William Rawle
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
in Philadelphia, who in 1791 was appointed as United States district attorney
United States Attorney
United States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. He was a founder and first president of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a historical society founded in 1824 and based in Philadelphia. The Society's building, designed by Addison Hutton and listed on Philadelphia's Register of Historical Places, houses some 600,000 printed items and over 19 million manuscript and graphic items...
, president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society, and for 40 years a trustee
Trustee
Trustee is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, can refer to any person who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the benefit of another...
of the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
.
Early life and education
Rawle was born in Philadelphia, where he studied at the Friends' Academy. His father was Francis Rawle (1729–1761) and mother was Rebecca Warner (1730–1819). His grandfather was William Rawle (1694–1741) and his great-grandfather was Francis Rawle (1663–1727), who authored some early pamphlets printed by Benjamin FranklinBenjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
before he started his own business.
Rawle's family were Cornish American
Cornish American
Cornish Americans are citizens of the United States who describe themselves as having Cornish ancestry. Cornish ancestry is not recognised on the United States Census, although the Cornish people are recognised as a separate ethnic group and national identity for the United Kingdom Census...
members of the Religious Society of Friends
Religious Society of Friends
The Religious Society of Friends, or Friends Church, is a Christian movement which stresses the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. Members are known as Friends, or popularly as Quakers. It is made of independent organisations, which have split from one another due to doctrinal differences...
(known as "Quakers"), originating in the parish of St Juliot, Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
.
Career
Rawle studied law in New YorkNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and at the Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, and was admitted to the bar
Bar association
A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...
in 1783. In 1791 President Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
appointed him United States district attorney
United States Attorney
United States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
for Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, in which capacity he prosecuted the leaders of the Whiskey Insurrection
Whiskey Rebellion
The Whiskey Rebellion, or Whiskey Insurrection, was a tax protest in the United States in the 1790s, during the presidency of George Washington. Farmers who sold their corn in the form of whiskey had to pay a new tax which they strongly resented...
.
He also served as counsel for the First Bank of the United States
First Bank of the United States
The First Bank of the United States is a National Historic Landmark located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania within Independence National Historical Park.-Banking History:...
. In 1830 Rawle assisted in revising the civil code of Pennsylvania. He took much interest in science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
, philanthropy
Philanthropy
Philanthropy etymologically means "the love of humanity"—love in the sense of caring for, nourishing, developing, or enhancing; humanity in the sense of "what it is to be human," or "human potential." In modern practical terms, it is "private initiatives for public good, focusing on quality of...
, and education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, and was active in groups supporting these. He was a founder and first president of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a historical society founded in 1824 and based in Philadelphia. The Society's building, designed by Addison Hutton and listed on Philadelphia's Register of Historical Places, houses some 600,000 printed items and over 19 million manuscript and graphic items...
, president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society, and for forty years served as a trustee
Trustee
Trustee is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, can refer to any person who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility for the benefit of another...
of the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
.
Marriage and family
He married Sarah Coates Burge (1761–1824) in 1783. They had 12 children together.Their son William Rawle, Jr. (1788–1858) followed his father into the legal profession. Grandson William Henry Rawle (1823–1889) married Mary Binney Cadwalader (1829–1861), whose father was the jurist John Cadwalader (1805–1879). Their daughter Mary Cadwalader Rawle (1850–1923) married the brother of the novelist Edith (Jones) Wharton
Edith Wharton
Edith Wharton , was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist, short story writer, and designer.- Early life and marriage:...
(1862–1937), and had daughter Beatrix Farrand
Beatrix Farrand
Beatrix Jones Farrand was a landscape gardener and landscape architect in the United States. Her career included commissions to design the gardens for private residences, estates and country homes, public parks, botanic gardens, college campuses, and the White House.Farrand was one of the founding...
(1872–1959).
Works
Rawle's publications include:- Vindication of Rev. Mr. Heckewelder'sJohn Heckewelderright|thumb|350px|sketch by [[Henry Howe]]John Gottlieb Ernestus Heckewelder was an American missionary.He was born in Bedford, England. He came to Pennsylvania in 1754, and, after finishing his education, was apprenticed to a cooper. After a visit to Ohio with Christian F...
'History of the Indian Nations (1818) - A View of the Constitution of the United States (1825; second edition, 1829)
- Discourse on the Nature and Study of the Law (1832)
- "An Address before the Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture" (1819)
- "Two Addresses to the Associated Members of the Bar of Philadelphia" (1824)
- "The Study of the Law" (1832)
- "Biographical Sketch of Sir William KeithWilliam Keith (Colonial Governor)Sir William Keith, Bt was a lieutenant-governor of colonial Pennsylvania and Delaware.Keith was born in Boddam Castle near Peterhead, Scotland to Sir William Keith, Baronet, of Ludquhairn, Scotland and Lady Jean Keith. He was baptised on 16 February 1680. As eldest son, he stood to inherit the...
" - "A Sketch of the Life of Thomas MifflinThomas MifflinThomas Mifflin was an American merchant and politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolution, a member of the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly, a Continental Congressman from Pennsylvania, President of the Continental...
" - "Essay on Angelic Influences"
External links
- Biography and portrait, University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
- A View of the Constitution of the United States of America (Second Edition), in its entirety (free PDF download)