thomas jefferson online biography

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Jefferson's Blood

For years there existed a rumor that Thomas Jefferson had a long-standing relationship and several children by Sally Hemings, a woman who was his slave. Now, DNA tests all but prove the rumor true. An early hero of the anti-slavery movement, Jefferson wrote brilliantly of the corrupting influence of slavery on blacks and whites alike. Yet it is now apparent that he lived a dual life, sharing his house with his white daughter and grandchildren while his unacknowledged mistress and his children by her worked in the same house as slaves. In a personal essay, FRONTLINE correspondent Shelby Steele examines Jefferson's life and follows the descendants of Jefferson and Hemings as they undergo DNA testing, search out their family history, and try to sort out their place along America's blurred color line.

published may 2000

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Recover Lost and Stolen Documents

Thomas Jefferson

3rd president of the united states, 1801-1809.

The following items relating to Thomas Jefferson are missing from the National Archives

Letter from Thomas Jefferson to Albert Gallatin dated July 12, 1806

Letter from Thomas Jefferson to Albert Gallatin dated July 17, 1806

Letter from Thomas Jefferson to Albert Gallatin dated March 2, 1808

The moral universe of Thomas Jefferson

A look at the new biography by thomas kidd.

Casey McCall

June 22, 2022

Thomas Jefferson: A Biography of Spirit and Flesh

Thomas S. Kidd

Yale University Press

In her brilliant book, Lost in Thought: The Hidden Pleasures of an Intellectual Life , Zena Hitz writes that true education involves “a reaching out past the surface, a questioning of appearances, a longing for more than is evident.” Her contention contrasts with modern conceptions of education that see the goal as absorbing correct opinions and dictating to students the predetermined correct interpretation.

Thomas S. Kidd’s new biography of Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson: A Biography of Spirit and Flesh , models the kind of intellectual exploration Hitz celebrates. There is perhaps no more controversial figure from American history than Thomas Jefferson, our nation’s third president and the author of America’s most cherished document, the Declaration of Independence. Kidd succeeds in revealing the complexity of this enigmatic man by, on the one hand, refusing to bypass his moral deficiencies, while, on the other hand, elucidating his intellectual genius and unmatched contributions to America’s political formation. As a result, Kidd’s biography takes readers, perhaps more successfully than any previous attempt, into the inner life of the “sage of Monticello.”

Just like Disney and the COVID-19 pandemic, the telling of history has been unable to evade the forces of politicization. On one side, we are told that figures like Jefferson are anathema and that their contributions should be deleted from the pages of history books because of their obvious moral failures. On the other side, such figures are placed on pedestals and celebrated as heroes with their mistakes fully whitewashed. Kidd wisely avoids both extremes in his biography, which serves as a “narrative of Jefferson’s moral universe more than a traditional biography” (3).

Through Kidd’s close examination of Jefferson’s inner life and corresponding actions, a picture emerges of a man with many contradictions. How could the same man write one of the most compelling arguments for universal human freedom in history while holding slaves in bondage for the entirety of his life? How could the same man champion frugality as a republican virtue, yet pursue luxury to the degree that his entire adult life was lived under a dark cloud of suffocating debt? How could one so skeptical of dogmatic religious assertions call himself a Christian and remain a lifelong reader of the Bible?

The central dilemma in Jefferson’s moral universe

Of course, perhaps the greatest enigma—and one that Kidd treats in depth—involves Jefferson’s sexual relationship with his slave (and half-sister of his deceased wife), Sally Hemings. Kidd’s discussion of Hemings occurs in several places throughout the book, and he calls the affair “arguably the central dilemma in Jefferson’s moral universe” (89). Hemings was inherited by Jefferson upon the death of his father-in-law and was herself the progeny of a sexual affair between master and slave.

Jefferson’s affair with Hemings began in France after Sally served as travel companion for Jefferson’s young daughter Polly in 1787. By this time, Jefferson had been a bachelor for nearly five years after the tragic death of his wife from complications following childbirth. Jefferson apparently promised her he would not remarry. While Jefferson would never speak openly about the affair, it became the source of public speculation and scorn during Jefferson’s many political battles. 

Kidd deftly examines Jefferson’s letters from Paris around the time of the affair to find clues but ultimately concludes that we have no direct evidence concerning the precise nature of their relationship. Jefferson envisioned himself in the style of the biblical patriarchs, ruling over his estate and slaves at Monticello, and followed that lifestyle even in his sexual habits. Sally Hemings would bear six of Jefferson’s children. Her son would later write that she was hesitant to return from Paris to the life of a slave in America but relented when Jefferson promised certain privileges and vowed to free her children when they reached the age of 21.

Sally herself was not mentioned in Jefferson’s will, even though he did emancipate two of her children presumably in keeping with his promise to her. Jefferson likely left her name out of his will to avoid political scandal. Nevertheless, she was informally freed at Jefferson’s death and formally emancipated five years later by Jefferson’s daughter.

Despite expressing early opposition to slavery, Jefferson never expended political capital to end the wicked institution and maintained negative views of Black people as a race throughout his life. In old age, Jefferson wrote against emancipation on the grounds that free Blacks’ “amalgamation with other colour produces a degradation to which no lover of his country, no lover of excellence in the human character can innocently consent” (195). As Kidd points out, it’s hard to imagine how any man could reconcile such sentiments with his own contradictory actions. But again, we see in Jefferson a man of many enigmatic contradictions. 

Jefferson and the question of religion

What are we to make of Jefferson’s own religious faith ? Kidd concludes that Jefferson was a Unitarian. He denied the Trinity, cut out most of the miraculous stories for his infamous cut-and-paste Bible, and despised esoteric conversations on matters of theological doctrine. But he maintained a lifelong belief in a Creator God who providentially ruled the universe and held the teachings of Jesus in high esteem. 

Jefferson’s writings are filled with references to God’s guiding providence, and Jefferson even appealed to God in prayer. He based the Declaration of Independence on the Christian doctrine of creation and adorned the walls of Monticello with French paintings of biblical scenes. He sent his daughter Patsy to Catholic school in France while they were living there during his diplomatic mission and preferred the spiritual temperament of America to the apathetic luxury of Europe. But these words and actions must not lead to Jefferson’s christening; to him, Jesus was a man—the most excellent one—but just a man all the same. 

Further, Jefferson was reared in a context informed by the Bible, and Jefferson himself knew the Bible better than many Christians today. Kidd masterfully recognizes scriptural allusions in Jefferson’s writings and points out how Jefferson and the other founders envisioned themselves repeating biblical and classical scenes from history on the new American stage (29).

But Jefferson’s most intense religious passions were reserved for his political convictions. Kidd deftly points out many instances of Jefferson applying biblical imagery to political happenings. The Age of Revolutions was, for Jefferson, a new creation. His Federalist political opponents were deemed “heretics” because of their longings for monarchical ways. The victory of republican liberty in America was a sure sign of God’s providential hand guiding history toward its climactic end. In Jefferson, we see already the seeds of that tendency to conflate America’s political actions positively with God’s actions in the world. 

In conclusion, Kidd’s biography leaves no stone unturned in examining the inner life of America’s third president. Jefferson’s legacy has loomed large since America’s inception, and Kidd’s deep dive into Jefferson’s moral and religious universe will aid readers who want to understand this brilliant man of confusing contradictions. 

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Fun Facts About Thomas Jefferson

Born on April 13, 1743, Thomas Jefferson was a leading figure in our country’s quest for independence. A native of Virginia, Jefferson also played important roles in the early history of our fledgling nation as its Minister to France, Secretary of State and third President.

A true Renaissance man, Jefferson is known for his many talents in writing, economics, religion and philosophy as well as horticulture and mathematics. He spoke 6 languages including English, French, Greek, Italian, Latin and Spanish. He also had a love for the written word, having written over 19,000 letters in his lifetime.

A Multi-Talented Thinker

Jefferson was an inventor, lawyer and educator. He graduated from the University of William and Mary at the age of 18, two years after he enrolled in 1762. He was the designer of Monticello, the Virginia State Capital and The Rotunda at the University of Virginia among other notable buildings. His influential style has become known as “Jeffersonian Architecture”. Monticello and The Rotunda are both World Heritage Sites.

He Went on a Hunger Strike (and Encouraged Others to Join Him)

As a member of Virginia’s House of Burgesses, Jefferson called for a day of prayer and fasting in support of the citizens of Boston when the British government closed the harbor in response to the Boston Tea Party . As he had hoped, this action allied Virginia with the Patriots’ cause in Massachusetts and fueled opposition to the Intolerable Acts .

He Was the Major Pen of the Declaration of Independence

At the age of 33, Thomas Jefferso n was one of the youngest delegates to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. He became acquainted with John Adams, a leader of the Congress, and through this budding friendship, Jefferson was appointed to the Committee of Five that was tasked with drafting the Declaration of Independence. Over the next 17 days, he would create the first draft. Jefferson is considered by many to be the primary author of the document because the committee left intact more than 75 percent of his original draft. Many believed that John Adams would be the primary author of this important document, but he had persuaded the Committee to choose Jefferson instead. The preamble is regarded as one of the most enduring statements of human rights and the phrase “all men are created equal” is considered one of the most well-known expressions in the English language. Jefferson was an eloquent writer, but did not fancy himself a public speaker, and chose to show his support of the Patriot cause through written correspondence.

Writing to Justify the Actions of Discontent Bostonians

In 1774, Jefferson penned a pamphlet entitled “A Summary View of the Rights of British Americans”. In the pamphlet, he outlined a set of grievances that the colonies had against King George III . Jefferson also wrote that “an exasperated people” who felt oppression, when given the chance, would act out in defiance. The perfect example of this defiance was the “destruction of the tea”, or what would become known as the Boston Tea Party. Like his colleagues George Washington and  Benjamin Franklin ,  Jefferson believed the act was destruction of private property subject to local laws, but his pamphlet outlined why it was justified as an act of political protest.

His Proudest Moments

Jefferson’s grave is inscribed with an epitaph of the three things of which he was the proudest. They are his authorship of the Declaration of Independence, the Statute of Virginia that guaranteed religious freedom and his founding of the University of Virginia in 1819. There is no mention of him being President on his gravestone.

A Family Man

Jefferson married Martha Wayles Skelton, a widow, in 1772. He fathered six children, though only two daughters survived to adulthood. Throughout his life, Jefferson had twelve grandchildren; several of them having lived with him at Monticello. Jefferson loved to play with his grandchildren, teaching them how to play chess and a game called Goose. (Goose was one of the first board games in the United States, rather similar to our modern version of Chutes and Ladders.) After his wife died, historians believe he began a relationship with Sally Hemings, one of his slaves. After his death, Jefferson’s daughter allowed Hemings to live as a free woman in Charlottesville until she died in 1835. DNA tests in 2000 show a familial gene common between their descendants.

A Controversial Start to His Presidency

It was only after the chaotic election of 1800 between Jefferson and  John Adams   that Congress decided to ratify the 12th Amendment to the Constitution. The debacle occurred when Jefferson received the same number of electoral votes as his running mate Aaron Burr and Burr refused to concede the election. The House of Representatives decided the election after 36 ballots on February 17, 1801. They chose Jefferson as President and Burr as Vice President.

Landmark Acquisition

Early in his presidency, Jefferson was able to achieve one of the greatest acquisitions of his political career with the Louisiana Purchase, which more than doubled the size of the United States. The 529,000,000-acre tract of land is one of the most fertile on Earth and eliminated the nation’s reliance on other countries for its food. Jefferson did not believe the Constitution gave him the power to make the $15 million land acquisition, but agreed with Congress to make the purchase. He appointed Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to lead an expedition known as the Corps of Discovery to explore the newly acquired territory. Sacagawea, who both men acknowledged as providing an indispensable service, accompanied them on the journey.

Lifelong Connection

After meeting at the Second Continental Congress in 1775, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams became lifelong friends. Their relationship deepened through years of letter-writing, including letters written between Abigail Adams and Jefferson. They spent years in France together as Jefferson and Adams served as trade ministers in Europe. The two remained close friends despite their political differences; that is, until Jefferson beat Adams in the Election of 1801 to become President of the United States. They resumed their close friendship after about 10 years of separation. Both Thomas Jefferson and John Adams died on July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Legend holds that Adams’ last words were  “Thomas Jefferson survives.” Unbeknownst to Adams, Jefferson had died a few hours earlier. They were the last surviving members of the original group of Patriots that became known as America’s Founding Fathers. Jefferson and Adams also share the distinction of being the only Declaration of Independence signatories who would later serve as President.

He Lives On

In addition to the Jefferson Memorial near the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C., he is immortalized on the $2 bill, the nickel and as one of the figures of Mount Rushmore. The memorial in the nation’s capital, featuring a 19-foot tall statue of Jefferson, was dedicated in 1943 on the 200th anniversary of his birth.

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Thomas Jefferson's First State of the Union Address

Delivered in Washington, D.C. on 8 December 1801.

Fellow-Citizens of the Senate and House of Representatives :

It is a circumstance of sincere gratification to me that on meeting the great council of our nation I am able to announce to them on grounds of reasonable certainty that the wars and troubles which have for so many years afflicted our sister nations have at length come to an end, and that the communications of peace and commerce are once more opening among them. Whilst we devoutly return thanks to the beneficent Being who has been pleased to breathe into them the spirit of conciliation and forgiveness, we are bound with peculiar gratitude to be thankful to Him that our own peace has been preserved through so perilous a season, and ourselves permitted quietly to cultivate the earth and to practice and improve those arts which tend to increase our comforts. The assurances, indeed, of friendly disposition received from all the powers with whom we have principal relations had inspired a confidence that our peace with them would not have been disturbed. But a cessation of irregularities which had affected the commerce of neutral nations and of the irritations and injuries produced by them can not but add to this confidence, and strengthens at the same time the hope that wrongs committed on unoffending friends under a pressure of circumstances will now be reviewed with candor, and will be considered as founding just claims of retribution for the past and new assurance for the future.

Among our Indian neighbors also a spirit of peace and friendship generally prevails, and I am happy to inform yon that the continued efforts to introduce among them the implements and the practice of husbandry and of the household arts have not been without success; that they are becoming more and more sensible of the superiority of this dependence for clothing and subsistence over the precarious resources of hunting and fishing, and already we are able to announce that instead of that constant diminution of their numbers produced by their wars and their wants, some of them begin to experience an increase of population.

To this state of general peace with which we have been blessed, one only exception exists. Tripoli, the least considerable of the Barbary States, had come forward with demands unfounded either in right or in compact, and had permitted itself to denounce war on our failure to comply before a given day. The style of the demand admitted but one answer. I sent a small squadron of frigates into the Mediterranean, with assurances to that power of our sincere desire to remain in peace, but with orders to protect our commerce against the threatened attack. The measure was seasonable and salutary. The Bey had already declared war. His cruisers were out. Two had arrived at Gibraltar.

Our commerce in the Mediterranean was blockaded and that of the Atlantic in peril. The arrival of our squadron dispelled the danger. One of the Tripolitan cruisers having fallen in with and engaged the small schooner Enterprise , commanded by Lieutenant Sterret, which had gone as a tender to our larger vessels, was captured, after a heavy slaughter of her men, without the loss of a single one on our part. The bravery exhibited by our citizens on that element will, I trust, be a testimony to the world that it is not the want of that virtue which makes us seek their peace, but a conscientious desire to direct the energies of our nation to the multiplication of the human race, and not to its destruction. Unauthorized by the Constitution, without the sanction of Congress, to go beyond the line of defense, the vessel, being disabled from committing further hostilities, was liberated with its crew. The Legislature will doubtless consider whether, by authorizing measures of offense also, they will place our force on an equal footing with that of its adversaries. I communicate all material information on this subject, that in the exercise of this important function confided by the Constitution to the Legislature exclusively their judgment may form itself on a knowledge and consideration of every circumstance of weight.

I wish I could say that our situation with all the other Barbary States was entirely satisfactory. Discovering that some delays had taken place in the performance of certain articles stipulated by us, I thought it my duty, by immediate measures for fulfilling them, to vindicate to ourselves the right of considering the effect of departure from stipulation on their side. From the papers which will be laid before you you will be enabled to judge whether our treaties are regarded by them as fixing at all the measure of their demands or as guarding from the exercise of force our vessels within their power, and to consider how far it will be safe and expedient to leave our affairs with them in their present posture.

I lay before you the result of the census lately taken of our inhabitants, to a conformity with which we are now to reduce the ensuing ratio of representation and taxation. You will perceive that the increase of numbers during the last ten years, proceeding in geometrical ratio, promises a duplication in little more than twenty-two years. We contemplate this rapid growth and the prospect it holds up to us, not with a view to the injuries it may enable us to do others in some future day, but to the settlement of the extensive country still remaining vacant within our limits to the multiplication of men susceptible of happiness, educated in the love of order, habituated to self-government, and valuing its blessings above all price.

Other circumstances, combined with the increase of numbers, have produced an augmentation of revenue arising from consumption in a ratio far beyond that of population alone; and though the changes in foreign relations now taking place so desirably for the whole world may for a season affect this branch of revenue, yet weighing all probabilities of expense as well as of income, there is reasonable ground of confidence that we may now safely dispense with all the internal taxes, comprehending excise, stamps, auctions, licenses, carriages, and refined sugars, to which the postage on newspapers may be added to facilitate the progress of information, and that the remaining sources of revenue will be sufficient to provide for the support of Government, to pay the interest of the public debts, and to discharge the principals within shorter periods than the laws or the general expectation had contemplated. War, indeed, and untoward events may change this prospect of things and call for expenses which the imposts could not meet; but sound principles will not justify our taxing the industry of our fellow-citizens to accumulate treasure for wars to happen we know not when, and which might not, perhaps, happen but from the temptations offered by that treasure.

These views, however, of reducing our burthens are formed on the expectation that a sensible and at the same time a salutary reduction may take place in our habitual expenditures. For this purpose those of the civil Government, the Army, and Navy will need revisal.

When we consider that this Government is charged with the external, and mutual relations only of these States; that the States themselves have principal care of our persons, our property, and our reputation, constituting the great field of human concerns, we may well doubt whether our organization is not too complicated, too expensive; whether offices and officers have not been multiplied unnecessarily and sometimes injuriously to the service they were meant to promote. I will cause to be laid before you an essay toward a statement of those who, under public employment of various kinds, draw money from the Treasury or from our citizens. Time has not permitted a perfect enumeration, the ramifications of office being too multiplied and remote to be completely traced in a first trial. Among those who are dependent on Executive discretion I have begun the reduction of what was deemed unnecessary. The expenses of diplomatic agency have been considerably diminished. The inspectors of internal revenue who were found to obstruct the accountability of the institution have been discontinued. Several agencies created by Executive authority, on salaries fixed by that also, have been suppressed, and should suggest the expediency of regulating that power by law, so as to subject its exercises to legislative inspection and sanction. Other reformations of the same kind will be pursued with that caution which is requisite in removing useless things, not to injure what is retained. But the great mass of public offices is established by law, and therefore by law alone can be abolished. Should the Legislature think it expedient to pass this roll in review and try all its parts by the test of public utility, they may be assured of every aid and light which Executive information can yield. Considering the general tendency to multiply offices and dependencies and to increase expense to the ultimate term of burthen which the citizen can bear, it behooves us to avail ourselves of every occasion which presents itself for taking off the surcharge, that it never may be seen here that after leaving to labor the smallest portion of its earnings on which it can subsist, Government shall itself consume the whole residue of what it was instituted to guard.

In our care, too, of the public contributions intrusted to our direction it would be prudent to multiply barriers against their dissipation by appropriating specific sums to every specific purpose susceptible of definition; by disallowing all applications of money varying from the appropriation in object or transcending it in amount; by reducing the undefined field of contingencies and thereby circumscribing discretionary powers over money, and by bringing back to a single department all accountabilities for money, where the examinations may be prompt, efficacious, and uniform.

An account of the receipts and expenditures of the last year, as prepared by the Secretary of the Treasury, will, as usual, be laid before you. The success which has attended the late sales of the public lands shews that with attention they may be made an important source of receipt. Among the payments those made in discharge of the principal and interest of the national debt will shew that the public faith has been exactly maintained. To these will be added an estimate of appropriations necessary for the ensuing year. This last will, of course, be affected by such modifications of the system of expense as you shall think proper to adopt.

A statement has been formed by the Secretary of War, on mature consideration, of all the posts and stations where garrisons will be expedient and of the number of men requisite for each garrison. The whole amount is considerably short of the present military establishment. For the surplus no particular use can be pointed out. For defense against invasion their number is as nothing, nor is it conceived needful or safe that a standing army should be kept up in time of peace for that purpose. Uncertain as we must ever be of the particular point in our circumference where an enemy may choose to invade us, the only force which can be ready at every point and competent to oppose them is the body of neighboring citizens as formed into a militia. On these, collected from the parts most convenient in numbers proportioned to the invading force, it is best to rely not only to meet the first attack, but if it threatens to be permanent to maintain the defense until regulars may be engaged to relieve them. These considerations render it important that we should at every session continue to amend the defects which from time to time shew themselves in the laws for regulating the militia until they are sufficiently perfect. Nor should we now or at any time separate until we can say we have done everything for the militia which we could do were an enemy at our door.

The provision of military stores on hand will be laid before you, that you may judge of the additions still requisite.

With respect to the extent to which our naval preparations should be carried some difference of opinion may be expected to appear, but just attention to the circumstances of every part of the Union will doubtless reconcile all. A small force will probably continue to be wanted for actual service in the Mediterranean. Whatever annual sum beyond that you may think proper to appropriate to naval preparations would perhaps be better employed in providing those articles which may be kept without waste or consumption, and be in readiness when any exigence calls them into use. Progress has been made, as will appear by papers now communicated, in providing materials for 74-gun ships as directed by law.

How far the authority given by the Legislature for procuring and establishing sites for naval purposes has been perfectly understood and pursued in the execution admits of some doubt. A statement of the expenses already incurred on that subject is now laid before you. I have in certain cases suspended or slackened these expenditures, that the Legislature might determine whether so many yards are necessary as have been contemplated. The works at this place are among those permitted to go on, and five of the seven frigates directed to be laid up have been brought and laid up here, where, besides the safety of their position, they are under the eye of the Executive Administration, as well as of its agents, and where yourselves also will be guided by your own view in the legislative provisions respecting them which may from time to time be necessary. They are preserved in such condition, as well the vessels as whatever belongs to them, as to be at all times ready for sea on a short warning. Two others are yet to be laid up so soon as they shall have received the repairs requisite to put them also into sound condition. As a superintending officer will be necessary at each yard, his duties and emoluments, hitherto fixed by the Executive, will be a more proper subject for legislation. A communication will also be made of our progress in the execution of the law respecting the vessels directed to be sold.

The fortifications of our harbors, more or less advanced, present considerations of great difficulty. While some of them are on a scale sufficiently proportioned to the advantages of their position, to the efficacy of their protection, and the importance of the points within it, others are so extensive, will cost so much in their first erection, so much in their maintenance, and require such a force to garrison them as to make it questionable what is best now to be done. A statement of those commenced or projected, of the expenses already incurred, and estimates of their future cost, as far as can be foreseen, shall be laid before you, that you may be enabled to judge whether any alteration is necessary in the laws respecting this subject.

Agriculture, manufactures, commerce, and navigation, the four pillars of our prosperity, are then most thriving when left most free to individual enterprise. Protection from casual embarrassments, however, may sometimes be seasonably interposed. If in the course of your observations or inquiries they should appear to need any aid within the limits of our constitutional powers, your sense of their importance is a sufficient assurance they will occupy your attention. We can not, indeed, but all feel an anxious solicitude for the difficulties under which our carrying trade will soon be placed. How far it can be relieved, otherwise than by time, is a subject of important consideration.

The judiciary system of the United States, and especially that portion of it recently erected, will of course present itself to the contemplation of Congress, and, that they may be able to judge of the proportion which the institution bears to the business it has to perform, I have caused to be procured from the several States and now lay before Congress an exact statement of all the causes decided since the first establishment of the courts, and of those which were depending when additional courts and judges were brought in to their aid.

And while on the judiciary organization it will be worthy your consideration whether the protection of the inestimable institution of juries has been extended to all the cases involving the security of our persons and property. Their impartial selection also being essential to their value, we ought further to consider whether that is sufficiently secured in those States where they are named by a marshal depending on Executive will or designated by the court or by officers dependent on them.

I can not omit recommending a revisal of the laws on the subject of naturalization. Considering the ordinary chances of human life, a denial of citizenship under a residence of fourteen years is a denial to a great proportion of those who ask it, and controls a policy pursued from their first settlement by many of these States, and still believed of consequence to their prosperity; and shall we refuse to the unhappy fugitives from distress that hospitality which the savages of the wilderness extended to our fathers arriving in this land? Shall oppressed humanity find no asylum on this globe? The Constitution indeed has wisely provided that for admission to certain offices of important trust a residence shall be required sufficient to develop character and design. But might not the general character and capabilities of a citizen be safely communicated to everyone manifesting a bona fide purpose of embarking his life and fortunes permanently with us, with restrictions, perhaps, to guard against the fraudulent usurpation of our flag, an abuse which brings so much embarrassment and loss on the genuine citizen and so much danger to the nation of being involved in war that no endeavor should be spared to detect and suppress it?

These, fellow-citizens, are the matters respecting the state of the nation which I have thought of importance to be submitted to your consideration at this time. Some others of less moment or not yet ready for communication will be the subject of separate messages. I am happy in this opportunity of committing the arduous affairs of our Government to the collected wisdom of the Union. Nothing shall be wanting on my part to inform as far as in my power the legislative judgment, nor to carry that judgment into faithful execution. The prudence and temperance of your discussions will promote within your own walls that conciliation which so much befriends rational conclusion, and by its example will encourage among our constituents that progress of opinion which is tending to unite them in object and in will. That all should be satisfied with any one order of things is not to be expected; but I indulge the pleasing persuasion that the great body of our citizens will cordially concur in honest and disinterested efforts which have for their object to preserve the General and State Governments in their constitutional form and equilibrium; to maintain peace abroad, and order and obedience to the laws at home; to establish principles and practices of administration favorable to the security of liberty and property, and to reduce expenses to what is necessary for the useful purposes of Government.

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it is a work of the United States federal government ( see 17 U.S.C. 105 ).

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Thomas A. Jefferson

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Thomas Jefferson Biography | Louisiana Purchase PowerPoint 3rd 4th 5th Grade

Description

Embark on an exciting journey through American history with our "Thomas Jefferson Biography" PowerPoint presentation, tailored for 3rd to 5th-grade students. This engaging educational resource delves into the life and accomplishments of Thomas Jefferson, one of America's founding fathers, while focusing on his pivotal role in the Louisiana Purchase.

Students will learn about Thomas Jefferson's early life, his contributions to American independence as the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and his presidency, during which he oversaw the Louisiana Purchase. Through captivating visuals, simplified language, and interactive content, students will gain a deeper understanding of Jefferson's significance in shaping the nation's history.

The PowerPoint presentation also explores the impact of the Louisiana Purchase on the expansion of the United States, providing historical context and fostering critical thinking skills. Whether used in the classroom or for independent study, this presentation offers a comprehensive overview of Thomas Jefferson's biography and the Louisiana Purchase, making it an invaluable resource for educators and students alike during their exploration of American history.

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Diana A. Corao, MD

Researcher locations, about this researcher.

Dr. Corao-Uribe is a Pediatric Pathologist at Nemours Children's Health-DE and a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pathology, Anatomy and Cell Biology at the Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. Dr. Corao-Uribe completed her Anatomic and Clinical Pathology residency at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital and her Pediatric Pathology fellowship at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Dr. Corao-Uribe is the founder of the Nemours Biobank and current director of the Nemours Biobank and Molecular Analysis program (BMAP).

• Pediatric Pathology - The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, 2006
• General Practice - Hospital de Clinicas Caracas, 1999
• Pathology - Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, 2005

Medical/Dental School

• MD - Universidad Central de Venezuela, 1997

Areas of Research

Publications.

Clinical challenges and images in GI.; Gastroenterology; (2008).

AMR After Transplant in a Child with Complex CHD and Ruptured LV Aneurysm; The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation; (2022).

UNEXPECTED SUDDEN CARDIAC ARREST DUE TO VENTRICULAR FIBRILLATION IN A 7-YEAR-OLD BOY WITH DUCHENNE MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY WITH ADVANCED MYOCARDIAL FIBROSIS; Journal of the American College of Cardiology; (2022).

Tu2009 IMMUNOHISTOCHEMISTRY EXPRESSION OF CYTOKINES FOR DIAGNOSING EOSINOPHILIC ESOPHAGITIS, PROTON PUMP INHIBITOR-RESPONSIVE ESOPHAGEAL EOSINOPHILIA, AND GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX DISEASE IN PEDIATRIC PATIENTS; Gastroenterology; (2020).

Dyskeratosis Congenita and Oral Cavity Squamous Cell Carcinoma: Report of a Case and Literature Review; Journal of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology; (2019).

Immunohistochemical Staining for Uroguanylin, a Satiety Hormone, is Decreased in Intestinal Tissue Specimens From Female Adolescents With Obesity; Pediatric and Developmental Pathology; (2018).

Association between CYP2C19 extensive metabolizer phenotype and childhood anti-reflux surgery following failed proton pump inhibitor medication treatment; European Journal of Pediatrics; (2018).

Association Between CYP2C19*17 Alleles and pH Probe Testing Outcomes in Children With Symptomatic Gastroesophageal Reflux; Journal of Clinical Pharmacology; (2018).

Schwannoma of the nasal septum: Rare presentation and literature review; International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology Extra; (2017).

Generation of pediatric leukemia xenograft models in NSG-B2m mice: Comparison with NOD/SCID mice; Frontiers in Oncology; (2016).

Immunohistochemical expression of glypican-3 in pediatric tumors: An analysis of 414 cases; Pediatric and Developmental Pathology; (2013).

Case report: Langerhans cell histiocytosis presenting as massive cervical adenopathy and retropharyngeal thickening: Importance of chest radiography and coordinated airway and anesthetic management; Pediatric Emergency Care; (2010).

ALK expression in rhabdomyosarcomas: Correlation with histologic subtype and fusion status; Pediatric and Developmental Pathology; (2009).

Inflammatory pseudotumor of the inner ear: Are computed tomography changes pathognomonic?; Laryngoscope; (2009).

Clinical Challenges and Images in GI; Gastroenterology; (2008).

Takayasu arteritis presenting as cerebral aneurysms in an 18 month old: A case report; Pediatric Rheumatology; (2008).

Exclusion of breast cancer as an integral tumor of hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer; Cancer Research; (2002).

The significance of cytokeratin positive single cells in axillary sentinel nodes; Breast Cancer Research and Treatment; (2001).