Daddy's Christmas Angel

Saturday, April 23, 2011

"T" Is For Thomas Jefferson, A Hero in Virginia and America

Jefferson statue, Jefferson Hotel - MMSikes
In considering my post for the letter "T", I thought of a lot of possibilities. As the Passenger to Paradise, I've gotten quite involved with "T" words researching the Maya Ruins at Tulum and Tikal for my WIP set in the jungles of Central America. But I kept coming back to the man who meant so much to both Virginia and American history.

Thomas Jefferson attended one of my alma maters, the College of William and Mary. He was the founder of the University of Virginia, and he designed and built historic Monticello.  He drafted the Declaration of Independence, served as the nation's third president--the list goes on and on. One of the most interesting facts in Jefferson's life was the date of his death, July 4, 1826. Jefferson and John Adams, second president of the United States, both died on that date. Both were deeply involved in creation of the Declaration of Independence and were signers. They died on the nation's 50th birthday. How ironic!

13 comments:

Elizabeth Mueller said...

It's always nice to be reminded of the great people of the past. Thank you for the post!

♥.•*¨Elizabeth¨*•.♥

anthony stemke said...

I didn't know about the simultaneous demise of the two founders, very interesting.

The story about the jewels and the spouse getting murdered and the house in s. carolina sounds like a thriller.

Love your post.

Notes Along the Way with Mary Montague Sikes said...

Thank you, Elizabeth and Anthony, for commenting on my blog.

Anthony, it seems very strange to me that Jefferson and Adams who were good friends both died that day! Thanks!

junebug said...

I am a big fan of Monticello. Such an amazing home and shows his genius mind in design and invention.

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Both died on that date? That is ironic!

Unknown said...

Thanks for the great post. Fellow A to Z'er finally stopping by. There are a lot of us, aren't there?

Golden Eagle said...

Interesting post--I hadn't known that about Adams and Jefferson!

Notes Along the Way with Mary Montague Sikes said...

Thanks for stopping by, junebug. Monticello is beautiful and in an amazing location!

Alex, it just seems so bizarre. They both were so major in forming the Declaration!

Kris, thanks for stopping by from A to Z.

Thanks, Golden Eagle, for coming by and commenting!

Beverly Diehl said...

Hey there - another A-Zr here, found you through a comment on another blog, and when I saw you had TJ, my hero, as your T choice... love at first sight. (Or at least, strong like.)

Congrats on keeping it going so far.

Anonymous said...

Hi Mary! Great posts here, very interesting reading! And I love, love, love your paintings on your website - stunning colors and artwork. You are so talented!

Anonymous said...

I didn't know that about Thomas Jefferson's birthday and the date of this death. I love learning new things.

Laura Eno said...

That is ironic that they both died on the 50th birthday of the nation they helped to create.

Notes Along the Way with Mary Montague Sikes said...

Thanks, Beverly, for comments and the follow. Jefferson is a special part of our history!

Thanks, Bonnie for the lovely compliments!

Thanks, Shelley, for your comments!

I appreciate the follow and the comment, Laura.