James Wilson

This image shows the interior of a transit station with a platform, train tracks, and a train.
Portrait of George Washington, the first President of the United States, dressed in formal 18th-century attire, seated with one hand resting on a chair arm.

BORN – June 14, 1743 in Carskerdo, Fife, Scotland.  Parents (Scottish ancestry) - William Wilson (b1703-d1765), and Alison Landale Wilson (b1707-d1790).  Eight Children – Margaret Wilson Mitchell (b1736-___), Rachel Wilson (b1738-___), Jean Wilson Balfour (b1740-___), James Wilson (b1743-d1798), John Wilson (b1745-___), Elizabeth Wilson (b1747-___), William Wilson (b1748-___), Andrew Wilson (b1752-___).   

DIED - August 28, 1798(1798-08-28) (aged 55) at the Iredell House, Edenton, NC, from a stroke.  Religion – Anglican / Episcopalian / Presbyterian (studied to be a Scottish Presbyterian Minister).  Buried - Christ Church Burial Ground, Philadelphia, PA. 

APPEARANCE  -  The picture above is the official Supreme Court Justice portrait of James Wilson painted by Max Rosenthal in 1836..  

FAMILY – Married - Rachel Bird (b1750–d1786) in 1771.  Six Children – Mary (Polly) Wilson Hollingsworth (b1773-d1832), William (Billy) Wilson (b1775-d1840), Bird Wilson (b1777-d1859), James Wilson, Jr. (b1779-d1807), Emily Wilson Hollingsworth (b1782-d1809), Charles Bird Wilson (b1785-d1810). Wife Rachel died 1786.  Married - Hannah Gray (b1744-d1807) in 1793.  One Child – Henry Wilson (b1796-d1799, age 3).    

OCCUPATION – LAWYER, LEGISLATOR, JUDGE.  Attended the Universities of St. Andrews, Glasgow and Edinburgh.  Immigrated to America (New York City, then to Philadelphia) in 1766.  Teacher at the College of Philadelphia (now University of Pennsylvania).  Established a successful law practice in Reading and then Carlisle, PA.  Member of the Continental Congress representing Pennsylvania from 1775 to 1777 and 1785 to 1787.  Member of the Constitutional Convention from in 1787, and was one of the 40 Signers of the U.S. Constitution.  U.S. Supreme Court Justice from 1790 until his death in 1798.  Land speculator.  Spent time twice in debtors prison while serving on the Supreme Court - first in New Jersey (1797) and later in North Carolina (1798).       

AT SIGNING – Age 34 at signing. 

AFTER SIGNING – Continued to serve in Congress in Philadelphia until 1777.  Spent heavily on the war from his personal fortune.  He is believed to have commissioned what is known as the “Sussex Declaration” in the 1780’s, which is the only other handwritten parchment Declaration known to exist besides the one from 1776 displayed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. (known as the “Matlack Declaration”).   It was found in England (West Sussex Record Office, Chichester, UK) in 2015 by a Harvard research team.  One difference is that the Signers in the Matlack Declaration are grouped by state and they are random in the Sussex Declaration.

HISTORIC SITES

Gravesite – Christ Church Burial Ground, Philadelphia, PA (1744).  Located at 20 North American Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, near the 5th and Arch Street corner.  Phone 215-922-1695, Website www.christchurchphila.org.  His body was originally buried on the Hayes Plantation near Edenton, NC.  In 1906, the remains were moved and reburied at the Christ Church Burial Ground in Philadelphia, PA.

Philadelphia, PA – Fort Wilson, Philadelphia, PA.  Located at the corner of Walnut and 3rd Streets, Philadelphia, PA.  The historical plaque reads – “FORT WILSON - This was the location of the Fort Wilson Riots.  James Wilson was a signer of the Declaration and well respected in the Colonies.  He was also a proponent of strict adherence to the rule of law, and he defended the rights of wealthy loyalist Philadelphians who sided with or helped the British during their occupation of Philadelphia.  In 1778, a band of rablerousers and militiamen stormed the house where Wilson was staying to tar and feather him and his guests and ride them out of town.  Only the arrival of the military prevented the attack from succeeding, and after shots were fired and one militiaman was killed, Wilson and his friends were escorted to safety.”

Carlisle, PA – Wilson House, Carlisle, PA.  Originally located on the southwest corner of High and Pitt Streets, Carlisle, PA.  The roadside historical marker reads – “JAMES WILSON – Early Carlisle Lawyer, and representative to Continental Congress, occupied house that stood on this site.  He was a Signer of the Declaration of Independence, and one of the Framers of the Constitution of the U.S.”      

Edenton, NC House – Iredell House Homestead, Edenton, NC (1759). Located at 105 East Church Street, Edenton, NC (27932).  House where James Wilson died while visiting his friend James Iredell.  Privately owned.       

Edenton, NC Plantation – Hayes Plantation, Edenton, NC (1817).  Located at 1038 Hayes Farm Road, Edenton, NC 27932.  A small graveyard called Johnston's Cemetery near the home was the original burial site for James Wilson in 1798, before he was reburied in Philadelphia, PA.  Privately owned. 

A memorial plaque dedicated to James Wilson, located in Philadelphia. It includes American flags on either side and a brick wall behind. The plaque commemorates his life and service.

Gravesite of James Wilson, Christ Church Burial Ground, Philadelphia, PA (1744). 

Located at 20 North American Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, Phone 215-922-1695, Website www.christchurchphila.org.