Thomas Jefferson, draftsman of the Declaration of Independence of the United States and the nation’s first secretary of state, second vice president, and, as the third president, the statesman responsible for the Louisiana Purchase. An early advocate of total separation of church and state, he also was the founder and architect of the University of Virginia and the most eloquent American proponent of individual freedom as the core meaning of the American Revolution.

The papers of Thomas Jefferson, diplomat, architect, scientist, and third president of the United States, held in the Library of Congress Manuscript Division, consist of approximately 27,000 items, making it the largest collection of original Jefferson documents in the world.

Focuses on the extraordinary legacy of Thomas Jefferson--founding father, farmer, architect, inventor, slaveholder, book collector, scholar, diplomat, and the third president of the United States. It traces Jefferson's intellectual development from his earliest days in the Piedmont to an ever-expanding realm of influence in republican Virginia, the American Revolutionary government, the creation of the American nation, and the revolution in individual rights in America and the world.

Along with a brief but informative biography, this resource contains a timeline, quotes by Jefferson, his relationship with slavery, and much more.

Alter months of desperately avoiding capture by redcoats, the Sage of Monticello found himself labeled a coward. No wonder he hated war.

The contradiction between Jefferson's words and his own actions — he owned more than 600 slaves over his lifetime — sits at the heart of his complex and controversial legacy.