Alexander Stedman (101)

Alexander Stedman (1703–1794) was a public official and a member of the American Philosophical Society, elected in 1768. Born in Kinross, Scotland, he received a legal education and fought on the Jacobite side at Culloden before escaping military imprisonment and making his way to Philadelphia. He then opened a dry goods shop with his brother Charles. The two accumulated considerable wealth by investing the profits from this venture in farmlands and ironworks. Debts would later oblige Stedman to sell these holdings but not before he had established himself in public office. He was elected to the Philadelphia Common Council in 1755, and three years later he was elected mayor though he declined the office. A supporter of the proprietary faction, he was appointed associate judge of the city court (1756), presiding judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County and of the Orphans Court (1758), and judge of the Supreme Court of the Province (1764). Reportedly a “profound mathematician,” Stedman exhibited an orrery called “The Microcosm; or, The World in Miniature” with his brother and owned one of the largest private libraries in the city. He was also an original member of the St. Andrew’s Society, a contributor to the Pennsylvania Hospital, a warden of Christ Church, and a trustee of the College of Philadelphia. Stedman signed the Non-Importation Agreement but became increasingly Loyalist in his sentiments. He was arrested on suspicion of disloyalty in 1777. Upon his release he found sanctuary with the British army in New York, but he was then charged with treason and his property was confiscated. He spent the rest of his life in exile in Britain, dying in Swansea, Wales, after being granted a pension by the Loyalist Claims Commission. (PI)