 | This article includes a list ofgeneral references, butit lacks sufficient correspondinginline citations. Please help toimprove this article byintroducing more precise citations.(September 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
John Dickinson | |
|---|---|
 A 1780 portrait of Dickinson | |
| 5thPresident of Pennsylvania | |
| In office November 7, 1782 – October 18, 1785 | |
| Vice President | |
| Preceded by | William Moore |
| Succeeded by | Benjamin Franklin |
| 5thPresident of Delaware | |
| In office November 13, 1781 – January 12, 1783 | |
| Preceded by | Caesar Rodney |
| Succeeded by | John Cook |
| Continental Congressman from Delaware | |
| In office January 18, 1779 – February 10, 1781 | |
| Continental Congressman from Pennsylvania | |
| In office August 2, 1774 – November 7, 1776 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Nov 2Jul./Nov 13Greg., 1732[note 1] |
| Died | February 14, 1808(1808-02-14) (aged 75) Wilmington, Delaware, U.S. |
| Resting place | Friends Burial Ground in Wilmington, Delaware |
| Political party | Democratic-Republican |
| Residence(s) | Kent County, Delaware,Philadelphia, andWilmington, Delaware |
| Occupation | planter (until 1777), abolitionist (after 1777), lawyer |
John Dickinson (November 13, [O.S. November 2] 1732[note 1] – February 14, 1808), aFounding Father of the United States, was an attorney and politician fromPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, andWilmington, Delaware. Dickinson was known as the "Penman of the Revolution" for his twelveLetters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania, published individually in 1767 and 1768, and he also wrote "The Liberty Song" in 1768.
As a member of theFirst Continental Congress, where he signed theContinental Association, Dickinson drafted most of the 1774Petition to the King, and then, as a member of theSecond Continental Congress, wrote theOlive Branch Petition in 1775. Both of these attempts to negotiate with KingGeorge III of Great Britain failed. Dickinson also reworkedThomas Jefferson's language to write the final draft of the 1775Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms.
As a delegate to Congress, Dickinson served on the committee that wrote theModel Treaty, a template for seeking alliances with foreign countries, but he opposed independence from Great Britain. He either abstained or was absent from the vote on theDeclaration of Independence and refused to sign the document after its passage. Nevertheless, Dickinson wrote the first draft of the 1776–1777Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union and served as a militia officer during theRevolution. He later was elected president of the1786 Annapolis Convention, which called for theConstitutional Convention of 1787, and as a delegate fromDelaware, hesigned the United States Constitution.
One of the wealthiest men in theBritish American colonies, Dickinson served aspresident of Delaware (1781–1783) andpresident of Pennsylvania (1782–1785). Upon Dickinson's death, President Thomas Jefferson referred to Dickinson as, "(a)mong the first of the advocates for the rights of his country when assailed by Great Britain" and called him "one of the great worthies of the revolution."[1]
Together with his wifeMary Norris Dickinson, he is the namesake ofDickinson College,Penn State Dickinson Law, and the Dickinson Complex at theUniversity of Delaware.John Dickinson High School inWilmington, Delaware, was dedicated in his honor in 1959.
Dickinson was born at Crosiadore Plantation, his family's tobacco plantation near the village of present-dayTrappe, Maryland, in theProvince of Maryland inBritish America.[2] He was the great-grandson of Walter Dickinson who came from England as an indentured servant to theColony of Virginia in 1654 and, having joined theSociety of Friends, came with several co-religionists to Talbot County on the eastern shore of theChesapeake Bay in 1659. There, with 400 acres (1.6 km2) on the banks of theChoptank River, Walter began a plantation,Croisadore, meaning "cross of gold." Walter also bought 800 acres (3.2 km2) onSt. Jones Neck in what becameKent County, Delaware.[3]
Croisadore passed through Walter's son, William, to his grandson, Samuel, the father of John Dickinson. Each generation increased the landholdings so that Samuel inherited 2,500 acres (1,000 ha) on five farms in three Maryland counties; over his lifetime he increased that to 9,000 acres (3,600 ha). He also bought the Kent County property from his cousin and expanded it to about 3,000 acres (1,200 ha), stretching along theSt. Jones River fromDover to theDelaware Bay. There he began another plantation and called itPoplar Hall. These plantations were large, profitable agricultural enterprises worked byslave labor, until 1777 when John Dickinson freed the enslaved of Poplar Hall.[4]
Samuel Dickinson married Judith Troth (1689–1729) on April 11, 1710. They had nine children; William, Walter, Samuel, Elizabeth, Henry, Elizabeth "Betsy", Rebecca, and Rachel. The three eldest sons died ofsmallpox while in London seeking their education. Widowed with two young children, Henry and Betsy, Samuel married Mary Cadwalader in 1731. She was the daughter of Martha Jones, the granddaughter of Dr.Thomas Wynne, and the prominentQuaker John Cadwalader, who was the grandfather of GeneralJohn Cadwalader ofPhiladelphia. Their sons, John, Thomas, andPhilemon were born in the next few years.
For three generations the Dickinson family had been members of the Third Haven Friends Meeting in Talbot County, and the Cadwaladers were members of the Meeting in Philadelphia. But in 1739, John Dickinson's half-sister, Betsy, was married in anAnglican church to Charles Goldsborough in what was called a "disorderly marriage" by the Meeting. The couple would be the grandparents ofMaryland GovernorCharles Goldsborough.
LeavingCroisadore to elder son Henry Dickinson, Samuel moved to Poplar Hall, where he had already taken a leading role in the community as judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Kent County. The move also placed Mary nearer her Philadelphia relations. Poplar Hall was situated on an artificially straightened section of the St. Jones River. There was plenty of activity delivering the necessities and shipping the agricultural products produced. Much of this product was wheat that, along with other wheat from the region, was milled into a "superfine" flour.[5]: 39 Most people at this plantation were servants and slaves of the Dickinsons.
_and_Daughter%2c_Sallie_Norris_Dickinson.jpg)
Dickinson was educated at home by his parents and by recent immigrants employed for that purpose. Among them was thePresbyterian ministerFrancis Alison, who later establishedNew London Academy inChester County, Pennsylvania.[6] Most important was his tutor, William Killen, who became a lifelong friend and who later becameDelaware's firstchief justice and chancellor. Dickinson was precocious and energetic and in spite of his love of Poplar Hall, his family was drawn toPhiladelphia.
At age 18, Dickinson began studying law underJohn Moland in Philadelphia. While there, he became friends with fellow studentsGeorge Read,Samuel Wharton, and others. In 1753, he went to London for three years of study at theMiddle Temple. He spent those years studying the works ofEdward Coke andFrancis Bacon at theInns of Court, following in the footsteps of his lifelong friend, Pennsylvania Attorney GeneralBenjamin Chew,[7] and in 1757 was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar beginning his career as barrister and solicitor.
In protest to theTownshend Acts, Dickinson publishedLetters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania, which were first published in thePennsylvania Chronicle. Dickinson's letters were reprinted by numerous other newspapers, and they emerged among the most influential American political documents prior to theAmerican Revolution. Dickinson argued that theBritish Parliament had the right to regulate commerce but lacked the right to levy duties for revenue. Dickinson further warned that if the colonies acquiesced to the Townshend Acts, Parliament would lay further taxes on the colonies in the future.[8] After publishing these letters, he was elected in 1768 to theAmerican Philosophical Society as a member.[9]
On July 19, 1770, Dickinson marriedMary Norris, known as Polly, a prominent and well educated 30-year-old woman in Philadelphia with a substantial holding of real estate and personal property, including a 1,500-volume library, one of the largest in the colonies at the time, who had been operating her family's estate, Fair Hill, for several years by herself with some support from her sister. She was the daughter of wealthy PhiladelphiaQuaker and Speaker of thePennsylvania General AssemblyIsaac Norris and Sarah Logan, the daughter ofJames Logan.[10][page needed] She was also cousin to the Quaker poetHannah Griffitts. Dickinson and Norris had five children, but only two survived to adulthood: Sarah Norris "Sally" Dickinson and Maria Mary Dickinson. Dickinson never formally joined the Quaker Meeting because, as he explained, he believed in the "lawfulness of defensive war".[11] He and Norris were married in a civil ceremony.
In Philadelphia, they lived at Fair Hill near the present-dayGermantown neighborhood in Philadelphia, which they modernized through their combined wealth. Meanwhile, Dickinson built an elegant mansion onChestnut Street, but never lived there because the mansion was confiscated and turned into a hospital during his 1776–77 absence in Delaware.[12] It then became the residence of theFrench ambassador and then the residence of Dickinson's brother, Philemon Dickinson. On October 4, 1777, Fair Hill was burned by theBritish during theBattle of Germantown. While in Philadelphia asstate president, Dickinson lived at the confiscated mansion ofJoseph Galloway at Sixth andMarket Streets, which is now the State Presidential Mansion.
Dickinson lived at Poplar Hall for extended periods from 1776 to 1777 and from 1781 to 1782. In August 1781, Poplar Hall was sacked byLoyalists and was badly burned in 1804. It is now owned by the state ofDelaware and is open to the public.[13] In 1785, following his service as president of Pennsylvania, Dickinson lived inWilmington, Delaware, and built a mansion at the northwest corner of 8th and Market Streets inCenter City Philadelphia.
Dickinson was one of the delegates from theProvince of Pennsylvania to theFirst Continental Congress in 1774 and theSecond Continental Congress in 1775 and 1776. In support of the cause, he continued to contribute declarations in the name of the Congress. Dickinson wrote the Olive Branch Petition as the Second Continental Congress' last attempt for peace withKing George III, who did not read the petition. But through it all, agreeing with George Read and many others in Philadelphia and thelower counties, Dickinson's objective at first was reconciliation, not independence and revolution. Dickinson prepared the first draft of theArticles of Confederation in 1776, after others had ratified theDeclaration of Independence despite his concerns that the Declaration would escalate theRevolutionary War, which began in 1775 at theBattle of Lexington and Concord. At the time, he chaired the committee charged with drafting the Articles of Confederation, Dickinson was serving in the Continental Congress as a delegate from the Province of Pennsylvania.
When the Second Continental Congress began the debate on theDeclaration of Independence on July 1, 1776, Dickinson reiterated his opposition to declaring independence at that time. Dickinson believed that the Congress should complete the Articles of Confederation and secure a foreign alliance before issuing a declaration. Dickinson also objected to violence as a means for resolving theThirteen Colonies' dispute withBritain. He abstained or absented himself from the votes on July 2 that declared independence and absented himself again from voting on the wording of the formal declaration on July 4. Dickinson understood the implications of his refusal to vote saying, "My conduct this day, I expect will give the finishing blow to my once too great and, my integrity considered, now too diminished popularity."[14] Dickinson refused to sign the declaration, and since a proposal had been brought forth and carried that stated "for our mutual security and protection", no man could remain in the Continental Congress without signing it, so Dickinson voluntarily departed and joined the Pennsylvaniapatriot militia.[15]John Adams, a fierce advocate for independence and Dickinson's adversary on the floor of Congress, remarked, "Mr. Dickinson's alacrity and spirit certainly become his character and sets a fine example."[16]
Dickinson is one of only two members of the First Continental Congress who actively took up arms during the Revolutionary War.
In the Pennsylvania militia, known as theAssociators, Dickinson was given the rank of brigadier general and led 10,000 soldiers toElizabeth, New Jersey, to protect that area against British attack fromStaten Island. But because of his unpopular opinion abstaining from supporting independence, two junior officers were promoted above him.[15]
Dickinson resigned his commission in December 1776 and went to stay at Poplar Hall inKent County. While there, Dickinson learned that his home onChestnut Street in Philadelphia had been confiscated and converted into a hospital. He stayed at Poplar Hall for more than two years. TheDelaware General Assembly tried to appoint him as their delegate to theSecond Continental Congress in 1777, but he refused. In August 1777, he served as a private with the Kent County militia atMiddletown, Delaware, under GeneralCaesar Rodney to help delay GeneralWilliam Howe's march to Philadelphia during thePhiladelphia campaign. In October 1777, Dickinson's friendThomas McKean appointed him as a brigadier general in theDelaware Militia, but he again declined the appointment. Shortly afterwards, Dickinson learned of the burning of Fair Hill during the battle of Germantown.[17]
In 1777, Dickinson, by then Delaware's wealthiest farmer and largest slaveholder,[18] decided to free his slaves. While the number of slaves in Kent County was not as large as theSouthern Colonies and Dickinson had only 37 slaves,[18] this action has been described as requiring considerable personal courage on Dickinson's part. The strongly abolitionistQuaker influences around them likely were influential in his decision,[18] and his action was facilitated by the fact that his farm had moved away from farming tobacco to less labor-intensive crops, including wheat and barley.[5]: 40 Dickinson was the onlyFounding Father to free his slaves prior to 1786 when others also began doing so,[19] except forBenjamin Franklin, who had freed his slaves by 1770.
On January 18, 1779, Dickinson was appointed to be a delegate for Delaware to theSecond Continental Congress, which was convening at what today isIndependence Hall inPhiladelphia. During this term, he signed theArticles of Confederation, which he authored while serving in theFirst Continental Congress as a delegate fromProvince of Pennsylvania. In August 1781, while still a delegate in Philadelphia, he learned that Poplar Hall had been severely damaged by a Loyalist raid. Dickinson returned to the property to investigate the damage, and remained there for several months.
In October 1781, while at Poplar Hall, Dickinson was elected to representKent County in theState Senate. Shortly after, theDelaware General Assembly elected him president of Delaware. The General Assembly's vote was nearly unanimous; the only dissenting vote was cast by Dickinson himself.[20] Dickinson took office on November 13, 1781, and served until November 7, 1782. Beginning his term with a "Proclamation against Vice and Immorality," he sought ways to bring an end what he perceived to be the disorder of theAmerican Revolution. It was a popular position and enhanced his reputation both in Delaware and Pennsylvania. Dickinson then successfully challenged the Delaware General Assembly to address lagging militia enlistments and to properly fund the state's assessment to the Confederation government. Recognizing the delicate negotiations then underway to end the American Revolution, Dickinson secured the Assembly's continued endorsement of the French alliance, with no agreement on a separate peace treaty with Great Britain.
On October 10, 1782, Dickinson was elected to theSupreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania. On November 7, 1782, a joint ballot by the Council and thePennsylvania General Assembly elected him as president of the council and thereby president of Pennsylvania. But he did not actually resign as president of Delaware. Even though Pennsylvania and Delaware shared the same governor until very recently, attitudes were changing, and many in Delaware were upset at seemingly being cast aside so readily, particularly after Philadelphia newspapers began criticizing Delaware for permitting its office holders to be non-residents. Dickinson's constitutional successor,John Cook, was considered too weak in his support of the Revolution. On January 12, 1783, Cook called for a new election to choose a replacement, leading Dickinson to formally resign.
| Delaware General Assembly (sessions while President) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Assembly | Senate Majority | Speaker | House Majority | Speaker | ||||||
| 1781/82 | 6th | non-partisan | Thomas Collins | non-partisan | Simon Kollock | ||||||
| 1782/83 | 7th | non-partisan | Thomas Collins | non-partisan | Nicholas Van Dyke | ||||||
 | This sectiondoes notcite anysources. Please helpimprove this section byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged andremoved.(September 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
When theAmerican Revolution began, Dickinson fairly represented centrist views in Pennsylvania politics at a time when views varied over independence. ThePennsylvania General Assembly at the time was dominated by the Loyalists and moderates who, like Dickinson, did little to support the burgeoning Revolution or independence, except protest. The Radicals took matters into their own hands, using irregular means to write thePennsylvania Constitution of 1776, which by law excluded from the franchise anyone who would not swear loyalty to the document or the ChristianHoly Trinity. In this way, all Loyalists, moderate Whigs, andQuakers were kept out of government. This peremptory action seemed appropriate to many during the crises of 1777 and 1778 but less so in the later years of the Revolution, and the moderate Whigs gradually became the majority.
Dickinson's election to theSupreme Executive Council was the beginning of a counterrevolution against the Constitutionalists. He was elected president of Pennsylvania on November 7, 1782, garnering 41 votes toJames Potter's 32. As president he presided over the intentionally weak executive authority of the state and was its chief officer but always required the agreement of a majority to act. He was re-elected twice and served the constitutional maximum of three years; his election on November 6, 1783, was unanimous. On November 6, 1784, he defeatedJohn Neville, who also lost the election for vice president the same day. Working with small majorities in the General Assembly in his first two years and with the Constitutionalists in the majority in his last year, all issues were contentious. At first he endured withering attacks from his opponents for his alleged failure to fully support the new government in large and small ways. He responded ably and survived the attacks. He managed to settle quickly the old boundary dispute with Virginia in southwestern Pennsylvania but was never able to satisfactorily disentangle disputed titles in theWyoming Valley resulting from prior claims of Connecticut to those lands. An exhausted Dickinson left office October 18, 1785. On that day a special election was held in whichBenjamin Franklin was unanimously elected to serve the ten days left in Dickinson's term.
Perhaps the most significant decision of his term was his patient, peaceful management of thePennsylvania Mutiny of 1783. This was a violent protest of Pennsylvania veterans who marched on the Continental Congress demanding their pay before being discharged from theContinental Army. Somewhat sympathizing with their case, Dickinson refused Congress's request to bring full military action against them, causing Congress to vote to remove themselves toPrinceton, New Jersey. And when the new Congress agreed to return in 1790, it was to be for only 10 years, until a permanent capital was found elsewhere.
| Pennsylvania General Assembly (sessions while President) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Assembly | Majority | Speaker | ||||||||
| 1782/83 | 7th | Republican | Frederick A. C. Muhlenberg | ||||||||
| 1783/84 | 8th | Republican | George Gray | ||||||||
| 1784/85 | 9th | Constitutional | John Bubenheim Bayard | ||||||||
After his service in Pennsylvania, Dickinson returned toWilmington, Delaware, where he was quickly appointed to representDelaware at theAnnapolis Convention, where he served as its president. In 1787, Delaware sent him as one of its delegates to theConstitutional Convention of 1787, along withGunning Bedford Jr.,Richard Bassett, George Read, andJacob Broom. There, he supported the effort to create a strong central government but only after theGreat Compromise assured that each state, regardless of size, would have an equal vote in the futureUnited States Senate. As he had done with the Articles, he also carefully drafted it with the term "Person" rather than "Man" as was used in the Declaration of Independence. He prepared initial drafts of theFirst Amendment. Following the Convention he promoted the resulting Constitution in a series of nine essays, written under the pen nameFabius.
Dickinson himself did not sign the constitution as he left early due to chronic illness but instead a colleague,George Read signed his name.[21]
In 1791, Delaware convened a convention to revise its existingConstitution, which had been hastily drafted in 1776. Dickinson was elected president of this convention, and although he resigned the chair after most of the work was complete, he remained highly influential in the content of the final document. Major changes included the establishment of a separate Chancery Court and the expansion of the franchise to include all taxpayers. Dickinson remained neutral in an attempt to include a prohibition of slavery in the document, believing the General Assembly was the proper place to decide that issue. The newConstitution was approved June 12, 1792. Dickinson had freed his slaves conditionally in 1776 and fully by 1787.
Dickinson returned to the State Senate for the 1793 session but served just one year before resigning because of his declining health. He was the Anti-Administration nominee in the1795 United States Senate special election in Delaware, losing by one vote to congressmanHenry Latimer.[22]
In his final years, he worked to further the abolition movement and donated a considerable amount of his wealth to the "relief of the unhappy". In 1801, Dickinson published two volumes of his collected works on politics.
| Designations | |
|---|---|
| Official name | John Dickinson (1732–1808) |
| Type | Roadside |
| Criteria | American Revolution, Government & Politics 18th Century, Military |
| Designated | September 23, 2001 |
| Location | Montgomery Ave. at Haverford Ave., Narberth |
| Marker Text | Statesman, author. In influential writings, 1765–74, argued against British policies. Later, as a member, Continental Congress, 1774–76, favored conciliation and opposed the Declaration of Independence; nonetheless, served the patriot cause as colonel, 1st Philadelphia Battalion. President, Pa. Supreme Executive Council, 1782–85. Delegate, U.S. Constitutional Convention, 1787; a strong supporter of the Constitution. Deeded land to Merion Meeting, 1801–04. |
Dickinson died atWilmington, Delaware, and was buried inFriends Burial Ground in Wilmington.[23] Shortly before his death he unconditionally freed all of his slaves. While he had been economically reliant on them, he also wanted slavery to end. By freeing all of his slaves upon his death, he thought this would contribute to the United States having a future without slavery. Like many of the founders he believed slavery would die "a natural death."[24][25]
In an original letter discovered in November 2009 fromThomas Jefferson to Joseph Bringhurst, caretaker of Dickinson in his later years, then-President Jefferson responds to news of Dickinson's death ten days earlier:"A more estimable man, or truer patriot, could not have left us. Among the first of the advocates for the rights of his country when assailed by Great Britain, he continued to the last the orthodox advocate of the true principles of our new government and his name will be consecrated in history as one of the great worthies of the revolution."[1][26]
He shares withThomas McKean the distinction of serving as chief executive of both Delaware and Pennsylvania after the Declaration of Independence. Dickinson College and Dickinson School of Law (now of the Pennsylvania State University), separate institutions each operating a campus located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, on land inherited and managed by his wife Mary Norris, were named for them. Dickinson College was originally named "John and Mary's College" but was renamed to avoid an implication of royalty by confusion with "William and Mary." And along with hisLetters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania, Dickinson also authoredThe Liberty Song.
Dickinson Street inMadison, Wisconsin, is named in his honor,[27] as isJohn Dickinson High School inMilltown, Delaware, Dickinson Hall at theUniversity of Delaware, and Dickinson Street in Dewey Beach, Delaware.
An original stage playExcept, Mr. Dickinson was presented at the 15th Street Meeting House in an off-Broadway setting. The show was written by August Nigro.[28]
Dickinson was a self-taught scholar of history, and spent most of his time in historical research. As an intellectual, he thought that men should think for themselves,[29]: 271 and his deepening studies led him to refuse to sign theDeclaration of Independence, which was subsequently unanimously adopted by the remaining delegates to theSecond Continental Congress. Dickinson did not consider it wise to plunge into immediate war; rather, he thought it best to use diplomacy to attain political ends and used the insights he gained from his historical studies to justify his caution.[29]: 286 Given that Dickinson was raised in an aristocratic family, his cautious and thoughtful temperament was influenced by hisQuaker affiliation and upbringing. As Dickinson grew to learn more about historical movements, however, he came to embrace theRevolutionary cause.[29]: 273 Dickinson was very careful and refined in thought.[30] Dickinson wrote in 1767, "We cannot act with too much caution in our disputes. Anger produces anger; and differences, that might be accommodated by kind and respectful behavior, may, by imprudence, be enlarged to an incurable rage."[31] He did not behave rashly, insisting that prudence was the key to great politics. Dickinson used his study of history and furthered his education to become a lawyer, which exposed him to more historical schooling.[29]: 273 His education and religion allowed him to make important political decisions based on reason and sound judgment. John Powell states, "...these forces ofPuritanism had a vigorous expression. It is precisely because Dickinson epitomized the philosophic tenets of the Puritan Revolution that his theories were of enormous importance in the formation of the Constitution, and have considerable meaning for us today."[32] His studies of history and religious viewpoints had a profound impact on his political thought and actions.[29]: 279
Dickinson incorporated his learning and religious beliefs to counteract what he considered the mischief flowing from the perversion of history and applied them to its proper use according to his understanding.[33] His religiosity contributed heavily to his discernment of politics. Quakers disseminated their theologico-political thought aggressively and retained a significant measure of political influence.[34] Dickinson's political thought, given his education and religion, was influential towards the founding of the United States. The political theory of Quakers was informed by their theology andecclesiology,[35] consequently Dickinson applied his religious beliefs and his belief in adhering to theletter of the law in his approach to the Constitution,[36] referring to his historical knowledge as he did so. Quakers did use secular history as a guide for their political direction, and they considered scripture the most important historical source.[37]
Jane Calvert has argued that Dickinson was an earlyfeminist, partly attributable toQuaker culture. He believed that women were spiritually equal to men and deserved equal religious rights. Unlike many men of the era, Dickinson sought and took political counsel from women, particularly from his wife and his mother. Dickinson was also good friends with Quaker feministSusanna Wright and corresponded withCatharine Macaulay andMercy Otis Warren. He encouraged both Warren and Macaulay to continue writing. He bought books that detailed the lives of strong Quaker women. As a lawyer, Dickinson often defended poor women in court, including Rachel Francisco, a "freemollato" who had been charged with infanticide. In 1776, while drafting theArticles of Confederation, Dickinson proposed the first gender inclusive language in an American constitution.[38] In the proposed religious liberty clause, he wrote "No person or persons in any Colony living peaceably under the Civil Government shall be molested or prejudiced in his or their [his or her] persons or Estate for his or her religious persuasion or Practise, nor be compelled to frequent or maintain or contribute to maintain any religious Worship, Place of Worship, or Ministry, contrary to his or her Mind."[39]
Delaware elections were held October 1 and members of the General Assembly took office on October 20 or the following weekday. The State Legislative Council was created in 1776, and its legislative councilmen served a three-year term. Beginning in 1792, it was renamed the State Senate. State Assemblymen had a one-year term. The whole General Assembly chose the state president for a three-year term.
Pennsylvania elections were also held in October. Assemblymen had a one-year term. ThePennsylvania Supreme Executive Council was created in 1776, and counsellors were popularly elected for three-year terms. A joint ballot of thePennsylvania General Assembly and the Council chose the president from among the twelve counsellors for a one-year term. Both assemblies chose the Continental Congressmen for a one-year term as well as the delegates to theConstitutional Convention, which convened inPhiladelphia from May 25 to September 17, 1787.
| Delaware General Assembly service | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dates | Assembly | Chamber | Majority | Governor | Committees | District |
| 1781/82 | 6th | State House | non-partisan | Caesar Rodney | Kent at-large | |
| 1793 | 17th | State Senate | Republican | Joshua Clayton | New Castle at-large | |
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: publisher location (link){{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help){{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | President of Delaware 1781–1783 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President of Pennsylvania November 7, 1782 – October 18, 1785 | Succeeded by |
