Thomas Fitzwater (died 1699) was a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...

preacher, a civic leader, and was among the first English settlers of colonial Pennsylvania. He arrived in America along with

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer, religious thinker, and influential Quakers, Quaker who founded the Province of Pennsylvania during the British colonization of the Americas, British colonial era. An advocate of democracy and religi ...

, the founder of the colony.

Biography

Fitzwater is recorded as being from

Hanworth Hanworth is a district of West London, England. Historically in Middlesex, it has been part of the London Borough of Hounslow since 1965. Hanworth adjoins Feltham to the northwest, Twickenham to the northeast and Hampton, London, Hampton to the ...

Kingston-on-Thames Kingston upon Thames, colloquially known as Kingston, is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, south-west London, England. It is situated on the River Thames, south-west of Charing Cross. It is an ancient market town, notable as ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. In England he was considered a

husbandman A husbandman in England in the Middle Ages and the early modern period was a small landowner. The social status of a husbandman was below that of a yeoman. The meaning of "husband" in this term is "master of house" rather than " married man". A ...

(small scale farmer) and was active in local Quaker leadership since at least 1669, evidenced by his recorded participation in various monthly and quarterly meetings. In 1672, he married Mary Cheney. He and his family departed England from the port at

Deal, Kent Deal is a coastal town in Kent, England, which lies where the North Sea and the English Channel meet, north-east of Dover, England, Dover and south of Ramsgate. It is a former fishing, mining and garrison town whose history is closely linked t ...

aboard the ''Welcome'' in August 1682, with the intent to participate in Penn's

Holy Experiment The "Holy Experiment" was an attempt by the Religious Society of Friends, also known as Quakers, to establish a community for themselves and other persecuted religious minorities in what would become the modern state of Pennsylvania. They hoped i ...

. He brought along an

indentured servant Indentured servitude is a form of Work (human activity), labor in which a person is contracted to work without salary for a specific number of years. The contract called an "indenture", may be entered voluntarily for a prepaid lump sum, as paymen ...

. The ship suffered a serious

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by Variola virus (often called Smallpox virus), which belongs to the genus '' Orthopoxvirus''. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (W ...

outbreak during its voyage, which killed almost 1/3 of the passengers. In Fitzwater's family, his wife Mary and children Josiah and Mary died; two sons, Thomas and George, survived the journey. William Penn granted Fitzwater 300 acres, and Fitzwater later purchased additional land. In 1683 Fitzwater was a charter member of the Pennsylvania Assembly, representing

Bucks County Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...

; during this term he participated in the committee that drafted the colony's

Frame of Government A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...

, a proto-constitution. He later represented

Philadelphia County Philadelphia County is the most populous of the 67 counties of Pennsylvania and the 24th-most populous county in the nation. As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 1,603,797. It is coextensive with Philadelphia, the nation's ...

for two terms, and served one year as Philadelphia County

coroner A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death. The official may also investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within th ...

. He was a member of the first ever Pennsylvania

grand jury A grand jury is a jury empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a person to testify. A grand ju ...

, which was convened to adjudicate a case of

counterfeit A counterfeit is a fake or unauthorized replica of a genuine product, such as money, documents, designer items, or other valuable goods. Counterfeiting generally involves creating an imitation of a genuine item that closely resembles the original ...

ing Spanish silver coins. Fitzwater was involved in church leadership and in 1685, 1687, and 1688 served as a representative to the

Philadelphia Yearly Meeting The Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends, or simply the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, or PYM, is the central organizing body for Quaker meetings in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States area, including parts of Pen ...

. He was heavily involved in a conflict with the leader of a breakaway Quaker group, George Keith, and denounced Keith at the Yearly Meeting in 1692. Fitzwater discovered

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

on his property. He petitioned the Provincial Council in 1693 to build a road to get the lime from his kilns to Philadelphia, where it could be used in building mortar. This road which became known as Limekiln Pike was the first road built in Upper Dublin. At the time of his death in 1699, he owned at least one

slave Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

Namesakes

Several things in the region of Fitzwater's homestead bear his name, most notably Thomas Fitzwater Elementary School, Fitzwatertown Road, and Fitzwatertown.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitzwater, Thomas Quakers from Pennsylvania 1699 deaths Members of the Pennsylvania Provincial Assembly

Biography

Namesakes

See also

References