Thomas Jefferson is renowned as a politician, statesman,
architect, and educator; however, one of Jefferson's lesser
known, but nonetheless significant, roles is that of an inventor.
In order to address Jefferson's contributions to invention,
one must first define invention in a much broader sense than
the traditional view. Invention is typically characterized
as a tangible, technological breakthrough. However, a true
understanding of invention encompasses both concrete objects
and new ideas, ingenuity and the practical application of others'
ideas. Jefferson's inventive capabilities went beyond mechanical
designs to include the
Declaration of Independence, the framework
of the patent system, and the
University of Virginia. Jefferson
saw the importance of invention and progress to society and
tried to encourage inventive thought on both a personal and
national scale.
"The fact is, that one new idea leads to another, that to a
third, and so on through a course of time until someone,
with whom no one of these ideas was original, combines all
together, and produces what is justly called a new invention."
-Thomas Jefferson