Thomas Jefferson
The Country’s Greatest President
1. Background and Education
• Father: Peter Jefferson
• Like most sons of land owners, he studied
land surveying
• Graduated from William and Mary
University in Williamsburg, VA
• Tall, red-headed, quiet
2. Political Beliefs
• The government which governs least,
governs best
• Strongly favored States Rights as opposed
to a strong national government
• Believed in a strict construction, or strict
interpretation, of the U.S.Constitution
• Wanted to end all taxes of any kind paid
by U.S. citizens
3. Accomplishments Prior to
becoming President
• Wrote the first draft of the Declaration of
Independence
• Wrote the Statute of Virginia for Religious
Freedom
• Created the University of Virginia
• Served as an ambassador to Europe from
the United States
4. The Election of 1800
• Democratic-Republican Candidates:
Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr
4. The Election of 1800
• Federalist Candidates:
John Adams and Charles C. Pinckney
4. The Election of 1800
• Adams would have won re-election, perhaps
easily, had Alexander Hamilton not split the
Federalist Party
4. The Election of 1800
• Instead, the Democratic-Republicans won
the election
• Both winning candidates, Jefferson and
Burr, received 73 electoral votes
• Election was settled the House of
Representatives after 35 votes
• Hamilton swings the election to Jefferson
and angers Burr
4. The Election of 1800
• The messed up election pointed out the
need for a Constitutional amendment
regarding the Presidential election
process.
• The 12th Amendment modified the
Constitution so that the President and the
Vice-President are elected using separate
ballots.
4. The Election of 1800
• John Adams, the 1st President to live in
Washington, D.C., leaves before
Jefferson’s inauguration
• Jefferson’s Inauguration takes place on
March 4, 1801 in Washington, D.C.—the
1st done there
• The unfinished White House and Capitol
were just about the only buildings in town
4. The Election of 1800
• Federalists fear what Jefferson will say—
will he start a new revolution?
• Jefferson, surprisingly, calls for unity—he
states “We are all Republicans, we are all
Federalists.”
• Jefferson DOES NOT propose to change
or destroy the structure of the federal
government.
5. Accomplishments made during
early part of Jefferson’s 1st term
• Appointed Albert Gallatin as Secretary of
the Treasury
• Cut military spending
• Reduced the army from 4000 to 2500 men
• Reduced the navy from 25 to 7 ships
• Reduced national debt from $83 million to
$45 million
• Cut ALL internal taxes
5. Accomplishments made during
early part of Jefferson’s 1st term
• Only source of government income: tariffs
and sales of Western land
• Let the Alien and Sedition Acts expire
6. Issues with the Courts
• Marbury vs. Madison: Does William
Marbury, one of John Adams’ last minute
“midnight judges,” receive his commission
to be judge or not?
• Jefferson had James Madison refuse to
give the commission to Marbury
• Issue went before the Supreme Court
• Ruling became a precedent—an example
for future court cases
6. Issues with the Courts
• With Marbury vs. Madison, the Supreme
Court established the concept of “Judicial
Review” of laws
• Judicial Review means that the Court may
decide if a law is constitutional or not.
• If a law is judged to be unconstitutional, or
goes against the U.S. Constitution, then
the law ceases to be a law.
7. The Louisiana Purchase
• By 1800, the western boundary of the U.S.
was the Mississippi.
• The Louisiana Territory, that is all lands
west of the Mississippi River which
drained into the river, was originally
controlled by France.
• As part of losing the French-Indian War,
France ceded, or gave, the Louisiana
Territory to Spain
7. The Louisiana Purchase
• The Louisiana Territory continued to be
controlled by Spain until 1800.
• A war fought in Europe between Spain and
France ended with a victory for Napoleon
and the French.
• Secretly, the Louisiana Territory was
transferred from Spain to France as a
result of that European war.
7. The Louisiana Purchase
• Jefferson learned that Louisiana Territory
was now controlled by France
• French ownership of the Louisiana
Territory posed several problems for the
U.S.—mainly the French were popular
with the Indians and the French presence
blocked any sort of westward movement
by U.S. citizens into the Louisiana Territory
7. The Louisiana Purchase
• The other major problem involved the city
of New Orleans. New Orleans controlled
all river trade. River trade came from not
only the Louisiana Territory, but also from
the United States. If France decided to
close the city of New Orleans to U.S.
trade, then the U.S. would suffer great
economic hardship.
7. The Louisiana Purchase
• Jefferson realized the problems involved
with France owning the Louisiana Territory.
• Jefferson sends Robert Livingston and
James Monroe to buy New Orleans and
West Florida for $2 million from France.
• Livingston and Monroe may spend UP to
$10 million.
7. The Louisiana Purchase
• Despite being more money and more land
than expected, both Livingston and
Monroe quickly agree to the deal.
• The deal poses a personal problem for
Jefferson—is this small government? Still,
Jefferson agrees to the deal.
• Congress debates the issue—lots of
money involved—still, they agree to it.
7. The Louisiana Purchase
• Napoleon experiences slave rebellion
trouble in the French colony of Saint
Domingue located in the Caribbean.
• Napoleon also needs money for another
war with Great Britain. He decides to sell
ALL of the Louisiana Territory. His price:
$15 million.
7. The Louisiana Purchase
8. Lewis and Clark
• For a variety of reasons, Jefferson
decides to send a military expedition
to explore the Louisiana Territory.
• Jefferson’s personal secretary,
Captain Meriwether Lewis, is placed
in charge of the expedition. The men
on this expediton are called the
Corps of Discovery.
• Lewis was to explore the territory,
map it, find a water route to the
Pacific, make friends with the Native
Americans, and drive out all French
and/or British traders if possible.
Meriwether Lewis
8. Lewis and Clark
• Lewis selects Lt. William Clark as a
co-commander. The army refuses
to recognize co-commanders so
Clark remains a lieutenant.
• The men of the Corps of Discovery
are told that Clark is a Captain and
a co-commander of the expedition.
• Lewis and Clark, along with the
other members of the Corps of
Discovery, depart St. Louis on May
14, 1804 and travels upriver.
• They stop for the winter of 1805 in
the Mandan villages and create Fort
Mandan.
William Clark
8. Lewis and Clark
• At Fort Mandan, Lewis and Clark hire the French
trader Toussaint Charbonneau as an interpreter
and guide. The true prize was Charbonneau’s
2nd wife, Sacagawea and Sacagawea’s newborn
infant son.
• Charbonneau proves useless. Sacagawea,
while not a guide, does prove helpful: no war
party would travel with a woman and young
child. Sacagawea’s presence eases tensions
between Corps of Discovery and the Indians.
8. Lewis and Clark
• The Corps of Discovery reach the Pacific Ocean
on November 7, 1805. Clark writes: “Ocean in
view! O! The joy!”
• The first American vote involving an AfricanAmerican (York), a female (Sacagawea), and
men of several different nationalities takes place
to decide where to stay for the winter.
• The Corps of Discovery create Fort Clatsop and
spend the 1806 winter on the Pacific coast.
They experience problems with the natives.
8. Lewis and Clark
• The journey becomes a race down the
Missouri River. Lewis and Clark arrive in
St. Louis on September 23, 1806.
• They traveled almost 8,000 miles along
the journey. They mapped the entire
distance using “line of sight”
approximations. They were off by only 4
miles.
9. Zebulon Pike
• Zebulon Pike also explores
the western territory.
• Pike reaches the Colorado
area and finds the mountain
which now bears his name:
Pike’s Peak.
• Pike then moves south into
the Spanish territories which
eventually become Texas
and Mexico.
10. Jefferson’s Reelection
• By 1804, Jefferson was unquestioned
success as a President. He was easily
reelected.
• Burr decided to run for governor of New
York. Hamilton criticized Burr; Burr
challenged Hamilton to a duel; Burr shoots
and kills Hamilton. Burr’s term as Vice
President was not quite over at the time of
the duel.
11. Jefferson’s 2nd Term
• Pirates from the Barbary Coast States in
the Mediterranean Sea demand tribute
from U.S. trade ships.
• Jefferson refuses to pay the tribute
• The Barbary pirates from Tripoli declare
war on the U.S.
• Jefferson does not want to fight; instead,
he orders a blockade of the port of Tripoli.
11. Jefferson’s 2nd Term
• The blockade eventually works. The U.S.
forces the pirates to sign a peace treaty
which ends all tribute payments.
• The military action is popular in the U.S.,
but shows the need for a U.S. navy.
• Jefferson puts aside his own personal
problems with the government paying for a
navy, and the country develops a stronger
defense.
11. Jefferson’s 2nd Term
• Great Britain continues its policy of
impressment.
• Impressment is when the British kidnap
U.S. sailors and force them to work as
British sailors.
• The impressment issue becomes a big
deal with the Chesapeake-Leopard Affair
in June 1807.
11. Jefferson’s 2nd Term
• Jefferson deals with the impressment
issue by asking for an embargo, or block
of trade, against both Great Britain and
France.
• Congress passes the Embargo Act of
1807. The main victim of the law was
neither Great Britain nor France—it was
the U.S. merchants who could no longer
trade with either country.
11. Jefferson’s 2nd Term
• The Embargo Act proves EXTREMELY
unpopular and Jefferson’s popularity suffers as a
result.
• Eventually, Congress repealed the Embargo Act
and replaced it with the Non-Intercourse Act.
• The Non-Intercourse Act was no more
successful than the Embargo Act. American
merchants and shipowners suffered greatly.
• Jefferson leaves office with a loss of respect.
12. Jefferson after the Presidency
• James Madison, the author
of the Constitution, a
Democratic-Republican,
and Jefferson’s handpicked successor becomes
the next President.
• Madison leads the country
during the War of 1812.
12. Jefferson after the Presidency
• Jefferson renews his friendship with his
long-term friend and political rival, John
Adams.
• Jefferson and Adams exchange tons of
letters with each other.
• Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both
die on the same day: July 4, 1826. It was
the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of
Independence which both men help write.