About the Author

William Rawle was born in Philadelphia on April 28, 1759 to Francis and Rebecca (Warner) Rawle. A Quaker by religion, he received his early education at the Friends' Academy in Philadelphia, and later studied law in New York and London. He was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 1783 and founded The Rawle Law Offices in Philadelphia, which continues to exist to this day. In 1791, President George Washington appointed Rawle U.S. District Attorney for Pennsylvania and it was in this capacity that he prosecuted the leaders of the Whiskey Rebellion. He served as president of both the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Abolition Society. Rawle died in 1836.