190 years ago today, at a little after Noon, Thomas Jefferson died at Monticello, as Americans celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Later that evening, during a Boston summer thunderstorm, John Adams said his last words and died. They were “Jefferson survives”. He was wrong, because he outlived him by ten hours. Thanks to Jefferson we know what the weather was in Philadelphia 240 years ago today as well, since he purchased his own thermometer and kept records for many years. (from Dan Satterfield on Facebook).
You can read more about it at the American Geophysical Union blog at https://blogs.agu.org/wildwildscience/2011/07/04/jefferson-his-thermometer-and-the-4th/.
