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Doing Research on Thomas Jefferson:
An Introductory Guide
This guide is designed to give you a brief orientation to the various sources on Thomas Jefferson. For more specific research needs, you may contact us.
Other Jefferson Documents (Declaration of Independence, etc.)
Primary Sources
Jefferson's Papers
Original Papers
Unfortunately we have no original Jefferson papers here at Monticello; the original copies of Thomas Jefferson's papers are scattered amongst a number of different repositories. The largest collections reside at the Library of Congress, the University of Virginia, and Massachusetts Historical Society. Please see our list of major collections of Jefferson papers.
The Jefferson Library owns microfilm copies of many of the major collections of Jefferson's papers, including the collections residing at:
- American Philosophical Society
- Henry E. Huntington Library
- The Historical Society of Pennsylvania
- Library of Congress
- Massachusetts Historical Society
- Missouri Historical Society
- The New York Historical Society
- College of William and Mary
- University of Virginia
Some of Jefferson's original papers can also be viewed online in manuscript form:
Library
of Congress
Massachusetts
Historical Society
Published Versions of Jefferson's Papers
There are three major published versions of Jefferson's papers:
- Ford, Paul Leicester (ed.). The Writings of Thomas Jefferson. New York, London: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1892-99. 10 vols. Another edition of Ford, titled The Works of Thomas Jefferson (also called the "Federal Edition,") was published in 1904 and consisted of 12 volumes. This edition is available online from the Liberty Fund's Online Library of Liberty.
- Lipscomb, Andrew A. (ed.). The Writings of Thomas Jefferson. Washington, D.C.: Issued under the auspices of the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Association of the United States, 1905. There are three versions of this edition: the Library Edition (1903-4), Memorial Edition (1903-4), and Definitive Edition (1905), which do not differ significantly in content. The Definitive Edition is available online from the Constitution Society.
- Boyd, Julian (ed.). The Papers of Thomas Jefferson.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1950- .
Looney, J. Jefferson (ed.). The Papers of Thomas Jefferson: Retirement Series. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004- . The text of the Princeton edition is now available online (for a fee) through the University of Virginia's Rotunda imprint. The indexes for published main series volumes and Retirement Series volumes are also available online.
The first two editions are not as comprehensive as the Princeton edition, but unfortunately the Princeton edition is still in progress. As of now, only Jefferson's papers from the years 1760 through 1801 have been published by Princeton, with five volumes from Jefferson's retirement years (1809-1813) also available.
Other Jefferson Documents
The following Jefferson documents have also been published:
Personal Papers: Accounts, Notes, Etc.
Adams, Dickinson W., ed. Jefferson’s Extracts From the Gospels: "The Philosophy of Jesus" and "The Life and Morals of Jesus." Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, c1983.
Bear, James A., Jr. and Lucia C. Stanton, eds. Jefferson’s Memorandum Books : Accounts, With Legal Records and Miscellany, 1767-1826. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, c1997.Papers
Betts, Edwin Morris, ed. Thomas Jefferson’s Farm Book: With Commentary and Relevant Extracts From Other Writings. Charlottesville: Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, 1999. View the manuscript online at the Massachusetts Historical Society.
Betts, Edwin Morris, ed. Thomas Jefferson’s Garden Book, 1766-1824, With Relevant Extracts From His Other Writings. Charlottesville: Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation, 1999. View the manuscript online at the Massachusetts Historical Society.
Chinard, Gilbert, ed. The Commonplace Book of Thomas Jefferson: A Repertory of his Ideas on Government. Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins Press and Paris: Les Presses Universitaires de France, 1926.
Howell, Wilbur Samuel, ed. Jefferson's Parliamentary Writings: "Parliamentary Pocket-Book" and A Manual of Parliamentary Practice. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, c1988.
Wilson, Douglas L., ed. Jefferson's Literary Commonplace Book. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, c1989.
Public Papers and Published Works
| Ford | Lipscomb & Bergh | Peterson | Princeton | Other | |
| Autobiography | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not yet | |
| Declaration of Independence | Yes | No | No | Yes; several drafts and analysis in Vol. 1 | Click to search Portal for "declaration of independence" |
| Notes on the State of Virginia |
Yes: |
Yes | Yes | No | Click to search Portal for "notes on the state of virginia" |
| Parliamentary Writings | No | Yes (Manual of Parliamentary Practice) | No | Howell, Wilbur Samuel (ed.). Jefferson's Parliamentary Writings: "Parliamentary Pocket-Book" and A Manual of Parliamentary Practice. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, c1988. | Click to search Portal for jefferson AND parliament? |
| Summary View of the Rights of British America | Yes | No | Yes | Yes; Vol. 1 | Click to search Portal for "summary view of the rights of british america" |
| Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom | Yes | No | Yes (see Legislation 3) | Yes; Vol. 2 (Part of the "Revisal of the Laws, 1776-1786") | Click to search Portal for statute AND virginia AND"religious freedom" |
Compilations of Jefferson's Writings
Jefferson, Thomas. Writings. New York: Library of America, 1984. A very good compilation of major Jefferson writings, including his Autobiography, Notes on the State of Virginia, A Summary View of the Rights of British America, and hundreds of important letters, edited by Merrill D. Peterson. View the online edition at the University of Virginia's EText Center.
Foley, John P. The Jeffersonian Cyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls, 1900; rep. Russell and Russell, 1967. An excellent source for quotations, but citations should be checked against the Princeton edition if possible; view the online version at the University of Virginia's EText Center.
Jefferson's Libraries
Jefferson owned thousands of books throughout his lifetime, and the various incarnations of his library are documented in a number of different lists. The most accessible of these are the Sowerby and Trist lists, which document the books Jefferson sold to the Library of Congress in 1815. Earlier booklists are also available from the Massachusetts Historical Society.
Secondary Sources
There has been a great deal written about Jefferson since his lifetime. For specific reading suggestions by topic, please see our Suggested Reading Lists.
Or, explore the possibilities yourself using the Thomas
Jefferson Portal.