Thomas Pownall - Early Life

Early Life

Thomas Pownall was the eldest son of William and Sarah (Burniston) Pownall. Baptised 4 September 1722 (New Style) in Lincoln, England, his father was a country gentleman and soldier whose poor health and early death in 1735 caused the family to fall upon hard times. Thomas was educated at Lincoln and at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated in 1743. His education exposed him to classic and current philosophers, and the sciences. His first publication, a treatise on the origins of government published in 1752, began as notes developed at Cambridge.

During his years at Cambridge, his younger brother John acquired a job at the Board of Trade, which oversaw British colonial affairs, and rapidly rose in the bureaucracy. The brothers were influential supporters of each other in their efforts to advance. John secured a job for Thomas in the colonial office, where he was exposed to the possibilities for advancement and influence in colonial postings. In 1753 he went to America as private secretary to Sir Danvers Osborne, just appointed governor of New York. Osborne committed suicide several days after reaching New York, leaving Pownall without a job and a sponsor. Pownall chose to remain in America, devoting himself to studying the condition of the American colonies. In the following months he traveled widely, from Maryland to Massachusetts. He was introduced into the highest circles of leadership and society in the colonies, and established relationships with a number of influential people, including Benjamin Franklin and Massachusetts Governor William Shirley.

One item of importance that Governor Osborne had been instructed to deal with was rising discontent among the Iroquois. Pownall had studied the matter, and he was consequently invited by his Pennsylvania connections to attend the 1754 Albany Congress as an observer. His observations on the nature of colonial dealings with the Indians (including political infighting for control of the Indian trade, and the corrupt and fraudulent acquisition of Indian lands) led him to propose the establishment of a crown-appointed superintendent of Indian affairs, specifically William Johnson, New York's commissioner for Indian affairs. He also articulated visions for managing the expansion of the colonies to the west. After the conference he returned to Philadelphia. In this time he apparently cemented a close friendship with Franklin, with whom he began to invest in business ventures. The failure of Franklin's proposals for uniting the colonies at the Albany conference may have contributed to Pownall's writings, although the exact nature of Franklin's influence is unclear. While in Philadelphia he also established a close collaboration with cartographer Lewis Evans, both of whom recognized the need for accurate maps of the inland regions of North America then being disputed with New France in the French and Indian War. The map Evans published in 1755 was dedicated to Pownall, and brought the latter wide publicity. Pownall's recommendation of Johnson as superintendent of Indian affairs was also implemented by the crown in 1755.