As the only individual to serve as Supreme Court Justice and sign both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, James Wilson played a pivotal role in America’s founding. 

A man from humble beginnings, Wilson was born in Carskerdo, Scotland in 1742. At age 15, he left to study at the University of St. Andrews, preparing for a life of ministry. However, Wilson took particular interest in the ideals of the Scottish Enlightenment, which shaped his political philosophy early on. 

He traveled across the Atlantic in search of a new life of opportunity. When he arrived, he began studying law under prominent attorney John Dickinson. It was not long before Wilson became a distinguished lawyer and known opponent of the Crown. He published a pamphlet in 1774 that influenced the Declaration. In it, he said:

“All men are, by nature, equal and free: no one has a right to any authority over another without his consent: all lawful government is founded on the consent of those who are subject to it: such consent was given with a view to endure and to increase the happiness of the governed.”

In addition to shaping and signing the Declaration of Independence, Wilson helped craft the framework of the Constitution, rising to speak more than 140 times. Many scholars consider him one of the most consequential delegates in Philadelphia. He played a critical role in instituting popular sovereignty, a single executive, and the Electoral College. He delivered the first official defense of the Constitution, in which he countered detractors like George Mason and Elbridge Gerry, proclaiming that the Constitution “is the best form of government which has ever been offered to the world.” Nearly 250 years later, his prophetic words still ring true.