Thomas Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743 on his family's plantation in Shadwell, Virginia. The third of six children his parents raised him modestly and his father schooled him to be a gentleman. The young Jefferson suffered an emotional shock, when at the age of 14 his father Peter Jefferson died. The young Jefferson was the first male of the family and so he received the bulk of his father's assets, leaving him with a sizable fortune.
He received his early education along with his sisters and cousins near the family farm, and later was sent away to be tutored by a professional teacher in foreign languages and more advanced sciences and math. Beginning in 1760 Jefferson began attending the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. While there he began studying such enlightenment thinkers as Sir Francis Bacon, Sir Isaac Newton, Jean Jacques Rousseau, and John Locke. His admiration for these men became even greater as he began to make his way in life.
Once he finished his college education Jefferson decided he wanted to pursue a career in law. To achieve this he began studying for the bar exam under a practicing lawyer George Wythe. After completeing his studies he began establishing a law practice out of his home in Shadwell.
Then in 1768 he was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses where from the very start he made his presence known. If first proposal to the body was to establish procedures for the emancipation of slaves, an idea quickly shot down. He remained a member of the house until its dissolution in 1774 by the colony's British Governor Dunmore.
The same year plans were made to hold a continental congress of all the colonies. In preparation
for this meeting Jefferson wrote an essay called A Summary of the Rights of British Americans, in which he voiced his thoughts on the rights of men. Due to illness he was unable to attend this meeting, but its widespread publishing lead to his nomination to the second... [continues]
He received his early education along with his sisters and cousins near the family farm, and later was sent away to be tutored by a professional teacher in foreign languages and more advanced sciences and math. Beginning in 1760 Jefferson began attending the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. While there he began studying such enlightenment thinkers as Sir Francis Bacon, Sir Isaac Newton, Jean Jacques Rousseau, and John Locke. His admiration for these men became even greater as he began to make his way in life.
Once he finished his college education Jefferson decided he wanted to pursue a career in law. To achieve this he began studying for the bar exam under a practicing lawyer George Wythe. After completeing his studies he began establishing a law practice out of his home in Shadwell.
Then in 1768 he was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses where from the very start he made his presence known. If first proposal to the body was to establish procedures for the emancipation of slaves, an idea quickly shot down. He remained a member of the house until its dissolution in 1774 by the colony's British Governor Dunmore.
The same year plans were made to hold a continental congress of all the colonies. In preparation
for this meeting Jefferson wrote an essay called A Summary of the Rights of British Americans, in which he voiced his thoughts on the rights of men. Due to illness he was unable to attend this meeting, but its widespread publishing lead to his nomination to the second... [continues]
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