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Joseph Priestley headed for America in 1794 at the age of 61 to seek refuge from oppression due to his religious faith and political activism, especially since his liberal political views isolated him in a conservative world. Priestley was a dissenter and thus was not part of the Anglican Church and therefore a second class citizen with restricted rights and privileges. Eventually, Priestley’s home in Birmingham, England was sacked by a mob due to his outspoken status as a dissenter, and this served as his major motivation for coming to Pennsylvania. Also, while in England, Priestley’s scientific discoveries helped him forge a friendship with Benjamin Franklin. This relationship gave Priestley insight into the United State’s political situation, and probably served as another motivating factor for Priestley’s departure to America.
Priestley chose to settle in Northumberland, rather than Philadelphia, because his three grown sons had settled in Northumberland ahead of him. He and Mary wished to be close to them, especially once they discovered Northumberland to be less crowded and expensive than Philadelphia. Priestley’s home in Northumberland, Pennsylvania was known for its Georgian style, and it was custom designed by Mary Priestly to facilitate her husband’s intellectual pursuits. Priestley’s personal library of hundreds upon hundreds of books serves as evidence enough of Priestley’s intellectual appetite. Today, Priestley’s house, a National Historic Landmark, still stands as a place of historical significance in Northumberland. Though Priestley lived a comfortable life, his initial arrival to Pennsylvania was difficult, as his son, Henry, died in 1795, followed by his Mrs. Priestley in 1796.
While in Pennsylvania, Priestley continued to pursue his interests of religion, chemistry, politics, and education.
Priestley’s contributions to chemical science are numerous. Prior to his arrival in America, Priestley discovered oxygen and perfected a method for making soda water, earning him the prestigious Copley Medal of the Royal Society of London. While in Pennsylvania, Priestley also discovered carbon monoxide. Priestley preferred to work out of his home and had one of the first scientific labs in North America. It is presumed that Priestley’s sons, daughter, grandchildren, or servants helped in his Northumberland laboratory, but since Priestley has no known coauthors, it is difficult to know for sure who assisted him.
Priestley was deeply religious and believed that a better understanding of the world around him would strengthen his faith. This lead Priestley to continue preaching, and in 1796, he found the first Unitarian church in Pennsylvania. Though Priestley meant well with his religious endeavors, his outspoken behavior often made him the mark of harsh criticisms.
Priestley became friends with Thomas Jefferson, who considered Priestley to have one of the best political minds of their time. Also, Priestly’s ideas regarding education became the basis of liberal arts education as Jefferson designed the educational curriculum at the University of Virginia around many of them. Likewise, Priestley was instrumental in founding the short-lived Northumberland Academy, taking his zeal for education to his new hometown by attempting to place the first publicly supported college in Pennsylvania there.
Priestley died in his home in Northumberland in 1804. His remains are buried with his wife, son and several subsequent family members at the Riverview Cemetery.
Priestley left behind an active family legacy, and the next four generations of Priestley’s lived in Northumberland. All of them were civic-minded, active individuals whose legacies can still be seen in the Joseph Priestly Memorial Chapel, which was founded in 1834 in part by Priestley’s grandson, Joseph Rayner Priestley, and the Priestley-Forsyth Memorial Library, which was founded in the 1900s by Priestley’s great, great granddaughters.
Above Information from Brooke Dearman & Proceedings and Addresses Vol. XXII (see bibliography)
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