The Life and Selected Writings of Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson , Adrienne Koch (editor) , William Peden (editor)

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), 3rd president of the United States, left a vast literary legacy in the form of journal entries, notes, addresses & seventy thousand letters. Jefferson remains one of the country's most extraordinary figures; as well as president he was a brilliant statesman, architect, scientist, naturalist, educator & public servant. At a dinner for Nobel Prize recipients, John F. Kennedy said that his guests were "the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered at the White House, with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone. This volume of his works, edited by Adrienne Koch & William Peden, represents many of Jefferson's most important contributions to American political thought. It includes the Autobiography, which contains the original & revised version of the Declaration of Independence; the Anas, or Notes (1791-1809); Biographical Sketches; selections from Notes on Virginia, the Travel Journals, & Essay on Anglo-Saxon; a portion of his public papers, including his 1st & 2nd inaugural addresses & over two hundred letters. The editors have provided a general introduction & introductory notes that precede the major works.