Pulitzer Prize Biography Winner
Edmund Pendleton 1721–1803
by David J. Mays
Summary
David J. Mays recounts the life of Edmund Pendleton, a Virginia lawyer and judge who guided the colony and young state through the Revolution. The study follows Pendleton as he presided over Virginia conventions, rivaled Patrick Henry, and helped build the legal foundations of the new republic. It stands out for restoring attention to a quiet but pivotal founder whose name had faded from public memory.
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Historical Context & Significance
Mays spent decades researching the biography of a founder whose papers had largely been lost in a courthouse fire.