Born in 1743 in Albemarle County, Virginia, Thomas Jefferson grew up in on a farm, living a modest agricultural life. He studied law at the College of William and Mary. He married Martha Wayles Skelton in 1772, and the couple moved to his mountain top home in Monticello.
Jefferson had a knack for writing, but wasn’t as powerful and eloquent as a public speaker. In the Virginia House of Burgesses and the Continental Congress, Jefferson maintained his membership as a silent partner, rather than a vocal one. He drafted the Declaration of Independence at the youthful age of 33, and spent the rest of his years trying to make it a reality. In 1786, he wrote the bill which would give all Americans religious freedoms. In 1785, he became the minister to France, replacing Benjamin Franklin in his duty. Eventually he became Secretary of State under George Washington. In 1793, he resigned the position, due to the growing tension between him and Alexander Hamilton, over Jefferson’s sympathies for the French during the French Revolution.
In 1796, he reluctantly ran for President, where he narrowly lost by three votes. Due to a loophole in the Constitution, he became his opponent’s vice-president. In 1800, the loophole decided for Jefferson again, when a tie between Jefferson and Aaron Burr arose. Hamilton urged the election of Jefferson, despite not liking him. As President, he slashed the army, cut the budget, eliminated the tax on whiskey, and purchased Louisiana from the French in 1803. During his second term, he tried to keep the States out of the Napoleonic Wars. He retired to his house in Monticello, where he died on July 4, 1826.
