American Philosophical Society
Member History

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1Name:  George Duffield
 Year Elected:  1779
 Residency:  Resident
 Living? :   Deceased
 Birth Date:  1732
 Death Date:  2/2/1790
   
2Name:  James Hutchinson
 Year Elected:  1779
 Residency:  Resident
 Living? :   Deceased
 Birth Date:  1/29/1752
 Death Date:  9/6/1793
   
 
James Hutchinson (29 January 1752–6 September 1793) was a physician, an activist, and a member of the American Philosophical Society, elected in 1779. He was born in Bucks County, Pennsylvania to a Quaker family, and began his medical studies as a young man, first through an apprenticeship to druggists and, in 1771, as a student to APS Member Cadwalader Evans. Hutchinson worked as an apothecary while earning his Bachelor’s of Medicine degree from the College of Philadelphia. In 1775, he travelled to London and, urged by APS Member John Fothergill, studied surgery at St. Bartholomew's Hospital. Upon his return to Philadelphia, Hutchinson worked as a surgeon, physician, and obstetrician at Pennsylvania Hospital and a professor of chemistry at the newly formed University of Pennsylvania. He was a founder of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia and became a member of the Philadelphia Medical Society in 1792. During the American Revolutionary War, Hutchinson worked as a surgeon for both the army and the navy, but his service and his passionate support of the American cause were at odds with the pacifist principles of his Quaker upbringing. He was disowned by the Society of Friends in 1779. His support of American independence drove him to politics, first as an elected official in the state assembly and later as a vocal agitator and founder of the Pennsylvania Democratic Society. An ideological anti-Federalist and supporter of Thomas Jefferson, he made public calls for American governmental support for the French Revolution. In August 1793, Hutchinson fell ill while treating patients during the outbreak of yellow fever in Philadelphia, and died a week later. (ANB)
 
3Name:  Charles Pettit
 Year Elected:  1779
 Residency:  Resident
 Living? :   Deceased
 Birth Date:  1736
 Death Date:  9/3/1806
   
 
Charles Pettit (1736–03 September 1806) was a merchant, a public official, and a member of the American Philosophical Society, elected in 1779. He was born near Amwell, NJ, and he found himself connected to a wealthy and influential family, the Reeds, through his marriage to Sarah Reed in 1758. He originally planned to make a career as a lawyer and was admitted to the bar in 1770, but, with the help of his wife’s half-brother, APS Member Joseph Reed, instead began a long career in politics and public service. Beginning in 1767, Pettit held some local offices in New Jersey, and in 1771, he became an aide to New Jersey Governor William Franklin. Pettit distanced himself from Franklin, a Loyalist, at the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, and, declaring his allegiance to the patriot cause, continued to serve under the new governor, William Livingston. He reluctantly served in the Continental Army from 1778 to 1781 as an assistant quartermaster general, responsible for keeping detailed records of military spending and cash flow. This work both utilized and strengthened his keen financial sensibilities, which served him well after the war when he became a notable and successful import merchant and created Pennsylvania’s funding system. Between 1785 and 1747, he served on several committees of the Continental Congress, including the Committee on Domestic Debt, the Committee on the System of Federal Revenue, and the Committee on Foreign Affairs. Throughout the latter part of his long career, Pettit strove for national political office; in the late 1780s, he ran for a seat in the U.S. Congress and pursued the post of Treasury Secretary, but was unsuccessful in both efforts. However, in 1802, he was appointed to chair a national committee during Thomas Jefferson’s administration. He died in Philadelphia in 1806. (ANB)
 
Election Year
1779[X]