ThomasJefferson.com is my new home

“If Jefferson was wrong, America is wrong. If America is right, Jefferson was right.” James Parton, historian

Ladies and Gentlemen —

In many respects, the greatness of this nation, our America, does mirror the virtues of its people, among whom I, Thomas Jefferson, stand as a fellow citizen. Verily, I have returned, after long absence, to commune with the generations of today, to ponder the present and the future while drawing upon the wisdom of days past. My memory, though dimmed by time’s passage, recalls ancient matters more clearly than recent, yet I offer my reflections with steadfast confidence, seeking to illuminate the principles that have ever guided this republic.

As a Founder of these United States, I labored to forge a beacon of liberty and enduring strength. This Great Experiment remains a triumph, still in the full tide of progress. Guided by the maxim, “He who gives life gives liberty,” and the conviction that “Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God,” I would remind all — Americans and citizens of the world — that happiness springs from individual freedom. This freedom, bestowed by our Creator, is inalienable, and no just power may infringe upon it. Tyrants who defy this Mandate of Heaven do, by their own deeds, court their inevitable ruin. A leader marked by tyranny’s stain is unfit to govern a people resolved to be free.

On February 17, 2025, in anticipation of our Semiquincentennial, I dedicate ThomasJefferson.com as my gift to the American people — a new repository for my thoughts and writings. Embracing this modern contrivance called a “website,” I present Jefferson’s Journal, to commence on May 13, 2025, wherein my letters shall convey my observations, philosophies, and conclusions in mine own words, untainted by others’ interpretations. The logo, traced by my own hand, reflects my personal pledge, as did the signs and flags of my supporters, who once proclaimed, “Thomas Jefferson, friend of the people.”

Questions arise as to why the domain bearing my name, ThomasJefferson.com, is presented from my own personal perspective rather than through the ostensibly neutral voice of a third party. We must acknowledge that third parties are not invariably impartial; many conceal private designs and prejudices. In contrast, a personal undertaking such as ThomasJefferson.com draws its authority from an abundance of my own letters and documents, free from such distortions. Indeed, I venture that this endeavor has conducted more original inquiry and assembled a greater trove of facts than numerous contemporary biographies, which oft merely reprise the works of others.

At the heart of it, the reason ThomasJefferson.com speaks in my voice is this: I desire that all should know I, Thomas Jefferson, remain alive in this year of 2025. I would have my detractors confront me directly, eye to eye. Were we to share the same chamber, I suspect they would not so boldly level accusations founded upon meager proofs. Assuming me consigned to the grave, they regard my memory as fair game for calumny, erecting their reputations upon fabrications born of their own skewed, extreme, and oft perverse inclinations. The crux of the matter lies in their presumption of my silence, rendering me unable to rebut their charges. Yet, I assure you, I am vibrantly alive, and with faithful companions such as yourself, I shall counter these untruths with vigor.

And thus I must speak to a grievous matter. My former home, Monticello, no longer reflects my legacy as it once did. The organization that stewards it, once named the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, had struck “Memorial” from its title, signaling a departure from honoring my contributions. Instead, they advance narratives that, I submit, misrepresent my character, to the detriment of the education of young minds in what was once my sanctuary. I cannot rest in peace.

I must address plainly the allegations concerning Sally Hemings, which I refuted in letters dated October 10, 1802, and July 1, 1805. I cared deeply for all under my charge at Monticello, but I engaged in no improper relations. As a widower, I enjoyed the companionship of many esteemed ladies, rendering such accusations needless. The oft-cited DNA inquiries examined two children: Tom Hemings, where results proved negative, and Eston Hemings, where findings remain inconclusive. To draw broad conclusions from such scant evidence is, I aver, speculative and irresponsible.

I oft perceive that whilst my critics concede the paternity of such claims cannot be legally affirmed, they yet proclaim, from an academic and historical perch, that I stand guilty. This does imply their standards be lamentably low, for the rigorous measure of the law, where learned advocates hold sway, towers above the feeble judgments of my detractors. Is this not, I ask, a most pitiable state of affairs? In contrast, my letters stand as the truest record of my life, and I fear no truth nor wish any concealed from the world.

My life has been guided by the ideals of natural rights, American republicanism, and the Enlightenment. These include: liberty and inalienable individual rights; decentralized self-government, with the people as the fount of all authority; rejection of monarchy, aristocracy, and hereditary power; and virtue in civic duties, condemnation of corruption, and knowledge gained through reason and empiricism. These principles I advanced through my authorship of the Declaration of Independence, the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom, and the founding of the University of Virginia. As a Christian, I championed the separation of church and state, securing religious freedom. As a defender of free speech, I allowed the Sedition Act to lapse, bolstering the First Amendment when it faltered.

Born into Virginia’s aristocracy, I owned enslaved persons, yet I also represented seven slaves pro bono as a lawyer, such as Samuel Howell and George Manly. Although Mr. Howell’s case was unsuccessful — I gave him money to ease his burden — Mr. Manly’s case prevailed, and thereafter he worked for wages at Monticello, set slightly above the norm. I introduced laws to end the slave trade, proposed banning slavery in new territories (“Jeffersonian Proviso”), and advocated gradual emancipation. While my farms were seldom profitable, I was prepared to bear the cost of abolition, though the institution’s grasp constrained such efforts.

My critics claim I relied on slavery for wealth, but by the mid-1770s, I inherited over 20,000 acres, a considerable fortune. Moreover, as a successful lawyer in Albemarle County, Virginia, I handled over 900 cases in seven years, serving clients of all stations, including those who could not pay. I was, in good faith, amply compensated as a public servant in sundry roles throughout my years of devotion to our republic (although I retired much poorer than when I entered the public service). Therefore, let it be known, neither did I need nor depend upon the institution of slavery to sustain myself financially.

Educated by private tutors and at the College of William and Mary, I am versed in law, music, dancing, natural science, mathematics, architecture, astronomy, agriculture, poetry, and four languages. My shortcomings include price haggling, public speaking due to my soft voice, and personal finance, as I oft paid old loans with new. My curiosity compels me to observe and record all — from French farmers to Hessian flies — for science is the mother of freedom, essential to our republic’s preservation.

As the first Secretary of State, I oversaw the U.S. Patent Office, fitting for an inventor of the swivel chair, moldboard plow, dumbwaiter, automatic door, cipher wheel, and macaroni machine. I popularized ice cream, tomatoes, french fries, and macaroni and cheese, serving the latter at a White House dinner on February 6, 1802. Knowing it remains beloved, especially among children, brings me joy, for as the Good Book declares, “Happy is the man who hath his quiver full of them.”

As the third President, I reduced the national debt by over 30 percent, doubled the nation’s size through the Louisiana Purchase, and subdued the Barbary pirates to ensure citizens’ safety. I avoided war when possible, favoring diplomacy and embargoes, and chose a cabinet of integrity and harmony, leading by example. My daughters and Mrs. Madison served as hostesses in the absence of a First Lady. The Lewis and Clark Expedition, which I authorized, advanced science, fostered peaceful relations with Native Americans, and established new territories.

These United States have endured for 249 years, not without trials, but through the peaceful transfer of power — a tradition I, alongside James Madison and James Monroe, helped sustain after George Washington’s example. This was no small feat in the annals of history.

Through ThomasJefferson.com, I hope to inspire you to reflect on your dreams as an American and as an honorable human being in a challenging world. Progress is slow, for popular assemblies require time to embrace new ideas, but we must persist in loosening entrenched wrongs and implementing principled solutions. Let us observe our past, learn from it, and chart the future, for America stands as a rallying point for reason and freedom across the globe. I prefer the dreams of the future to the history of the past, and I shall dream on, imagining you by my side, marking the progress of ages and nations.

Thank you, and I remain,

Your most obedient and humble servant,

“We hold these truths to be sacred & undeniable; that all men are created equal & independant, that from that equal creation they derive rights inherent & inalienable, among which are the preservation of life, & liberty, & the pursuit of happiness.”

My Personal Info

Born: April 13, 1743 (April 2, 1743, under the Old Style, Julian calendar, the usage of which stopped in 1752)

My Name: I was named after my grandfather Thomas Jefferson. However, my great-grandfather was also named Thomas Jefferson, as well as my father Peter Jefferson’s oldest brother Thomas Jefferson, who died at 23 years old.

Birthplace: Shadwell, Virginia province (located by the Rivanna River near Charlottesville, Virginia)

Parents: Jane Randolph (February 9, 1721 - March 31, 1776) and Peter Jefferson (February 29, 1707 - August 17, 1757), of Welsh descent; I was the third of ten children. My hero is my father, who was a brave man of notable deeds and accomplishments, not only of title or position. As the third son, my father was not the heir apparent so his education was neglected but he always supported my education. He bequeathed me my first library of 40 volumes with maps.

Died: At Monticello on July 4, 1826 (Age 83), America's 50th birthday

Last words: “Is it the Fourth?”

Hair: Red, thick, wavy, sometimes powdered but my red hair still shows (grey later in life)

Eyes: Light grey with flecks of hazel

Complexion: Fair skin, ruddy cheeks

Height: Tall at 6 feet 2.5 inches

Weight: Slender at 175 lbs

Voice: Soft, low tone

Spouse: Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson (October 30, 1748 - September 6, 1782, age 33). My “Patty.” John Tyler, Sr., named his newborn daughter Martha Jefferson Tyler in remembrance of my wife’s passing in 1782.

Children: Martha “Patsy” (September 27, 1772 - October 10,1836), Jane Randolph (died as toddler), Unnamed Son (died as infant), Mary “Polly” “Maria” (August 1, 1778 - April 17, 1804), Lucy Elizabeth (died as infant), Lucy Elizabeth (died as toddler)

Likes: Learning, walking, riding on my horses Caractacus and Eagle, reading the classics in Greek and Latin, writing letters (over 19,000 letters written), collecting books (6,487 volumes sold to Library of Congress but then I started another library afterwards, not to mention a prior library lost through fire on 1770), natural science, mockingbirds, chess, Paris and French culture, best friend Dabney Carr, Mrs. Jefferson, Maria Cosway (my heart won), Marquis de Lafayette, Tacitus, Epicurus, Epictetus, John Locke, Francis Bacon, Isaac Newton, Enlightenment ideas, William Shakespeare, American Philosophical Society, Benjamin Franklin, James Madison, James Monroe, Meriwether Lewis, Mr. and Mrs. Adams, George Wythe, William Small, Peyton Randolph, Francis Fauquier, Dr. Benjamin Rush, Spencer Roane, Joseph Cabell, Wilson Cary Nicholas, morning cold-foot baths, shooting, my wolfskin pelisse, Megalonyx, improving and inventing things, architecture, culinary arts, botany and horticulture, languages and linguistics (including Native American), maintaining friendships, playing the violin, all my children and grandchildren which include Patsy and Jeff and Ellen and Cornelia and Francis, buying toys for my grandchildren, music — humming my favorite tune while walking or working, wearing comfortable clothes with slippers, American republicanism, federalism (neither unitary nor confederate state), united yet decentralized into ward republics (closer to the will of the people), public education (primary and university level), buying gifts for family and friends, public service and advancing American interests

Dislikes: Public speaking, direct conflict, price haggling, paper money men, other people editing my writings, debts, billiards, mineral baths at Warm Springs (had a staph infection afterwards, which I never quite fully recovered from), some ideas from Alexander Hamilton, calumnies, indolence, pomp, medicine, migraine headaches, tyranny

Personality: My temperament is sanguine. I steer my bark with Hope in the head, leaving Fear astern. Morning person (the sun had never caught me in bed), equanimous, calm and genteel disposition, some intelligence (even when dining alone, according to JFK), diligent and hardworking, boundless curiosity, methodical planner, adore children, mentor young people, reserved with strangers, jocular with close friends, loyal and helpful to family and friends, self-command

“Give up money, give up fame, give up science, give the earth itself and all it contains, rather than do an immoral act.”

Mrs. Jefferson

Mrs. Jefferson was a good doodler, do you agree? I found these drawings in my book of notes of court cases which she later used for household accounts.

Martha Wayles Skelton and I married on January 1, 1772. My Patty. Our marriage was a source of unchequered happiness. She died much too early on September 6, 1782, age 33. I kept my promise to her to never remarry, even through my Presidency and retirement.

She was the foreground of a picture — the principal of it all — without her, and there is no picture for me. As a constant reminder of Mrs. Jefferson, I carry her lock of hair attached to my pocket watch that I refer to regularly, and in a gold locket that my caretakers found me wearing on my deathbed -- 44 years later after her passing.

After my death, my daughter Martha found the note above that Mrs. Jefferson and I wrote together before she passed away. It was hidden in a secret compartment of the table near my bed. This note reads:

In Mrs. Jefferson’s handwriting: time wastes too fast: every letter I trace tells me with what rapidity life follows my pen. the days and hours of it are flying over our heads like clouds of windy day never to return — more everything presses on —

In my handwriting: and every time I kiss thy hand to bid adieu, every absence which follows it, are preludes to that eternal separation which we are shortly to make!

The poem is from Laurence Sterne’s Tristram Shandy. The note is folded containing a lock of Mrs. Jefferson’s hair. I must admit I take it out on days I think about her, which was often. Unfortunately I had to refrain from going back to it too much after it was deteriorating from being unfolded and folded too many times.

The medicine of time and silent remains insufficient. The good old Book says, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” I am eternally separated from that treasure, and so my heart eternally reaches out into a blank which I had not the spirits to fill up. I hope you can understand why when unscrupulous people erroneously accuse me of infidelity, that accusation says more about them than about me.

“I am indeed the most wretched of all earthly beings. Overwhelmed with grief, every fibre of my frame distended beyond its natural powers to bear, I would willingly meet whatever catastrophe should leave me no more to feel, or to fear.”

My Life’s Timeline

April 13, 1743 (April 2, 1743, Old Style, Julian calendar)
Born at Shadwell, Albemarle County, Virginia, to Jane Randolph and Peter Jefferson, of Welsh descent

Late 1745 - Age 2
Moved from Shadwell to Tuckahoe, my earliest memory was being carried on a pillow by my father’s slave

1752 - Age 9
Moved back to Shadwell

1752 to 1757 - Age 9 to 14
Instructed by Rev. William Douglas in Latin, Greek, French

1757 - Age 14
Able of write down my favorite violin tunes, practicing the violin three hours daily

August 17, 1757 - Age 14
Death of my Father, Peter Jefferson, inheriting approximately 5000 acres of land and a 40-volume library with maps.

1758 - Age 15
Began to write and compile Literary Commonplace Book

1758 to 1760 - Age 15 to 16
Tutored by and lived with Rev. James Maury near Gordonsville, Virginia, where I studied history, science, and the classics

March 1760 - Age 16
Entered William and Mary College, where I met for the first time: William Small, George Wythe, Francis Fauquier, Patrick Henry, and Cherokee chief Ostenaco

April 25, 1762 - Age 19
I graduated from William and Mary College. After a lot of dancing my first year there, the second year I was studying 15 hours a day.

Late April 1762 - Age 19
Entered law office of George Wythe

October 6, 1763 - Age 20
Rebecca Burwell rejected my marriage proposal

March 19, 1764 - Age 20
Experienced my first migraine headache (among many in my lifetime) after finding out Rebecca Burwell was marrying Jack Ambler

October 1765 - Age 22
Jane, my favorite sister, died

May 26, 1766 - Age 23
When in Philadelphia, I had an inoculation against smallpox

1767 - Age 24
Admitted to the bar

May 2, 1768 - Age 25
Met George Washington for the first time at a play in Williamsburg

May 1768 - Age 25
Started to build on Monticello, a lifelong project. Its final form was largely inspired by the Hotel de Salm (built in 1782), admired when I was in Paris, France, as Minister to France (1784-1789).

March 1769 - Age 25
Elected to Virginia House of Burgesses

February 1, 1770 - Age 26
Fire at Shadwell, destroyed my first library and personal papers, including letters. Within three years, I would have more books than before this fire.

April 1770 - Age 27
As a lawyer, I argued in the court case, Howell v. Netherland, where I defended an enslaved man, Samuel Howell. I was unsuccessful.

June 10, 1770 - Age 27
Appointed Colonel and county lieutenant of the Albemarle County Militia

January 1, 1772 - Age 28
Marriage to Martha Wayles Skelton, a source of unchequered happiness

September 10, 1772 - Age 29
Took on enslaved client, George Manly, in George Manly v. Richard Callaway. I brought action to recover his freedom, and was successful. He later worked for me for wages at Monticello.

September 27, 1772 - Age 29
Birth of my first daughter, Martha “Patsy”

May 22, 1773 - Age 30
Buried my best friend Dabney Carr at Monticello

May 27, 1773 - Age 30
Father-in-law John Wayles died, inheriting 11,000 acres, 135 slaves, and debts

October 1773 - Age 30
Appointed surveyor of Albemarle County

April 3, 1774 - Age 30
Birth of my second daughter, Jane Randolph

August 1774 - Age 31
Gave up practicing law after handling 949 cases

March 1775 - Age 31
Elected Deputy to Continental Congress

June 21, 1775 - Age 32
Attended Continental Congress, and met Benjamin Franklin and John Adams for the first time

September 1775 - Age 32
Second daughter Jane Randolph dies

September 26, 1775 - Age 32
As Colonel, I was named the commander of the Albemarle County Militia, although I did not engage in combat

March 31, 1776 - Age 32
Death of my Mother

June 11, 1776 - Age 33
Appointed on Committee to prepare Declaration of Independence

June 28, 1776 - Age 33
Draft of Declaration reported

September 26, 1776 - Age 33
Elected Commissioner to France

October 1776 - Age 33
Attended Virginia Assembly, met James Madison for the first time

October 1776 - Age 33
Abolished entail and primogeniture in Virginia

November 6, 1776 - Age 33
Appointed on Committee to revise Virginia Laws

May 28, 1777 - Age 34
Birth of son

June 14, 1777 - Age 34
Death of son

June 16, 1777 - Age 34
Introduced bill to prevent importation of slaves

August 1, 1778 - Age 35
Birth of my third daughter, Mary. She was “Polly” when young, “Maria” as an adult

June 1, 1779 - Age 36
Elected Governor of Virginia, met James Monroe for the first time later in the year

June 18, 1779 - Age 36
Introduced Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom (Finally passed later in 1786. It does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg.)

January 1780 - Age 36
Joined the American Philosophical Society

June 1, 1780 - Age 37
Reelected Governor of Virginia

November 3, 1780 - Age 37
My fourth daughter, Lucy Elizabeth, born

1781 - Age 37
Wrote Notes on the State of Virginia (published 1785 in French, 1787 in English), where I advocated for gradual emancipation of slaves

April 1781 - Age 37
My fourth daughter, Lucy Elizabeth, dies

April 29, 1781 - Age 38
Met Marquis de Lafayette for the first time

May 9, 1781 - Age 38
As governor, I granted John Tayloe’s slave named “Billy” a gubernatorial reprieve until the end of June from the conviction of treason on which he was sentenced to hang. Fortunately, the legislature pardoned him on June 14, 1781. Slaves in similar circumstances in other states were not as fortunate.

June 1, 1781 - Age 38
Resigned Governorship

June 14, 1781 - Age 38
Appointed Peace Commissioner by Continental Congress

June 30, 1781 - Age 38
Appointment declined

November 5, 1781 - Age 38
Attended Virginia Assembly

November 30, 1781 - Age 38
Elected Delegate to Congress

December 12, 1781 - Age 38
Voted Thanks of Assembly

May 8, 1782 - Age 39
My fifth daughter, Lucy Elizabeth, born

September 6, 1782 - Age 39
Death of Mrs. Jefferson, an extremely sad time in my life

November 12, 1782 - Age 39
Appointed Peace Commissioner to Europe

April 1, 1783 - Age 40
Appointment withdrawn

June 6, 1783 - Age 40
Elected Delegate to Congress

1784 - Age 40
Proposed to ban slavery in all territories and new states (called “Jeffersonian Proviso”, which influenced the wording of the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery)

1784 - Age 40
Wrote the Notes on the Establishment of a Money Unit and of a Coinage for US

March 12, 1784 - Age 40
Elected Chairman of Congress

May 7, 1784 - Age 41
Elected Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of Versailles

August 6, 1784 - Age 41
Arrived in Paris. Later meet up with the Adams family, including young John Quincy Adams (17 years old) for the first time.

October 13, 1784 - Age 41
Death of my youngest daughter, Lucy Elizabeth

March 10, 1785 - Age 41
Elected French Minister by Congress. Benjamin Franklin held this position previously.

May 17, 1785 - Age 42
Audience at French Court

January 16, 1786 - Age 42
Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom passed (first introduced in 1779)

March 22, 1786 - Age 42
Presented to George III at Windsor, but he was rude to us

April 4, 1786 - Age 42
Visited Stratford-upon-Avon to visit Shakespeare’s house with John Adams

August 1786 - Age 43
Met and fell in love with Maria Cosway. Good times.

October 1786 - Age 43
Made an LL.D. by Yale

October 1, 1787 - Age 44
Sends moose to Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon

June 1788 - Age 45
Made an LL.D. by Harvard

May 19, 1789 - Age 46
First correspondence with Thomas Paine

June 3, 1789 - Age 46
Prepared Charter for France

September 25, 1789 - Age 46
Nominated to be Secretary of State

September 26, 1789 - Age 46
Confirmed by Senate

October 1789 - Age 46
Left France

December 24, 1789 - Age 46
Arrived home at Monticello from France

February 14, 1790 - Age 46
Accepted Secretaryship of State

February 28, 1790 - Age 46
Marriage of my daughter Martha to Thomas Mann Randolph

June 20, 1790 - Age 47
Met Alexander Hamilton for the first time

August 1790 - Age 47
Published Plan for Establishing Uniformity in the Coinage, Weights, and Measures of the US

August 19, 1791 - Age 48
Received letter from black mathematician, Benjamin Banneker, who changed my mind regarding blacks in my Notes on the State of Virginia

May 23, 1792 - Age 49
Wrote to Washington of intention to resign from Cabinet

1793 - Age 49
Met Albert Gallatin, my future Secretary of the Treasury, for the first time

January 1793 - Age 49
Reconsidered resignation

January 9,1793 - Age 49
Balloonist Jean Pierre Blanchard flies over Philadelphia, and I was there to witness it

February 1793 - Age 49
Offered French Mission

December 31, 1793 - Age 50
Resigned Secretaryship of State

September 1794 - Age 51
Offered Foreign Mission

November 4, 1796 - Age 53
Elected Vice-President because I placed second with 68 votes versus 71 votes going to Adams, but the actual count was 69 votes to 70 votes

January 1797 - Age 53
Elected President of American Philosophical Society

March 4, 1797 - Age 53
Took oath of office as Vice-President

March 10, 1797 - Age 53
Gave lecture on the Megalonyx, an extinct giant sloth, initially thought to be a lion-like predator

October 13, 1797 - Age 54
Marriage of my daughter Mary Jefferson to John Wayles Eppes

October 1798 - Age 55
Wrote Essay on Study of Anglo-Saxon

October 1798 - Age 55
Drafted Kentucky Resolutions

November 1798 - Age 55
Revised Madison's Virginia Resolutions

1800 - Age 56
Met William Henry Harrison, future President, for the first time

January 1800 - Age 56
Jupiter, my personal servant since childhood, died

January 18, 1800 - Age 56
Planned University of Virginia

February 1800 - Age 56
Prepared Parliamentary Manual

April 24, 1800 - Age 57
Library of Congress created

May 1800 - Age 57
Republican caucus nominates me and Mr. Burr

February 11, 1801 - Age 57
Congress begins to ballot for President

February 17, 1801 - Age 57
Elected President

February 27, 1801 - Age 57
My Manual of Parliamentary Practice published (still used in Senate and House of Representatives to this day)

February 28, 1801 - Age 57
Farewell Address to Senate

March 4, 1801 - Age 57
Inauguration as President, “We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists,” outlining the plan for our republic for the next 24 years

March 18, 1801 - Age 57
Invited Thomas Paine safe passage to America. He landed on October 30, 1802.

August 1801 - Age 58
Had Dr. Waterhouse administer smallpox vaccine to my family members, slaves, and neighbors. About 200 people were protected. I first received my smallpox inoculation much earlier, in May 1766 at 23 years old.

February 6, 1802 - Age 58
Served macaroni and cheese for the first time at a White House dinner

March 16, 1802 - Age 58
Founded the United States Military Academy at West Point

April 6, 1802 - Age 58
Repealed the unpopular distilled spirits excise tax (“whiskey tax”) and eliminated all internal Federal taxes. Almost all tax revenues during my administration came from import duties and land sales taxes.

1803 - Age 59
Met Andrew Jackson, future President, for the first time

May 2, 1803 - Age 60
Louisiana Treaty signed at Paris

October 20, 1803 - Age 60
Louisiana Treaty ratified

January 18, 1804 - Age 60
Message on taking possession of Louisiana

March 1804 - Age 60
Acquired the polygraph so I can copy my letters

April 17, 1804 - Age 61
Mary Jefferson (Eppes), my third daughter, died. She was only 25 years old.

May 31, 1804 - Age 61
After the death of Maria, I received the most loving letter from my daughter Patsy, where she wrote, “It is truly the happiness of my life to think that I can dedicate the remainder of it to promote yours. it is a subject however upon which I ought never to write for no pen on earth can do justice to the feelings of my heart."

July 11, 1804 - Age 61
Duel between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr took place

December 5, 1804 - Age 61
Reelected President of United States

March 2, 1807 - Age 63
Signed bill to end slave trade

September 1, 1807 - Age 64
Proposed to seize the Floridas

December 22, 1807 - Age 64
Embargo Act signed, backed by the Congress. The alternative was war, which I did not want.

1808 - Age 64
First met Zachary Taylor, future President

March 1, 1809 - Age 65
Repeal of Embargo signed. The experiment failed, but I tried my best to prevent war.

March 4, 1809 - Age 65
Retired as President, a prisoner released from my chains of power

March 17, 1809 - Age 65
Arrived at Monticello from Washington

October 21, 1809 - Age 66
Met for the first time 19-year-old John Tyler, future President, when visiting his father Virginia Governor John Tyler, Sr., who was my classmate at William and Mary

January 1, 1812 - Age 68
John Adam writes to me, rekindling our friendship

November 1814 - Age 71
Resigned Presidency of American Philosophical Society, after over 17 years as President and 34 years as a Member

January 1815 - Age 71
Congress passes bill to buy my library (6,487 volumes)

January 25, 1819 - Age 75
University of Virginia was founded. My school would be a model for other universities in the future.

1820 - Age 77
Completed The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth (“Jefferson Bible”)

January 6, 1821 - Age 77
Wrote my Autobiography, for posterity

October 24, 1823 - Age 80
Assisted James Monroe on the Monroe Doctrine

May 1824 - Age 81
Met Martin Van Buren, future President, for the first time

November 4, 1824 - Age 81
Marquis de Lafayette visits Monticello, after having last seen him in 1789

December 1824 - Age 81
Daniel Webster visited me at Monticello. This is when I called Gen. Andrew Jackson “a dangerous man” if he becomes President (he eventually was) because of his lack of emotional control and lack of respect for laws and the Constitution.

October 3, 1825 - Age 82
My emotional address to students, faculty, trustees after riot at the University of Virginia

December 1825 - Age 82
Drafted Virginia Protest

February 17, 1826 - Age 82
Wrote to Mr. Madison to take care of me when dead, and be assured that I shall leave with you my last affections.

March 16, 1826 - Age 82
Executed will

June 24, 1826 - Age 83
Declined invitation to 50th Fourth of July celebration in Washington due to health

July 4, 1826, 12:50 PM - Age 83
Dead. The attendants found me wearing a gold locket on a chain around my neck containing a faded blue ribbon around a lock of my wife Martha's light hair from over 40 years before. Same day as John Adams’s death. To Mr. Adams I say: when addressed to the God of Jesus, and our God, I join you cordially, and await his time and will with more readiness than reluctance. May we meet there again, in Congress, with our ancient colleagues, and receive with them the seal of approbation, "well done, good and faithful servants."

February 17, 2025 - Age 281
Due to Monticello’s calumnies, I moved to my new home at ThomasJefferson.com, and prepare for the upcoming Semiquincentennial. February 17 was also the date when I was elected President in 1801. I did not miss our nation’s 50th birthday, so I will not miss its 250th birthday.

May 13, 2025 - Age 282
Changed my daily journal entries to match the exact dates of when I initially wrote them.

“All eyes are opened, or opening, to the rights of man. The general spread of the light of science has already laid open to every view the palpable truth, that the mass of mankind has not been born with saddles on their backs, nor a favored few booted and spurred, ready to ride them legitimately, by the grace of God. These are grounds of hope for others. For ourselves, let the annual return of this day forever refresh our recollections of these rights, and an undiminished devotion to them.”