Alexander Wilson
emigrated to Philadelphia 1795 · Scottish
Biography
Alexander Wilson was a Scottish poet who emigrated to Philadelphia in 1795 and became the composer of the well-known ballad 'Connell and Flora' and the author of the first American work on ornithology, the first book to treat the birds native to the country in a systematic way; it was published, despite considerable financial risk, by the Philadelphia publisher Samuel Bradford and made Wilson famous among scientific circles. Wilson recalled in 1810 spending many pleasant hours in 1797 with an 'ingenious and learned Scotty,' a Scottish pianoforte-maker in Philadelphia who had devised a change to the pianoforte's shape and sent examples to Paris and London; Spillane identifies this maker as Charles Taws.
Highlights
- Composed the Scottish ballad 'Connell and Flora' and wrote the first American work on ornithology.
- Recalled in 1810 spending time in 1797 with an ingenious Scottish pianoforte-maker in Philadelphia, identified by Spillane as Charles Taws.
Source
Daniel Spillane, History of the American Pianoforte (1890), p. 78.
Public domain.