James Cannon (1740–1782) was a Scottish-born

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

mathematician, and one of the principal draftsmen of the 1776 Constitution of the

State of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Maryl ...

Biography

Born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

in 1740, Cannon was educated at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and moved to Pennsylvania to continue his studies at

The Academy and College of Philadelphia The Academy and College of Philadelphia (1749-1791) was a boys' school and men's college in Philadelphia, Colony of Pennsylvania. Founded in 1749 by a group of local notables that included Benjamin Franklin, the Academy of Philadelphia began as a ...

, now the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

. He graduated with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in 1767 and returned in 1773 as a Professor of Mathematics, a position he held until his death in 1782. During the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

, Cannon was one of the leaders of a radical faction campaigning for independence, in opposition to

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

's majority support for an accommodation with Britain. The radical group included Cannon,

George Bryan George Bryan (1731January 27, 1791) was an Irish/American Pennsylvania businessman, and politician of the Revolutionary era. He served as the first vice-president of Pennsylvania (analogous to lieutenant governor) and its second president (g ...

, Timothy Matlack, Thomas Young and

Thomas Paine Thomas Paine (born Thomas Pain; – In the contemporary record as noted by Conway, Paine's birth date is given as January 29, 1736–37. Common practice was to use a dash or a slash to separate the old-style year from the new-style year. In th ...

. Cannon was a founder of the Philadelphia Society for the Promotion of American Manufactures, which organized citizens of Philadelphia in making woolen, linen and cotton fabrics. According to Christopher Marshall's diary, Cannon was a leading organizer in private meetings held to select radical candidates for the 1776 elections to the

Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly The Province of Pennsylvania, also known as the Pennsylvania Colony, was a British North American colony founded by William Penn after receiving a land grant from Charles II of England in 1681. The name Pennsylvania ("Penn's Woods") refers to Wi ...

. The moderate faction won a majority in the elections on May 1, 1776, but were outmaneuvered by the radicals, who successfully persuaded the

Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...

to resolve that all local governments deriving their authority from the British Crown should be "totally suppressed." This resolution hastened the end of British authority in the United States and effectively undermined the Charter and Assembly of Pennsylvania. On May 20 a public meeting of over 4,000 in the Philadelphia State House yard supported the resolution of Congress. The citizens called for a special constitutional convention to establish a new state government. The Provincial Assembly was denied any role in the formation of a new government and promptly voted itself out of existence. On July 15, 1776, Cannon became a member of the Constitutional Convention of Pennsylvania, and was put in charge of drafting the instructions for Pennsylvania's delegates to Congress. The Convention made him a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for Pennsylvania, and also enabled him to serve as a member of the Council of Safety from July 24, 1776, to December 4, 1777. Cannon is regarded as one of the two principal draftsmen of the Constitution of 1776. Drawing on the language of the Declaration of Independence, the new constitution conferred detailed rights on citizens and enfranchised all tax-paying free men, who would vote in annual elections for a

unicameral legislature Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multic ...

. This radical constitution was replaced in 1790 by a more cautious document. Cannon died on January 28, 1782, in Philadelphia.

References

Penn in the 18th Century: James Cannon

(Independence Hall Association)
Doc Heritage: Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776

External links

University of Pennsylvania
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cannon, James 1740 births 1782 deaths 18th-century American mathematicians Mathematicians from Philadelphia British emigrants to the Thirteen Colonies People of Pennsylvania in the American Revolution Scottish emigrants to the United States University of Pennsylvania alumni Scientists from Edinburgh Alumni of the University of Edinburgh