Russian for Vladimir), and they attack their foes by using various weapons and automatons (Werner using his own soup-can tank, and Vladimir using Jenny, albeit only in his debut episode).
Werner speaks German accent.
Captain Brineybeard is a direct reference to Bluto from Popeye.
Brineybeard lost his legs by Cala Maria ( Sea Gorgon) to save his daughter ( in my version)
• In The Cuphead Show season 2 episode 3 "A High Seas Adventure! " he as stone by Cala Maria lost his legs by Mugman ( by accident)
• He is madly in love with her ( Yup. He is simp)
Brineybeard's song ,"Yo, Ho, Ho (And a Bottle of Rum)" is refence to Treasure Island, where pirates singing that song.
Cala Maria was human, and she have job as archaeologist ( reference to Lara Croft from Tomb Raider), and then she was possessed by spirit and transformed to giant monster aka Sea Gorgon ( or Sea Beast in The Cuphead Show) referencing to Enchatress (June Moone), super villain from DC Comics.
• Luckey, she was back to normal by Dr Kahl.
Her have last name "Neptune", that reference to Neptune ( Poseidon), god of sea.
Her level name is incredibly similar to that of a level in the game Crash Bandicoot: Twinsanity, named High Sea Hi-Jinks.
She is most likely inspired by Ariel from Disney's The Little Mermaid, as evident to being both mermaids
• Her skin color is similar to that of Ursula from The Little Mermaid.
• Her electrocution is similar to the former's death, as when she is killed, her skeleton is also seen. Additionally, the eels helping her may be referencing Flotsam and Jetsam, two eels who act as Ursula's henchmen.
Cala Maria's second form is based on the infamous Gorgon Medusa from Greek mythology.
• The fact that this is an air battle against might be inspired by the battle with Medusa in chapter 9 of Kid Icarus: Uprising.
• Her floating head form in the final phase is a reference to Medusa being decapitated by Perseus in Greek mythology, which has also been referenced in other video games featuring Medusa, such as the Medusa Head, a recurring enemy and boss in the Castlevania series.
When transforming into her third phase, her body turns to stone and her arms fall off, making it resemble the famous statue, Venus de Milo.
She has a similar name and color pallete to Celia Mae from the Disney Pixar film Monsters Inc., another gorgon-based character who has snakes for hair.
Mugman falls in love with her.
• Cala Maria and Mugman being love interests in the latter's book in “The I Scream Man“ in The Cuphead Show Season 2 ep 6 "The I Scream Man"
Dr. Kahl was inspiration from other mad scientists in other platforming game franchises, such as Dr. Wily from Mega Man, Dr. Eggman from Sonic the Hedgehog, or Dr. Neo Cortex from Crash Bandicoot.
His robot similar to the Iron Giant from The Iron Giant ( He haved GIANT, but now gave FRANK)
• Dr Kahl's phase of the fight seems to bear a strong resemblance to the battle with N. Gin from Crash Bandicoot: Warped.
The Robot's presentation is ancillary to Rayman 2 The Great Escape, where the Seller visits Razorbeard and introduces Grolgoth as the Pirate's solution to Rayman's problem.
The invention of the "Beauty Machine" refers to the video game Banjo Kazooie, this machine works and managed to make Cala beaty and normal.
Robot say "BITE MY SHINE METAL ASS" is refence to Futurama, when Bender say same.
Rumor Honeybottoms was inspired to Honey Woman, an unused boss character from Capcom's Mega Man 9.
Security Bee seems to be inspired by a policeman ant from the 1940 cartoon Ants in the Plants, as both have similar designs.
• His design may have been inspired by Buzz the Bee, the Honey Nut Cheerios mascot.
• Also inn The Cuphead Show!, there are multiple security bees, but these security bees come in both genders and their colour schemes appear more green-ish. Their presence may suggest that Rumor Honeybottoms may be present in some way.
Sally Stageplay may have been inspired by Sally Swing, a blonde character from Betty Boop.
• She has a similar color scheme to Sally Brown from Peanuts, who also (albeit coincidentally) has her given name.
In Cuphead Show season 3 episode 3 "Cupstaged", Sally Stageplay enters the theater pretending to have rabies to demonstrate what acting is. ( I love Marcia Gay Harden, who she voiced Sally ! 💖)
The Phantom Express is an homage to the Ghost Train from Final Fantasy VI. A musical nod to this train is included in Railroad Wrath
• The background for this fight is inspired by the 1929 Disney cartoon The Skeleton Dance.
Cuphead said to the Devil ''We'll never turn to the dark side" is reference to Star Wars: Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
in the end Cuphead and Mugman married Baroness Von Bon Bon and Cala Maria ( In my version) this refers to the fanatic CupheadxBaroness and MugmanxCalaMaria ( I mean others prefer another relationship romantic, but for me...whatever. ) .
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