Thomas Hopkinson

Thomas Hopkinson

Thomas Hopkinson (April 6, 1709 - November 5, 1751) was a lawyer, public official, and prominent figure in colonial Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Thomas Hopkinson was born in London, in 1709, the son of Thomas Hopkinson, a London scrivener and a member of Middle Temple. He was educated there, then immigrated about 1731 to Pennsylvania, where he became a merchant, lawyer, judge, and natural philosopher, as well as a friend of Benjamin Franklin. He worked with Franklin on several of his experiments on electricity and was a member of the Junto.

Hopkinson held a number of legal and judicial positions, including judge of the vice-admiralty for the province of Pennsylvania. He was also a member of the Governor's Council. As a merchant, Hopkinson acted as agent for several London firms, and in partnership with William Coleman, imported and sold a wide variety of goods, including fabrics, spices, gunpowder and iron.

Hopkinson was a founder of both the Library Company of Philadelphia and the Academy of Philadelphia (now the University of Pennsylvania), and served as first president of the American Philosophical Society. He was also an active Mason. He married Mary Johnson in 1736, and together they had eight children. He enrolled his son Francis Hopkinson, later a signatory of the Declaration of Independence in the first classes at the Academy. One of his daughters married Reverend Jacob Duché, and another Dr. John Morgan.

He died in Philadelphia, 5 November, 1751.

External links

* [http://www.archives.upenn.edu/histy/features/1700s/people/hopkinson_thos.html Biography and portrait at the University of Pennsylvania]
* [http://americanart.si.edu/search/search_artworks1.cfm?StartRow=1&ConID=1510&format=short Portrait of Thomas Hopkinson] by Robert Feke at the Smithsonian Institution


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Hopkinson, Sir Thomas — ▪ British editor in full  Henry Thomas Hopkinson   born April 19, 1905, Manchester, Eng. died June 20, 1990, Oxford, Oxfordshire       British editor and a leader in the development of photojournalism.       Hopkinson was a freelance journalist… …   Universalium

  • Thomas H. Eliot — Infobox Congressman name =Thomas H. Eliot date of birth=June 14, 1907 date of death=death date and age|1991|10|14|1907|6|14 place of birth =Cambridge, Massachusetts place of death =Cambridge, Massachusetts state = Massachusetts district = 9th… …   Wikipedia

  • Thomas nelson junior — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Nelson. Thomas Nelson Junior (26 décembre 1738–4 janvier 1789) est un soldat, et homme d État américain de Yorktown en Virginie. Il représenta la Virginie au Continental Congress et était son gouverneur en 1781.… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Heyward Junior — Thomas Heyward Junior, né le 28 juillet 1746, mort le 6 mars 1809, fut un signataire de la déclaration d indépendance des États Unis. Thomas Heyward, Jr …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Dobson — (1751 near Edinburgh, Scotland 1823 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a master printer most famous for having published the earliest American version of the Encyclopædia Britannica , and the first in the United States to publish a complete… …   Wikipedia

  • Hopkinson, Francis — born Oct. 2, 1737, Philadelphia, Pa. died May 9, 1791, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S. U.S. political leader and writer. After a brief business career, he launched a successful legal practice in New Jersey. He was appointed to the governor s council in… …   Universalium

  • Thomas Jefferson — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Jefferson. Thomas Jefferson …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Nelson junior — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Nelson. Thomas Nelson Junior (26 décembre 1738–4 janvier 1789) est un soldat, et homme d État américain de Yorktown en Virginie. Il représenta la Virginie au Continental Congress et était son …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas Lynch Junior — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Lynch. Thomas Lynch Junior …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Thomas McKean — Portrait de Thomas McKean par l artiste Charles Willson Peale Thomas McKean né le 19 mars 1734, mort le 24 juin 1817, était un politicien américain et un Pères fondateurs des États Unis. Il signa la déclaration d indépendance des États Unis en… …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”