James wilson founding father

As the only person who signed the Declaration of Independence, the United States Constitution, and served as a Supreme Court Justice, James Wilson of Pennsylvania made important contributions to American democracy.

During the Constitutional Convention, Wilson successfully proposed a unitary executive elected through an electoral college system and negotiated the Three-Fifths Compromise that paved the way for the Constitution’s adoption. Wilson spent the last years of life as a Supreme Court Justice.

During his time on the court, financial difficulties distracted him from his duties. Wilson died in 1798, at the age of 55.

James wilson founding father biography

Wilson was born in Fife, Scotland in 1742 in the Scottish Lowlands. He won a scholarship to the University at St. Andrews and attended the Universities of Glasgow and Edinburgh where he studied prominent thinkers of the Scottish enlightenment such as Francis Hutcheson, David Hume, and Adam Smith.

After finishing his studies, Wilson emigrated to British North Ameri