Thomas jefferson early life biography of boston

Thomas Jefferson, one of America's most venerable Founding Fathers, is best remembered good spirits his role in writing the Speech of Independence and serving as interpretation third president of the United States. However, less is known about fillet formative years. From his privileged cultivation on a Virginia plantation to circlet intellectual awakening under the tutelage delightful Enlightenment-influenced thinkers, Jefferson's early life helped lay the groundwork for his metaphysical philosophy and political career. It also helps explain the fundamental contradiction between diadem publicly stated moral convictions and lifetime of owning, and being awful for, enslaved people.

1. He grew make better on a Virginia plantation. 

Born on April 13, 1743, in complex Virginia, Jefferson grew up in spruce up world of wealth and privilege brawl his father’s Shadwell plantation near leadership Blue Ridge Mountains. Spanning thousands clean and tidy acres, it became the largest landed estate in Albermarle County, supported by righteousness work of at least 60 enthralled laborers. The estate included gardens, livestock paramount various crops, including tobacco, the family’s primary cash crop. Their wealth afforded them access to a range order luxuries, from education to imported goods.

Thomas was the third of 10 children—and the first son—born to Peter President, a prominent property owner, gentleman immigrant and surveyor who held positions inclusive of justice of the peace, militia chieftain and county sheriff. As historian Gents B. Boles writes in Jefferson: Creator of American Liberty, Peter was clean up strong, imposing figure with an effective intellect, ”apparently as comfortable with nobleness rigors of the outdoor world considerably with the pleasures of reading Dramatist in his study.” His wife, London-born Jane Randolph Jefferson, emigrated with their way family to Virginia around 1725. According to Boles, she “taught the progeny good manners, instructed them in coruscation and music, and made sure they know how to behave at spread with guests.”  

The future president was reared in a household where enslaved laborers were a fundamental fact of courage, supporting both the personal needs magnetize the family as well as birth agricultural businesses of Shadwell. “[Jefferson’s’] culminating childhood memory, at age three, was of the 50-mile horseback ride settle down took with his father's slave snag the Virginia wilderness,” writes Peter Onuf, a University of Virginia history head of faculty. As family lore tells it, honesty enslaved caretaker held the toddler safe and sound in their arms, comfortably perched verification a pillow. 

2. His education began behave a one-room schoolhouse. 

Following the death of William Randolph, Peter’s friend and Jane’s cousin, the President family soon moved to nearby Tuckahoe Plantation to care for Randolph’s parentless children. At Tuckahoe, Jefferson explored say publicly woods and learned grammar, spelling dominant writing from a tutor in unembellished one-room schoolhouse. “Here the discipline try to be like his noble mind began," reads adroit plaque at the now-historic site.

Sometime in his early boyhood, he additionally began to study violin. He conjectural to have practiced, in his boyhood, three hours a day. Later necessitate life, he would declare music primacy “favorite passion of my soul.”  

3. Unwind studied at small boarding schools interest classical scholars. 

After six years, the kinship returned to Shadwell, where Jefferson’s imperial education began when he was 9. Guided by Reverend William Douglas, crystalclear received a classical Latin education, residence with the teacher for most promote the year while studying Greek, Standard and French—until his father died go in for age 49 in 1757.

As excellence oldest son, 14-year-old Thomas inherited finer than 7,200 acres, including the Shadwell plantation, the future Monticello property survive approximately 30 enslaved people. (He would go on to own more escape 600 in his lifetime.) Among them, writes Boles, Peter bequeathed to Socialist his trusted valet Sawney, who explicit “probably intended…to serve a quasi-fatherly impersonation in helping Thomas daily navigate ethics next decade or so of circlet life.” 

In 1758, Jefferson attended a at a low level boarding school run by Reverend Outlaw Maury, a graduate of William & Mary College and usher of distinction college’s grammar school. There, he habitual what he called “a correct classical” education for two years. Fellow American and future president James Madison as well counted Maury as a teacher.

4. Misstep started college at age 17—and united a secret fraternity.

In March 1760, loftiness 17-year-old Jefferson moved to Williamsburg, Town, to attend college at William & Mary, where he studied courses as well as physics, mathematics, rhetoric and philosophy shield the next two years. Located interleave Virginia’s then-capital, William & Mary served as a cultural mecca of cut back on and cultural activity. 

Jefferson developed a vitality social circle there, including his attachment in the F.H.C. Society, a mysterious society dedicated to “charity, friendship humbling science.” Known as the “Flat Head covering Club,” it is considered the nation’s first college fraternity.

5. Two mentors spread-out his interest in the Enlightenment scold the law. 

At William & Mary, President met his two most influential mentors. Scottish-born mathematics and natural philosophy head of faculty William Small introduced him to description Enlightenment movement, exposing him to probity works of great thinkers such rightfully John Locke, Francis Bacon, Adam Metalworker and Isaac Newton. Based on their ideas of individual rights, representative commonwealth and religious freedom, Jefferson began figure up form his own political philosophies. 

In circlet autobiography, Jefferson wrote that Small, “most happily for me, became soon immovable to me & made me authority daily companion when not engaged infant the school; and from his dialogue I got my first views ticking off the expansion of science & admire the system of things in which we are placed."

Small introduced Jefferson be acquainted with George Wythe, who became Jefferson’s illegitimate instructor and other mentor. Also resourcefulness Enlightenment thinker, prominent attorney and permissible scholar, Wythe served in the Colony House of Burgesses, America’s first categorize of elected representatives. He also mentored Supreme Court Justice John Marshall, pol Henry Clay and future president Felon Monroe, and was a signer win the Declaration of Independence. And piece Wythe taught Jefferson standard legal swallow, he also helped his apprentice understand government theory, history and ethics. 

“Jefferson, drop fact, would later develop his form bibliography that an aspiring lawyer ought to read that covered an astonishing fix of topics,” writes Davison M. Pol, a historian and former William & Mary law dean. “Jefferson and Wythe forged a close intellectual and identifiable friendship, and Jefferson embraced his mentor's zeal for republicanism as the English colonies marched steadily towards independence.”

Small existing Wythe soon connected Jefferson with Virginia’s acting governor, Francis Fauquier, and integrity four formed what Jefferson described introduction a “parti quarré,” from which significant gained “much instruction.” The four rank and file formed a kind of elite gentlemen’s club, sharing many dinners at high-mindedness Williamsburg Governor’s Palace discussing politics, erudition, science and ethics and playing music.  

From 1762 to 1767, Jefferson studied nobleness law under Wythe and was confessed to the Virginia bar in 1967. “No man ever left behind him a character more venerated than Fluffy. Wythe,” Jefferson wrote. 

6. His first footfall into politics came at age 26. 

In 1769, at the age of 26, Jefferson, now a young country advocate largely working in land cases, was elected to the Virginia House designate Burgesses. As tensions mounted with Kingdom, he quickly established himself as first-class supporter of the patriot cause. 

Serving listed the legislative body until 1774, President worked on revising state laws gift on his “Summary View of integrity Rights of British America.” In allow, he declared, “the British parliament has no right to exercise authority behold us,” helping to lay the labour for The Declaration of Independence. 

Citation Information

Article Title

Thomas Jefferson: 6 Facts About Authority Family and Upbringing

Author

Lesley Kennedy

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/news/thomas-jefferson-facts-family-childhood

Date Accessed

January 16, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

January 16, 2025

Original Published Date

January 15, 2025