Francis Hopkinson

Francis Hopkinson. Image from "The Cyclopaedia of American Literature" (1880).

Francis Hopkinson (born October 2, 1737 in Philadelphia , Province of Pennsylvania , colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain , today USA ; † May 9, 1791 ibid) signed the United States' Declaration of Independence and is thus one of the American founding fathers .

Life

Hopkinson graduated from the College of Philadelphia and decided to prepare for a legal profession after graduating in 1763. After he was admitted to the bar in 1765, he spent two years in England . After his return in 1768 he received a lucrative public position in the government of New Jersey , which he kept until his participation in the Continental Congress 1776-1777. In 1779 he was appointed a judge in the Pennsylvania Department of the Navy and in 1790 a federal district judge of the same state. He was an elected member of the American Philosophical Society .

Hopkinson is the author of several songs, many political, poems, anti-British pamphlets and comedies, which were widely used because of their humorous satire and which powerfully helped to awaken and promote the spirit of political independence that led to the American independence movement .

His main works are "The Pretty Story" 1774, "The Prophecy" 1776 and "The Political Catchism" 1777. Of his songs, "The Treaty", "The Battle of the Kegs" (1778) and "The New Roof" should be mentioned , a song for Federal Mechanics ". His best-known satirical pieces are “Typographical Method of Conducting a Quarrel”, “Essay on White Washing” and “Modern Learning” as well as the pamphlet “A letter written by a foreigner on the character of the English nation” (1778). His "Miscellaneous Essays and Occasional Writings" was published in 1792 in Philadelphia in three volumes.

He died of a seizure at the age of 53. Some historians believe that Hopkinson, and not Betsy Ross, designed the official "First Flag of the United States ". However, he is considered the first American-born composer and writer of a traditional song.

Award

The block with spring on the sheet of a sail, awarded in 1790

1790 Magellanic Premium for the description of a block with a spring to reduce the forces acting during sailing in gusts ( English spring-block )

source

Encyclopædia Britannica from 1881

Web links

Commons : Francis Hopkinson - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Francis Hopkinson in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
Hopkinson and the flag at www.usflag.org (English)

Individual evidence

^ Member History: Francis Hopkinson. American Philosophical Society, accessed October 3, 2018 .
↑ Hopkinson, Francis , in: Der Literatur Brockhaus , Vol. 2, Mannheim 1988, p. 223.
^ ^A ^b Francis Hopkinson: Description of a Spring-Block, Designed to Assist a Vessel in Sailing . In: Transactions of the American Philosophical Society 3, 1793, pp. 331-333, doi : 10.2307 / 1004885 .
^ The Magellanic Premium of the American Philosophical Society , website of the APS . Retrieved October 29, 2019.

personal data
SURNAME	Hopkinson, Francis
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Founding Father of the United States
DATE OF BIRTH	October 2, 1737
PLACE OF BIRTH	Philadelphia , Pennsylvania
DATE OF DEATH	May 9, 1791
Place of death	Philadelphia , Pennsylvania

[1] Member History: Francis Hopkinson. American Philosophical Society, accessed October 3, 2018 .

[2] Hopkinson, Francis , in: Der Literatur Brockhaus , Vol. 2, Mannheim 1988, p. 223.

[hopkinson-3] A ^b Francis Hopkinson: Description of a Spring-Block, Designed to Assist a Vessel in Sailing . In: Transactions of the American Philosophical Society 3, 1793, pp. 331-333, doi : 10.2307 / 1004885 .

[4] The Magellanic Premium of the American Philosophical Society , website of the APS . Retrieved October 29, 2019.