Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 - July 4, 1826) was a founding father of the United States. He authored the Declaration of Independence and served as the third President of the United States from 1801-1809, as well as the first Secretary of State and the second Vice President. During his presidency, he made the Louisiana Purchase from France, which very nearly doubled the country's territory.

Jefferson achieved distinction as, among other things, a horticulturist, statesman, architect, archaeologist, inventor, and founder of the University of Virginia. He also served as governor of Virginia from 1779-1781 and ambassador to France from 1783-1784.

Thomas Jefferson in Southern Victory
Following the War of Secession, Thomas Jefferson's status as a Virginian (and more substantively, his insistence on a weak central government) tarnished his memory considerably in the United States. His Northern contemporaries, such as John Adams and Alexander Hamilton were viewed much more favorably.

Nevertheless, Jefferson joined George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt as the most memorable presidents in US history, though of the four only Roosevelt was viewed in an entirely positive light.