William Rawle (April 28, 1759 – April 12, 1836) was an American lawyer from Philadelphia, who served as United States district attorney in Pennsylvania from 1791 to 1800. He founded The Rawle Law Offices in 1798 which evolved into Rawle & Henderson, the oldest law firm in the United States. He was the first chancellor of the Philadelphia bar association and published several influential legal texts including A View of the Constitution of the United States. He was the first to argue for secession in the United States.
Rawle was born in on April 28, 1758, in Philadelphia, to Francis Rawle and Rebecca (Warner) Rawle.[1] His father died when William was 2 years old and his stepfather, Samuel Shoemaker, was a British Loyalist and mayor of Philadelphia during the British occupation of the city during the American Revolutionary War. He attended Friends Academy in Philadelphia.[2] Rawle and his family fled to New York when the British abandoned the city in 1778.[3] He studied law in New York and sailed to Europe in 1781 to continue his legal education and attended the Middle Temple in London at the recommendation of William Eden.[2] His letters at the time show that he was frustrated that equality in England was less than in the United States.[4] He returned to Philadelphia in 1783 and his admission was aided by a hand-written passport from Benjamin Franklin in his role as United States Ambassador to France.[5] He was admitted to the Philadelphia bar in 1783.[6]
He founded The Rawle Law Offices in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1783. It evolved into Rawle & Henderson which is still in existence and the oldest law firm in the United States.[8][9] In October 1787,[10] he was elected as a Federalist member of the Pennsylvania Assembly and served for one year.[3]
He was an abolitionist and a founding member of the Quaker Society that in 1775 advocated for slavery to be abolished. This society became the Pennsylvania Abolition Society and Rawle served as president for the organization and the Maryland Society for the Abolition of Slavery. In 1805, he argued before the United States Supreme Court against the concept that slavery was constitutional.[21]
Rawle died on April 12, 1836, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.[7]
Personal life
In 1783, he was married to Sarah Coates Burge and together they had twelve children.[1] Their son William Rawle Jr., was also a lawyer and married Mary Anna Tilghman, the granddaughter of Chief Justice Benjamin Chew.[9]
In 1844, his 27-acre estate in Philadelphia was purchased by Laurel Hill Cemetery and used as an extension of the cemetery originally named South Laurel Hill.[24]
Rawle & Henderson law practice named their William Rawle Community Service Award in Rawle's honor.[21]
In 1992, Temple University Beasley School of Law established the Rawle Collection of the law library of Rawle and his descendents from 1783 to 1860. The collection is displayed in the Rawle Reading Room in the Temple Law Library.[12]
Published works
Vindication of Rev. Mr. Heckewelder's 'History of the Indian Nations' (1818)[25]