Notes on the State of Virginia

Thomas Jefferson wrote and published this classic in 1781. Notes on the State of Virginia is his only full-length work. In it, Jefferson begins as a commentary on the resources and institutions of Virginia, but the lasting value lies in its delineation of major philosophical, political, scientific, and ethical beliefs. Along with his accounts of North American flora and fauna, Jefferson expounds his views on slavery, education, religious freedom, representative government, and the separation of church and state.