1. Thomas Jefferson wrote over 20,000 letters in his lifetime. Not all of his letters were friendly correspondence between friends and family, some have become important documents in our nation's history.

5. Thomas Jefferson was the first president to shake hands instead of bowing to the leaders of other nations. The United States was a new nation with a President and not a king or emperor. The tradition of bowing was not considered appropriate for a President.

7. Thomas Jefferson was the first president to be inaugurated in Washington, DC.

11. Thomas Jefferson played the violin. Jefferson had many hobbies other than music including reading, horticulture, writing and inventing.