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===''Notes on the State of Virginia''===

===''Notes on the State of Virginia''===

In 1780-83, Jefferson wrote his only book, ''Notes on the State of Virginia.''<ref>See [http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/JEFFERSON/toc.html for complete text of ''Notes on the State of Virginia'']</ref> It was written in the form of answers to questions about the geography, natural resources, Indians, government and economy of Virginia, based on his own research. The book was first published in French in Paris in 1785 (and in English in 1787), and immediately Jefferson's scientific reputation in Europe, while debunking some outlandish theories, especially those of the eminent naturalist the [[Comte de Buffon]], to the effect that animals regressed to smaller size in the new world. Jefferson's coup came with the mammoth, the giant extinct animal, five times bigger than an elephant, whose tusks, grinders, and bones had been recently dug up in the western part of the state.<ref>Peterson, ''Thomas Jefferson and the New Nation'' (1975) pp 242-52;  Thomas O. Jewett, [http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/2000_fall/jefferson_paleon.html "Thomas Jefferson Paleontologist," ''Early America Review'', Fall 2000 online]</ref>

In 1780-83, Jefferson wrote his only book, ''Notes on the State of Virginia.''<ref>See [http://xroads.virginia.edu/~HYPER/JEFFERSON/toc.html for complete text of ''Notes on the State of Virginia'']</ref> It was written in the form of answers to questions about the geography, natural resources, Indians, government and economy of Virginia, based on his own research. The book was first published in French in Paris in 1785 (and in English in 1787), and immediately Jefferson's scientific reputation in Europe, while debunking some outlandish theories, especially those of the eminent naturalist the [[Comte de Buffon]], to the effect that animals regressed to smaller size in the new world. Jefferson's coup came with the mammoth, the giant extinct animal, five times bigger than an elephant, whose tusks, grinders, and bones had been recently dug up in the western part of the state.<ref>Peterson, ''Thomas Jefferson and the New Nation'' (1975) pp 242-52;  Thomas O. Jewett, [http://www.earlyamerica.com/review/2000_fall/jefferson_paleon.html "Thomas Jefferson Paleontologist," ''Early America Review'', Fall 2000 online]</ref>