Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson was third president of the United States of America. He was born in Virginia. Thomas Jefferson was a planter and a lawyer from 1767, and also a slaveholder. He was member of the House of Burgesses from 1769 to 1775. In 1774 he wrote the influential Summary View of the Rights of British America, stating that the British Parliament had more authority to legislate for the colonies. During the Second Continental Congress he was appointed …showed first 75 words of 340 total…

…showed last 75 words of 340 total…He retired to his plantation, Monticello, where he pursued his many interests in science, philosophy, and architecture. He served as president of the Amer. Philosophical Society 1797-1815, and in 1819 founded and designed the Univ. of Virginia. After a long estrangement, he and Adams became reconciled in 1813 and exchanged views on national issues that illuminated much of the founders philosophies. They both died on July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversay of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.