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Thomas Jefferson Facts & Worksheets

Thomas Jefferson was one of America’s Founding Fathers, the primary author of the Declaration of Independence, and third president of the US.

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The third president of the United States and the author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, had a key role in the country’s formation. He was also a proponent of democracy. Jefferson served as governor of Virginia, a member of the Continental Congress, and the Virginia assembly during the American Revolutionary War. Later, he served as John Adams‘ vice president, United States envoy to France and secretary of state. 

See the fact file below for more information on Thomas Jefferson or alternatively, you can download our 20-page Thomas Jefferson worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

Early Life

  • At the Shadwell farm, Virginia, Jefferson was born on April 13, 1743, to one of the most illustrious families among Virginia’s aristocratic planter families. 
  • His mother, Jane Randolph Jefferson, was from the famous Randolph line and claimed royal ancestry from Scotland and England. His father, Peter Jefferson, created the first precise map of the Province of Virginia. The latter was also an accomplished surveyor and cartographer, in addition to being a wealthy farmer. Young Jefferson was one of ten children, the third born.
  • He began his formal education at nine when he enrolled in Reverend William Douglas’ local private school, where he studied Latin and Greek. When he was 14 years old, he began the additional study of ancient languages, literature, and mathematics with Reverend James Maury.
  • Jefferson traveled away from his home in 1760 to study at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, the capital of Virginia. After three years, he decided to continue legal studies under Wythe, one of the best lawyers in the American colonies. Wythe helped Jefferson through a challenging five-year course of study. He was licensed to the Virginia bar in 1767 and was one of America’s most learned lawyers.
  • On January 1, 1772, Thomas married Martha Wayles Skelton, one of the wealthiest women in Virginia. Only two of their six children made it to adulthood.

Political Career

  • Early on, Jefferson actively promoted the United States’ desire to break free from the British Empire. He joined a radical faction led by George Washington and Patrick Henry after being elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1768. When Jefferson’s first big political essay, A Summary View of the Rights of British America, was published in 1774, it made him one of the most ardent defenders of the American cause.
  • Congress tasked Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman and Robert Livingston with leading a five-person committee that would write the Declaration of Independence in June 1776. The committee then decided that Jefferson should write the declaration’s first draft, choosing him because of what Adams called his “happy talent for composition and singular felicity of expression.” Over the following 17 days, Jefferson penned one of the most stunning and inspiring testaments to liberty and equality in human history.
  • Jefferson returned to Virginia after finishing the Declaration of Independence, where he represented from 1776 to 1779 the state in the Virginia House of Delegates. He worked to change Virginia law to match the ideas described in the Declaration of Independence.
  • Jefferson left the Continental Congress in the fall of 1776 and was re-elected to the Virginia House of Delegates. One of his most notable professional achievements was the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, which he wrote in the late 1770s and which Virginia legislators ultimately adopted in 1786. It served as a precursor to the United States First Amendment Constitution, which upholds people’s freedom of religion.
  • Slavery throughout Jefferson’s life was a contentious subject. Throughout his life, Jefferson held over 600 enslaved people in addition to inheriting 175 enslaved people from his father and father-in-law. Only a few of them were set free by him in his will; the majority were sold after his passing.
  • Jefferson also stated that “an exasperated people” who felt oppressed would rebel if given the opportunity. The “destruction of the tea,” or what became known as the Boston Tea Party, was the epitome of this disobedience.
  • In addition to serving as Virginia’s governor from 1779 to 1781, Jefferson also sat in Congress again from 1783 to 1784. He had a significant role in establishing federal land policy while serving as a delegate to the Confederation of Congress from 1783 to 1784. 
  • He succeeded Franklin as Minister to France the following year (1785–1789), and then he was appointed Secretary of State. 
  • Jefferson, a founder of the Democratic-Republican Party, was elected vice president in 1796 and held the presidency for two terms (1801-1809).

Presidency & Later Life

  • Jefferson finished second in the popular vote in the 1796 presidential contest against John Adams, making him vice president under the rules at the time. In the 1800 presidential election, which saw fierce competition between the Federalists and Democratic-Republicans, Jefferson again faced Adams, and Jefferson defeated Adams.
  • The French crisis had ended by the time Jefferson took office. He decreased spending on the Army and Navy, the budget, and the whiskey tax that was so despised in the West, all while reducing the national debt by a third. 
  • Additionally, he dispatched a naval unit to combat Barbary pirates interfering with American trade in the Mediterranean. Despite the fact that the Constitution did not include any provisions for the purchase of new land, Jefferson overcame his concerns about constitutionality when he had the chance to buy the Louisiana Territory from Napoleon in 1803.
  • Keeping the US out of the Napoleonic conflicts became a major concern for Jefferson during his second term, even though England and France interfered with the American merchantmen’s right to remain neutral. Jefferson’s proposed answer was an embargo on American shipping, which had poor results and was unpopular.
  • When Jefferson was chosen as the third president of the United States in 1801, the nation practically terminated at the Mississippi River, and France controlled most of the western region. One of these was the Port of New Orleans in the state of Louisiana today. In 1803, he completed the Louisiana Purchase, one of the biggest land deals in history.
  • After his second term, Jefferson retired to Monticello, his house in Charlottesville, Virginia. He created and established the University of Virginia in Charlottesville during his retirement.
  • Jefferson passed away at Monticello on July 4, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence’s adoption. He was 83 years old. John Adams, a friend of Thomas Jefferson and a fellow signer of the Declaration of Independence, died on the same day. At Monticello, Jefferson was laid to rest.
  • Thomas Jefferson was the country’s first secretary of state, its second vice president, and the statesman in command of the Louisiana Purchase as its third president.
  • Jefferson is still revered in America. Both Mount Rushmore and the United States nickel feature his likeness. The Thomas Jefferson Memorial, near the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was inaugurated on April 13, 1943, the 200th anniversary of Jefferson’s birth.
  • The invention of french fries in the United States is attributed to Thomas Jefferson. A Massachusetts farmer once sent Jefferson a 1,300-pound block of cheese as a gift because of how much he loved cheese. 
  • He was an architect who was obsessed with books. He once held a competition to design the White House while serving as secretary of state. According to historians, he secretly competed and lost.

Thomas Jefferson Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Thomas Jefferson across 20 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Thomas Jefferson worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), who was one of America’s Founding Fathers. He is credited as the primary author of the Declaration of Independence and became the third president of the United States.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Thomas Jefferson Facts
  • Long Tom
  • Louisiana Purchase
  • Mount Rushmore
  • Timehop
  • Accomplishment Report
  • The Declaration of Independence
  • Jefferson Quotes
  • Presidents to Know
  • Jeffersonian Architecture
  • Learning Box

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Thomas Jefferson most famous for?

The third president of the United States and the author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, had a key role in the country’s formation. He was also a proponent of democracy.

What three things did Thomas Jefferson do?

Thomas Jefferson was the country’s first secretary of state, its second vice president, and the statesman in command of the Louisiana Purchase as its third president.

What are five interesting facts about Thomas Jefferson?

The invention of french fries in the United States is attributed to Thomas Jefferson. A Massachusetts farmer once sent Jefferson a 1,300-pound block of cheese as a gift because of how much he loved cheese. He was an architect who was obsessed with books. He once held a competition to design the White House while serving as secretary of state. According to historians, he secretly competed and lost.

How many enslaved people did Jefferson own?

Slavery throughout Jefferson’s life was a contentious subject. Throughout his life, Jefferson held over 600 enslaved people in addition to inheriting 175 enslaved people from his father and father-in-law. Only a few of them were set free by him in his will; the majority were sold after his passing.

What did Thomas Jefferson say about the Boston Tea Party?

Jefferson also stated that “an exasperated people” who felt oppressed would rebel if given the opportunity. The “destruction of the tea,” or what became known as the Boston Tea Party, was the epitome of this disobedience.

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These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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