Known for

• 2nd President of Delaware (1777)​

• Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1777-1799)

• 2nd Governor of Pennsylvania (1799-1808)

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During 1776

• Delegate for Delaware

• Age: 42

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Background

• Born: 1734 in the  New London Township, Pennsylvania

  • His parents were Irish Presbyterians ("Scotch-Irish": Irish people who can trace their roots to Scotland)​

• Education: College of Philadelphia (later UPenn)

• Spouse: Mary Borden (m. 1763, d. 1773), Sarah Armitage (m. 1774)

• ​Children: 10 (6 with Mary Borden, 4 with Sarah Armitage)

• Slaveowning

  • Did not own slaves

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Personal beliefs

• Politics: Patriot/Whig

  • During the Stamp Act Congress of 1765, McKean proposed the voting procedure that the Continental Congress later adopted: each colony, regardless of size or population, would have one vote

  • The effective leader for American independence in Delaware

  • Informed Caesar Rodney of Delaware's split vote on July 1, prompting Rodney to ride to Philadelphia to cast a tiebreaker vote

  • Was sometimes at political odds with George Read; however, they also did effectively work together, for example during the Delaware constitutional convention (where Read was president) where the Delaware Constitution of 1776 — drafted by McKean — was passed

  • Over the course of the years following the vote for independence, McKean was forced to relocate his family 5 times

• Religion: Presbyterian