Profile of the Day: Thomas Jefferson

On this day in 1743, Thomas Jefferson was born at the Shadwell plantation in colonial Virginia. One of America’s Founding Fathers, Jefferson was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and served as the third President of the United States.

Image: Thomas Jefferson / Wikimedia Commons

Jefferson was born to a prominent Virginia family. His father, Peter Jefferson, was a planter and surveyor. In 1751, he created the Fry-Jefferson Map in collaboration with Joshua Fry, which accurately depicted the Allegheny Mountains for the first time. His mother, Jane Randolph was the daughter of Isham Randolph, a ship’s captain and merchant.

At the beginning of the American Revolution, Jefferson was selected as a delegate to the Second Continental Congress. A gifted writer, he was asked to draft the Declaration of Independence, which declared the 13 American colonies’s freedom and independence from the British Empire. The document was signed and adopted on July 4, 1776.

After the war, Jefferson became the new nation’s first Secretary of State. He then served as the second Vice President of the United States during John Adam’s presidency. In the following presidential election, Jefferson ran against Adams in one of the most intense and contentious elections in U.S. history. Jefferson won and was sworn in as the third President of the United States in 1801.

Jefferson died at the age of 83 on July 4, 1826 on the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. In a remarkable coincidence, John Adams also died on the same day in Massachusetts.

Explore Thomas Jefferson’s family tree on Geni and share how you’re related to the third President of the United States.

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