page_title: William Penn
section_title: Family
hierarchical_section_title: William Penn / Biography / Family
caption_attribution_description: English: Hannah Callowhill Penn, by John Hesselius
context_page_description: William Penn was the son of the admiral and politician Sir William Penn. Penn was a writer, early member of the Religious Society of Friends, and founder of the English North American colony the Province of Pennsylvania. He was an early advocate of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful treaties with the Lenape Native Americans. Under his direction, the city of Philadelphia was planned and developed. Philadelphia was planned out to be grid-like with its streets and be very easy to navigate, unlike London where Penn was from. The streets are named with numbers and tree names. He chose to use the names of trees for the cross streets because Pennsylvania means "Penn's Woods".
  In 1681, King Charles II handed over a large piece of his North American land holdings along the North Atlantic Ocean coast to Penn to pay the debts the king had owed to Penn's father. This land included the present-day states of Pennsylvania and Delaware. Penn immediately set sail and took his first step on American soil, sailing up the Delaware Bay and Delaware River, in New Castle in 1682.
context_section_description: Penn first married Gulielma Maria Posthuma Springett (1644–1694), daughter of William S. Springett (the Posthuma in her name indicates that her father had died prior to her birth) and Lady Mary Proude Penington. They had three sons and five daughters:
  Gulielma Maria (1671/72-before 1685)
  Maria Margaret (born and died 1673/74)
  Springett (1674/75-1696)
  Letitia (1678–1746), who married William Awbrey (Aubrey)
  William, Jr. (1679/80-1720)
  Unnamed child (born and died 1682)
  Gulielma Maria (1685–1689)
  Two years after Gulielma's death he married Hannah Margaret Callowhill (1671–1726), daughter of Thomas Callowhill and Anna (Hannah) Hollister. William Penn married Hannah when she was 25 and he was 52. They had eight children in twelve years. The first two children died in infancy. The other children were:
  Unnamed daughter (born and died 1697)
  John Penn (1699/00–1746), never married.
  Thomas Penn (1700/01–1775), married Lady Juliana Fermor, fourth daughter of Thomas, first Earl of Pomfret.
  Hannah Penn (1703–1706)
  Margaret Penn (1704/05–1750), married Thomas Freame (1701/02-1746) nephew of John Freame, founder of Barclays Bank
  Richard Penn Sr. (1705–1771)
  Dennis Penn (1705/06–1721/22)
  Hannah Penn (1708–1709)
  Louis Penn (1707–1724)
caption: Hannah Callowhill Penn
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