Cyprian was born in 1745, probably in London. His father, a merchant of Huguenot extraction, was a member of the London Stock Exchange and a member of the Society of Friends. Cyprian's mother, Elizabeth, was the daughter of a wealthy Philadelphia tea merchant. He started his education at age eight at a school run by John Towne, a Quaker who later became a noted American portrait painter
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In 1766 Cyprian entered the University of Pennsylvania to study theology and moral philosophy but he gave up his studies after one year because he could not reconcile himself to following Jesus Christ from the comfort of an armchair while others were suffering from extreme poverty and deprivation. During his time at college he became a regular visitor to a bookstore operated by Benjamin Franklin and read everything he could lay his hands on. He got involved in debating societies and began to write satirical political cartoons for local newspapers.
In 1773 he started working as a traveling bookseller and peddler selling books on religion, philosophy, science, politics, etc.