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During his schooling, Thomas experienced only one disagreeable incident. Jackson needed pine knots to use as light in the evening when he read his borrowed books. He made a deal with a slave that in exchange for the pine knots, Thomas would teach the slave to write, as Mr. Rhea had taught him. Thomas did teach the slave to write, and the man used his new-found skill to forge a pass that allowed him to escape to Canada. Luckily for Thomas, his uncle was more amused than angered by the episode.

Throughout Jackson's younger years, he had few close acquaintances. This was to change in 1838, however, when Mr. Benjamin Lightburn moved his family from Pennsylvania to McCann's Run, just down the river from Jackson's Mill. Their son, Joseph Lightburn, became Thomas' dearest friend. The Lightburns were very interested in literature and possessed a large library, which they offered to Thomas for his use. During this summer, Jackson obtained a copy of the Bible, which he read intently. He studied the battles of the Old Testament and became absorbed in the promises of the New Testament.

The Lightburn family invited Thomas to join them at the Broad Run Baptist Church in order to continue his studies; Jackson's friend, Joseph, later became a Baptist minister. Thomas also visited the Harmony Methodist Church in Wesson to hear their captivating minister. Jackson told his aunt that he had thought about being a minister, but his lack of public speaking experience and his limited education caused him to abandon the idea.

In 1841, a Congressman from the area offered to interview candidates for admission to West Point Military Academy. Thomas Jackson became very excited at the thought of studying at West Point, and he and three other men applied for the appointment. One of the young men was too young to be considered, and one was disqualified for unknown reasons, which left Thomas and Gibson J. Butcher. Mr. Butcher was chosen, to Thomas' bitter disappointment, but Butcher's stay at the Academy was brief. After much persuasion, Thomas was then given the appointment.

His entrance exam was difficult, and in his words he passed by 'the skin of his teeth.' His class of 133 men was the largest West Point had every admitted. Only 123 of these men advanced to the Academy in June, and thirty of these were sent home after the first exam. His classes as a plebe were also difficult, especially the foreign language that he had not previously studied. Third class Cadet W.H. Whiting, who was a Mississippian in charge of the plebes, took Thomas under his wing and aided him in his studies.

On Tuesday, January 3, 1843, Thomas began two weeks of semi-annual exams that would determine whom among his class would stay and who would return home. After long hours of study, he ranked sixty-second in math and eighty-eighth in French, with exemplary conduct. He ranked seventy-first in his class, and he remained a West Point Cadet. On February 20, 1843, his probationary period was officially over, and he signed the oath of allegiance to the U.S. Army, receiving the rank of Cadet. His years at West Point were not easy, but he worked diligently to maintain his standing. Throughout this time, Jackson's sister, Laura, had remained his closest friend and supporter, and he wrote to her often. On August 2, 1845, he wrote:

"You may infer that I am well and enjoying myself considering that I am deprived of the blessing of a home the society of friends of my child-hood and the cordial welcome of relatives and above all the presence of my only sister. Times are now far from what they once were. Once I was in my native state at my adopted home none to give there mandates none for me to obey but as I chose surrounded by my playmates and natives all apparently eager to promote my happiness. But those were the days of my youth they have fled never again to return. They have been succeeded by days of quite a different aspect they have brought forth manhood with all its cares.

In June of 1846, Thomas completed his studies at West Point. Through his hard work and determination, he graduated honorably, compiling one of the most amazing records of any cadet. He ranked seventeenth in a class of fifty-nine, He was eleventh in artillery, twelfth in engineering, fifth in ethics, twenty-first in military tactics, eleventh on mineralogy, and twenty-forth among two hundred and thirteen cadets in conduct. Thomas had hoped to win an assignment to the artillery, and to his great pleasure, he was assigned to the First Artillery Regiment.

After graduation, Jackson traveled to Beverly, Virginia, to visit with his sister, Laura, and her new husband, Mr. Jonathan Arnold; he then went to Jackson's Mill to see his Uncle Cummins. Jackson desired to be selected for duty in Mexico, and on July 32, 1846, he departed from his uncle, whom he would never see again, and left to join Company K of the First Artillery, United States Army. The first assignment for Thomas Jackson was to transport new recruits and horses to Mexico. After a 400 mile march from New York to Pittsburgh, the men and horses were loaded onto a boat on the Ohio River, bound for Mexico. While the boat sailed down the Ohio and finally into the Mississippi, Thomas searched for the island where years earlier he and his brother had cut wood and had almost died.

As he floated down the Mississippi River, little did Jackson realize the impact he would make on our country's history. Despite his being an orphan, with the support of aunts and uncles, he managed to educate and advance himself to the rank of an army officer. Thomas Jackson went on to faithfully serve the United States Army during the Mexican War and to teach at the Virginia Military Institute. In his last years, he would honorably and devotedly serve the Confederate States Army and be considered by General Robert E. Lee as his 'right hand'. Jackson's life is an admirable example of how difficulties and hardships can be overcome with a persistence to succeed and a great faith in God.