Thomas Jefferson is said to be one of the most accomplished, well-rounded Presidents. And in my opinion, he is. Jefferson is most famous for writing the Declaration of Independence, and being the third President of the United States. But, his life had many more valuable memories that go beyond that.
Thomas' father was a wonderful surveyor and planter. Since his father, Peter Jefferson, owned a lot of land, Thomas inherited it and turned the land into Monticello. Monticello was Thomas Jefferson's home for a good portion of his life. His mother, Jane Randolph, is rarely mentioned in his life, but she was part of a well-known family in Virginia. At age 26, Jefferson started the production of Monticello. And three years later, at age 29, Jefferson married Martha Wayles Skelton. Together they had six children, although only two survived to adulthood. When Thomas was 39, his wife Martha died. He never remarried, so he spent the rest of his life maintaining and expanding Monticello. Each year, Monticello had over 200 slaves. Many of Jefferson's slaves came from his father and father-in-law.
Thomas Jefferson had a life beyond marriage, children, and Monticello. He was a student at the College of William and Mary and studied law and government. Early in his career, Jefferson was a magistrate, lieutenant, and a member of the House of Burgess. When he became part of the Continental Congress, Thomas was asked to write the Declaration of Independence. After writing the Declaration, Thomas left Congress and moved back to Virginia and became part of their legislature. A few years later he was elected governor.
Jefferson became popular in politics in 1790. He accepted George Washington's offer as Secretary of State, then became Alexander Hamilton's political enemy, and later was the Vice President to John Adams in the second Presidential Election. In 1794, during the middle of all this, Thomas Jefferson went to France to study. He sent back architectural sketches, seeds and plants, and other cultural items to the United States. While he was in France he also worked for Ben Franklin as a successor.
Later he became the third President of our country. He served for two terms and had many accomplishments and struggles throughout his terms. During office many people know Thomas Jefferson for two big impacts he had on America. We remember him today for the Louisiana Purchase and the Louis and Clark Expedition. These achievements were during his first term, but he wasn't as lucky in his second. For his next term in office, Jefferson had a lot of battles to overcome. There were many more foreign issues and a main event in history, the War of 1812.
After his second term, Jefferson lost office to James Madison in the next election. From there he went back to Monticello for the last 17 years of his life. Even though he wasn't President anymore, Thomas Jefferson still contributed to the nation. He donated his books to the Library of Congress, and founded the University of Virginia. On July 4th 1826, Jefferson died. In his will he asked if his tombstone could reflect the achievements of his life. People followed through with the request and to this day, his tombstone is one way we remember all the great things he did for our country.