Obv. my perspective is limited since I'm not American, and don't know US history in-depth. But Jefferson's always seemed a conflicting character, to me - someone who isn't always consistent in his actions and beliefs.

(I'm sure some would say he was morally conflicted between common belief and social norms, and his own conscience, and others would say he was just a hypocrite. It's probably somewhere in the middle, but who can say? Given the conflicting noise about him in historical records, it's difficult to know where the truth lies.)

By modern standards? He was awful. By the standards of the time? Sadly, he was probably average.