Jefferson was the third president of the United States, author of the Declaration of Independence, and founder of the University of Virginia. Visitors of all ages can tour Monticello to learn about Jefferson’s complex life and legacy. Critically, Monticello’s programming now centers the stories of the more than 600 enslaved people who built and sustained the plantation. This is not a sanitized founder’s shrine — it is a genuinely complex place that rewards thoughtful visitors.