Thomas Jefferson
18th–19th Century
1743 – 1826 · American
Declaration Author & Third President
About
Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence, wrote the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, served as Minister to France, first Secretary of State, and third President of the United States. His presidency included the Louisiana Purchase of 1803, and he later designed and founded the University of Virginia. He also enslaved more than six hundred people over the course of his life, freed almost none of them, and fathered children with Sally Hemings, a woman he held in slavery.
Key Facts
Principal author of the Declaration of Independence (1776)
Third President of the United States (1801–1809), which included the Louisiana Purchase
Designed Monticello and founded the University of Virginia, which opened in 1825
Enslaved more than 600 people over his lifetime and fathered children with Sally Hemings
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