Thomas Hopkinson
American lawyer (1709-1751)
Thomas Hopkinson (April 6, 1709 – November 5, 1751) was a lawyer, public official, and prominent figure in colonial Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Early life
Thomas Hopkinson was born in London, on April 6, 1709, the son of Mary Hopkinson, and Thomas Hopkinson, a London scrivener and a member of Middle Temple. He was educated there, attending Oxford University (but not graduating) and then studying law at London. He then immigrated about 1731 to Pennsylvania, where he became a merchant, lawyer, judge, and natural philosopher, as well as a friend of Benjamin Franklin.
Career
He worked with Franklin on several of his experiments on electricity and was a member of the Junto. As a young barrister, he was appointed deputy to Charles Read, Clerk of the Orphans' Court of Philadelphia. Upon his death, he was commissioned as his successor on January 20, 1736–7, filling that position until November 5, 1751, when he died. On the same date, he was commissioned Master of Rolls for the city, serving until 1741.
Hopkinson held a number of legal and judicial positions, including Justice (1749), and Judge of the Vice Admiralty of the Province (1744-5). He was also a member of the Provincial (1747), and Common Councils (1741).
The public source identifies “Thomas Hopkinson” as american lawyer (1709-1751). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Thomas, Hopkinson and American.
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Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7790801. VIAF identifies the subject as 30908786. The Library of Congress control number is n83041869. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1709, 1751, 1731 and 1736.
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This entry incorporates text from “Thomas Hopkinson” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.