Books and Manuscripts

Richmond, September 1, 1780. Single sheet, 13 1/4 x 8 1/4 in. (337 x 209 mm). Partially-printed document, signed by Signer of the Declaration of Independence from Virginia, Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826), as Governor of Virginia, transferring ownership of 98 acres of land to James Dillard. Wax seal present and intact; creasing from old folds, separations along same; scattered toning and foxing; paper loss to right margin affecting text but not signature. In mat and in frame, unexamined out of frame, 20 1/4 x 15 1/2 in. (514 x 394 mm).

After his service to the First and Second Continental Congresses, Thomas Jefferson spent most of the war engaged in Virginia state politics, being first elected to the House of Burgesses in 1776, and twice to the Governor's seat in 1779 and 1780. In a period of three years, he reportedly drafted almost 130 bills of legislation, and laid the foundation for what he believed to be a truly republican government. Jefferson is credited with streamlining the judicial system, proposing a system of public education, promoting religious freedoms, and abolishing laws that protected a hereditary aristocracy, including entail or primogeniture.