Jefferson's original view on patents may not surprise those who are aware of his strong views about democracy and equality. He opposed patents strongly because he considered it an unfair monopoly. However, a biography of Jefferson also shows his great love for invention, and as soon as he became more aware of the role of the patent office's power to tremendously encourage invention, he became much more in favor of their use. These two different perceptions of patents explain, in part, why Jefferson formulated a policy for patents that encouraged the invention he so wanted to see in America but maintained very stringent restrictions on what could be patented so that the system would not be abused, demonstrating both his respect for invention and his strict definition of what is an invention and what is not. Following is a chronological list of Jefferson's role in the development of the United States Patent Office; however, if you are interested in an extensive analysis of Jefferson's involvement in the Patent Office, the following essay focuses upon not only Jefferson's role but also how it characterizes him as an inventor.

The Patent Office

• Jefferson, as Secretary of State, became the leader of the three-man board created by the first Patent Act in 1790 which attempted to create a patent system very similar to the one that the British had in use

• He "agreed that inventors should have full rights to their inventions" but was not sure about the constitutionality of patents and was worried patents would delay the ability of new inventions to reach the general public, so he had "mixed feelings" (Bedini) about assuming his role in the patent system

• With these "serious reservations" (Bedini) in mind, he created a very specific and strict definition for what would obtain a patent and what would not and became so meticulous in his examination of patent petitions (he was know to personally test some of the inventions) that it was taking up more of his time than it should have as only one of many of his jobs as Secretary of State

  -- his first criterion in judging the inventions was that they had to be useful

  -- a patent wouldn't be granted to someone who had just come up with another application of something that was already invented (which is one of the reasons he did not apply for any patents himself since most of his so-called inventions he considered adaptations of inventions already in existence)

  -- a patent wouldn't given when it was just an old invention built with a different material

  -- He was angered by the considerable number of "frivolous" patents that the office received petitions for, stating that their "abuse...is likely to cause more inconvenience than is countervailed by those really useful" (Bedini) and he made provisions to counteract these such as his rule that no patent would be granted for an "invention" that was simply the combination of existing inventions

  -- less than half of those who petitioned for patents received them in the end due to the strict rules laid down by Jefferson

• He became more open to the idea of patents, however, when he saw how many American inventors put their ideas forward as a direct result of the new system of protection, claiming that "it has given a spring of invention beyond my conception" (Bedini)

• Jefferson was extremely enthusiastic about just being a part of the group that got to review the inventions in such detail because he was so excited that he got to see people's ideas

• Jefferson however needed to "relieve himself" of his patent duties because he felt that more time needed to be given to the job than the otherwise very busy Secretary of State was able to give (Bedini)

• The patent act of 1793 finally allowed Jefferson to pass on his duties as patent officer but much to his dismay made the "granting of patents almost entirely an automatic matter" which was almost the opposite of the very strict system Jefferson had established (Bedini)

• This "automatic" system, however, did not last long as a new code for patents was written in 1836 that was "a compromise of sorts between the strictness of Thomas Jefferson's tenure and the free-wheeling acceptance of all patent claims during the intervening years" (Bedini) This 1836 law is the one currently in use and is certainly evidence of Jefferson's impact on the patent system and American invention as a whole

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