Thomas Jefferson

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Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, may be less famous than George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, but most people remember at least one fact about him: he wrote the Declaration of Independence. That important document explained why the thirteen American colonies should become free from English rule.

Although Jefferson lived more than 200 years ago, there is much that we can learn from him today. Many of his ideas are especially interesting to modern youth. Jefferson's courage and idealism were based on knowledge. He probably knew more than any other man of his age. In the breadth of his interests, he was as amazing as Leonardo da Vinci. When he was in his thirties, someone wrote that he could explain the movement of the sun and stars, draw plans for a house, train a horse, and play the violin. Out of his tremendous energy came inventions, books, new ideas, and new starts in every field of human endeavor. He was an expert in agriculture, archeology, and medicine. He influenced architecture throughout America, and he was constantly producing devices for making tasks of ordinary life easier to perform. In 1796 Jefferson became president of,the American Philosophical Society, which helped to create the American philosophy, with its emphasis on freedom and progress.

Jefferson knew different fields of knowledge. Today it is impossible for one person to learn what needs to be known about all subjects. Yet it is good for us to remember Jefferson's emphasis upon knowledge as a basis for action. His accomplishments as President of the United States ranked with those of Washington and Lincoln. By the Louisiana Purchase he obtained vast lands from France, thus doubling the size of the United States. His administration spent money so carefully that he was able to abolish all internal taxes. He helped to end the custom of supporting churches through public taxation, and that made possible true religious freedom.

@dmitrijv