Thomas McKean, An Obscure Founding Father
"The name Thomas McKean (pronounced McCune) does not ring a lot of revolutionary bells, yet when you review the facts he played important roles in Pennsylvania, Delaware and American history.... He had honorary doctorates conferred upon him by Penn, Princeton and Dartmouth. McKean County is named for him as is Keap Street in Brooklyn NY. That’s because the city fathers of New York had trouble reading his name on the Declaration of Independence."
- Mark Ashton, Chester County: A Modern History
Early Life
Thomas McKean was born on March 19, 1734 in New London Township in Chester County, PA. His grandfather William McKean came to colonial Pennsylvania in 1725, and settled on a a 300-acre plantation in Chester County. Thomas was educated at the New London Academy under the direction of Rev. Francis Allison. After receiving basic education in PA, he was sent to Wilmington, Delaware to study law under his cousin David Finney. He excelled in his practice, and was appointed as a clerk to the prothonotary of the Court of Common Pleas. Thomas moved up quickly and was appointed as a lawyer in the Court of Common Pleas, representing the “Lower Counties" of Delaware.
His home is gone, but the sign is still there.
A Man of Every Position
In 1765, Thomas and Caesar Rodney were appointed delegates to the Stamp Act Congress where he made a proposal to change the voting procedure that is used today in the United States Senate. The Stamp Act Congress was disbanded the same year after a dispute between McKean and the chairman of the Congress Timothy Ruggles, who turned to be a leading tory.
Thomas was appointed as a delegate, representing Delaware, to the First Continental Congress in 1774. He was also in the Second Continental Congress in 1775 where the discussion of independence from the British began. While serving as a delegate for Delaware, Thomas became the Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in July 1777. Two months later, he was elected the second governor of Delaware after the first governor was captured by the British.
After serving 22 years as a chief justice, he resigned his position to be the second governor of Pennsylvania, becoming the only man to be elected governor in two different states.
Bibliography
Bomboy, Scott. "Thomas McKean: A Founding Father with a double life." National Constitution Center. March 19, 2023. https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/thomas-mckean-looking-at-a-most-interesting-founding-father.
"Thomas McKean." Descendants of the Signers of the Declaration of Independence. Accessed March 15, 2025. https://www.dsdi1776.com/signer/thomas-mckean/.