Most people know the words “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal”—but few know the story of the man who helped shape the ideas behind them.
As a young lawyer, James Wilson made a celebrated case for American independence in an essay that Thomas Jefferson had on his desk as he drafted the Declaration of Independence. He wrote the first draft of the Constitution and, along with the more widely known James Madison, played perhaps the essential role in its ultimate creation.
Wilson added its opening words, “We the people,” because he believed that the people are the ultimate source of all power. He argued successfully for a strong central government and a powerful presidency and fought unsuccessfully for a direct vote for the president and the Senate. Appointed as one of the first justices of the Supreme Court, he was later brought down by reckless land speculation and died of malaria in the back room of a North Carolina tavern while hiding from his creditors.
Instead of being remembered as one of the nation’s great political thinkers, Wilson was virtually written out of history. Author Jesse Wegman brings to life one of America’s most prescient early patriots and his remarkable, complicated legacy.
Wegman’s newest book, The Lost Founder: James Wilson and the Forgotten Fight for a People's Constitution (Celadon Books), is available for purchase.
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