Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743, in Virginia. Upon his father's death in 1757, young Thomas inherited five thousand acres of land; eventually he built his famous house, Monticello, on a portion of this land. Jefferson was an incredibly brilliant and dedicated scholar, eventually mastering such areas as architecture, horticulture, archeology, and several foreign languages. In addition to his accomplishments as an author, Jefferson was an inventor; later in life, he founded the University of Virginia, the first college in the United States not formally associated with a specific religious denomination.

Trained as a lawyer, Jefferson held a number of political offices; he served in the Virginia Colonial legislature and as governor of his native state during the latter stages of the American Revolution. After independence was achieved, Jefferson served as secretary of state under George Washington and vice president under John Adams before being elected...