Thomas Jefferson

	For the robot of the same name in Fallout 3, see Thomas Jefferson (robot). For more information on the historical character, see Thomas Jefferson on Wikipedia.

Thomas Jefferson was a Founding Father and the third president of the United States, as well as the primary author of, and a signatory on, the Declaration of Independence.

Background[]

History[]

Hailing from the British colony of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson was a politician and landowner who played a major role in the founding of the United States of America during the American Revolutionary War. He was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, which formally declared the sovereign statehood of the American colonies, and also signed it as a representative of Virginia.^[2][3] Following the Revolutionary War, Jefferson became the third president of the United States, succeeding George Washington and John Adams.^[4]

During his terms as president, Jefferson oversaw significant westward expansion of the United States and sent expedition teams to chart the newly-acquired territory. Jefferson organized one such expedition with his acquaintance Meriwether Lewis; the expedition was ultimately led by Lewis and William Clark, taking two years.^[5]

In his personal life, Jefferson was known to have owned slaves, including Sally Hemings.^[6]

In pre-War America[]

In the pre-War United States, Jefferson was remembered for his leadership during the country's formative years. The Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. was built in Jefferson's honor and includes a statue of him. Elsewhere in the capital, the National Archives used a customized Protectron known as the TJEFF002 Thomas Jefferson Unit to reenact the historical Jefferson's signing of the Declaration of Independence for tourists.^[4]In the National Archives, Jefferson's authorship of the Declaration of Independence was also used as a pop quiz question for visitors.^[2]

The Pioneer Scouts, a youth organization, were founded on the values of exploration during the early years of the United States. Their chief role models were Thomas Jefferson and Meriwether Lewis, based on the Lewis and Clark expedition which Jefferson helped plan. The Pioneer Scouts honored Jefferson and Lewis as brave explorers who "went into the unknown" with "courage, methodical planning, innovation and crew of seasoned veterans and natives."^[5][7] Jefferson was also included in a question on the scouts' codebreaker exam.^[8]

Notes[]

• In Fallout 3, the National Archives' Protectron playing Thomas Jefferson can be found and reactivated. It does not have a voice, and instead only plays Galaxy News Radio.
• Also in Fallout 3, the BGWIN009 Button Gwinnett Protectron unit can be encountered in the National Archives during the quest Stealing Independence. The Protectron believes itself to be the historical Button Gwinnett and that it was assigned by Jefferson to guard the Declaration of Independence from the British Redcoats.^[9]
  • As part of the quest, the Lone Wanderer can optionally try to persuade the Button Gwinnett robot that they are either Thomas Jefferson himself (if male) or an agent of Thomas Jefferson (if female).^[10][11] If successful, this allows the Lone Wanderer to order the robot to stand down.^[6]
  • In its dialogue, the Button Gwinnett robot claims to quote Jefferson twice, saying "If our house be on fire, without inquiring whether it was fired from within or without, we must try to extinguish it!"^[12] and "We in America do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate."^{[13] (Note 1)}
• In Fallout 76, Jefferson Rock can be found near Harpers Ferry. This is a rock formation which was named after Jefferson's visit to the landmark in 1783.^[14] The location itself is unmarked, but the object itself is unique and has the Editor ID Jefferson_Rock_01 (Form ID 00510348), confirming its identity.
• In the Fallout 76 update Wild Appalachia, the codebreaker exam at the Pioneer Scout camp lists Thomas Jefferson as the correct answer for being the Founding Father who invented a cipher later used by the United States Army.^{[8] (Note 2)}

Appearances[]

Thomas Jefferson is mentioned in Fallout 3, as well as Fallout 76 and its updates Wild Appalachia^[8] and Skyline Valley.^[7]

Behind the scenes[]

• ^ ^{(Note 1)} This first quote comes from a 1798 letter from Jefferson to James Lewis, Jr.^{[Non-game 1]} The second quote, however, is apocryphal and does not appear in any of Jefferson's writings. In fact, the quote is not known to have existed before the release of Fallout 3 and may have actually been introduced by the in-game reference, based on the findings of historians from the Thomas Jefferson Foundation.^{[Non-game 2]}
• ^ ^{(Note 2)} This is a reference to the Jefferson disk, a cipher system which is commonly attributed to Thomas Jefferson. However, it is historically unclear as to whether he truly invented the cipher.

Gallery[]

The Jefferson Memorial

The National Archives' Thomas Jefferson Protectron

Jefferson Rock

References[]

Non-game