Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson
(April 13, 1743 -
July 4, 1826) was the
third (1801-1809)
President of the      Order:           3rd President
United States.        Term of Office:  March 4, 1801 - March 4, 1809
                      Preceeded by:    James Madison
                      Place of birth:  Shadwell, Virginia
                      Date of Death:   July 4, 1826
                      Place of Death:  Monticello, Virginia
                      Wife:            Martha Wayles Jefferson

Biographical          First Lady:      Martha Jefferson Randolph (daughter)
Information                            Dolley Madison (friend)
                      Occupation:      lawyer, farmer
His parents were
Peter Jefferson       Political Party: Democratic-Republican

(March 29, 1708 -     Vice President:  Aaron Burr (1801-1805)
August 17, 1757) and                   George Clinton (1805-1809)
Jane Randolph
(February 20, 1720 - March 31, 1776) both from families who had settled in
Virginia for several generations. He attended the College of William & Mary.

He was the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, and a source
of many other contributions to American culture. Achievements of his
presidency include the Louisiana Purchase and the Lewis and Clark
Expedition.

His home in Virginia that he designed himeslf, was Monticello, near
Charlottesville, Virginia, which included automatic doors, and other
convenient devices invented by Jefferson. He founded and designed the
University of Virginia.

Jefferson's interests included archaeology, a discipline then in its
infancy. He has sometimes been called the "father of archaeology" in
recognition of his role in developing excavation techniques. When exploring
an Indian burial mound on his Virginia estate in 1784, Jefferson avoided the
common practice of simply digging downwards until something turned up.
Instead, he cut a wedge out of the mound, so that he could walk into it,
look at the layers of occupation and draw conclusions from them.

Jefferson was also an avid wine lover and noted gourmet. During his
ambassadorship to France (1784-9) he took extensive trips through French and
other European wine regions and sent the best back to the White House. He is
noted for the bold pronouncement "We could in the United States make as
great a variety of wines as are made in Europe, not exactly of the same
kinds, but doubtless as good." While there were extensive vineyards planted
at Monticello, a significant portion were V. vinifera and did not survive
the many vine diseases native to the Americas. Thus, Jefferson himself was
never able to produce wine on par with Europe. However, it seems likely that
he would be pleased with the quantity and quality of wine now being made in
Virginia.

Jefferson's ideal for the United States was that of an agricultural nation
of yeoman farmers, in contrast to the vision of Alexander Hamilton, who
envisioned a nation of commerce and manufacturing. Jefforson was a great
beliver in the uniqueness and the potential of the United States and is
often classified a forfather of American Exceptionalism.

Like many landholders of his time, Jefferson owned slaves. A subject of
considerable controversy since Jefferson's own time was whether Jefferson
was the father of any of the children of his slave Sally Hemings.

An electoral tie resulted between Jefferson and his opponent Aaron Burr in
the U.S. presidential election, 1800. It was resolved on February 17, 1801
when Jefferson was elected President and Burr Vice President by the United
States House of Representatives. Jefferson was the only Vice President
elected to the Presidency and serve two full terms.

Jefferson's portrait appears on the U.S. $2 bill.

Events During his first term as President

   * Land Act of 1800
   * Louisiana Purchase
   * Appointed James Monroe envoy extrordinary to France and sent him to
     Paris in 1803 to buy the city of New Orleans
   * Marbury v. Madison
   * Lewis and Clark expedition

Sayings

Some quotes from Jefferson on Deism are available on the Wikipedia page

Jefferson on Deism

Jefferson is known for taking a strong independent stance in regards to
religion. He compiled a collection of what he considered to be the most
profound and meaningful passages from the Bible, and published it as an
independent work. This became known as the Jefferson Bible.

Other sayings:

   * "To compel a man to furnish contributions of money for the propagation
     of opinions which he disbelieves and abhors is sinful and tyrannical."

Places named for Thomas Jefferson

   * Jefferson County in several states

Thomas Jefferson Junior High School, Beeville, Texas Thomas Jefferson High
School, Dallas, Texas

Supreme Court appointments

   * William Johnson - 1804
   * Henry Brockholst Livingston - 1807
   * Thomas Todd - 1807

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