Samuel Blatchford
Samuel Blatchford | |
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Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States | |
In office April 3, 1882 – July 7, 1893[1] | |
Nominated by | Chester Arthur |
Preceded by | Ward Hunt |
Succeeded by | Edward White |
Judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit | |
In office March 4, 1878 – March 22, 1882 | |
Nominated by | Rutherford Hayes |
Preceded by | Alexander Johnson |
Succeeded by | William Wallace |
Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York | |
In office May 3, 1867 – March 4, 1878 | |
Nominated by | Andrew Johnson |
Preceded by | Samuel Betts |
Succeeded by | William Choate |
Personal details | |
Born | Columbia College (BA) | March 9, 1820
Signature | |
Samuel M. Blatchford (March 9, 1820 – July 7, 1893) was an American attorney and judge who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from April 3, 1882, until his death in 1893.
Early life and career
Blatchford was born in
Blatchford studied law under Seward and then entered into the private practice of law with his father and uncle.[4] In 1854, he moved to New York City and started a law firm, Blatchford, Seward & Griswold, now known as Cravath, Swaine & Moore.[5] He became well known for preparing summaries of United States circuit court cases, serving for a time as reporter of decisions for the Circuit Court in New York, and developed a lucrative practice in admiralty law.
On May 3, 1867, Blatchford received a recess appointment from President Andrew Johnson to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York vacated by Samuel Betts.[6] Formally nominated on July 13, 1867, Blatchford was confirmed by the United States Senate three days later, receiving his commission the same day.[6]
On February 15, 1878, President
Supreme Court of the United States
On March 13, 1882, Blatchford was
Blatchford was an expert in admiralty law and patent law, and authored Blatchford and Howland's Admiralty Cases, which was considered the most complete work of its kind. During his eleven-year tenure on the High Court, he wrote 430 opinions and two dissents. His most noteworthy opinions, Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway Co. v. Minnesota, and Budd v. People of New York, were roundly criticized for their apparently contradictory conclusions about due process under the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.[8]
Personal life
Blatchford's father was a well known
His grandfather, also named Samuel Blatchford, was born in England and was the first president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The younger Samuel Blatchford was educated at Columbia College, where he joined the Philolexian Society and graduated when he was 17 years old. In 1840, he served as the private secretary to Governor William H. Seward. In 1844, Blatchford was married to Caroline Frances Appleton (1817–1881) in Boston. Caroline was the daughter of Eben Appleton and Sarah (née Patterson) Appleton. Together, they had one son:[13] Samuel Appleton Blatchford (1845–1905), also a lawyer who married Wilhelmina Bogart Conger (1848–1944), daughter of Hon. Abraham B. Conger, the namesake of Congers, New York.[13]
On what he thought was inside information, Blatchford sold all his shares of stock on the eve of the Battle of Fort Sumter and the decline in stock prices that took place at the onset of the American Civil War, thus preserving his personal fortune.[14]
Blatchford served as a trustee of Columbia College.
In June 1893, he was stricken with paralysis at his home in Newport, Rhode Island on Greenough Place.[15][16] Blatchford died at his home in Newport at age 73 on July 7, 1893.[2] After a funeral service at the All Saints' Chapel in Newport conducted by Bishop Henry C. Potter (his brother-in-law Edward Tuckerman Potter's brother),[17] his body was transported by train to New York City where he was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn.[18]
In his will, which was drawn on June 15, 1876, he left $100,000 to Rachel Bliss Beckwith and $20,000 to Cordelia F. Green. To his widow, he left the furniture and artwork in his Newport home and the income from half of his estate.[19] His son received the other half of the income and split the realty with his mother. Upon his wife's death, one-third of her share of the realty went to Rachel Beckwith, a third to Julia Maria Potter, and the remaining third to his unmarried sister, Sophia Ethelinda Blatchford.[19]
See also
References
- ^ a b "Justices 1789 to Present". Washington, D.C.: Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
- ^ Newspapers.com.
- ^ Blatchford, Eliphalet Wilkes (1912). Blatchford Memorial II: A Genealogical Record of the Family of Rev. Samuel Blatchford, D.D. Chicago, IL: E. W. Blatchford. pp. 67–69, 85.
- ^ Bancroft, Frederic (1900). The Life of William H. Seward. Vol. I. New York, NY: Harper & Brothers. p. 182. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021 – via Google Books.
- ^ In Memoriam: Samuel Blatchford. Washington, DC: United States Supreme Court. 1893. p. 19. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c d e Samuel M. Blatchford at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
- ^ McMillion, Barry J. (January 28, 2022). Supreme Court Nominations, 1789 to 2020: Actions by the Senate, the Judiciary Committee, and the President (PDF) (Report). Washington, D.C.: Congressional Research Service. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
- ^ "Memorial of Judge Blatchford" (PDF). The New York Times. October 14, 1893. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ "Richard Milford Blatchford". Office of the Historian: Department History. Bureau of Public Affairs, U.S. Department of State. Archived from the original on March 13, 2013.
- ^ "Richard Milford Blatchford (1798–1875)". The Political Graveyard. Archived from the original on July 8, 2016.
- ^ Hannan, Caryn (2008). "Richard Milford Blatchford". Connecticut Biographical Dictionary. pp. 124–125.
- ^ Hannan, pp. 124–125.
- ^ ISBN 9781584777137. Archivedfrom the original on July 29, 2016. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ Nevins, Allan (1959). The War for the Union. Vol. I, The Improvised War, 1861–1862. New York, NY: Charles Scribner's Sons. p. 66.
- ^ "JUSTICE BLATCHFORD STRICKEN.; Attacked with Paralysis at Newport -- His Death Expected" (PDF). The New York Times. June 20, 1893. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ "QUAINT CLUB IN NEWPORT.; Entertained at the Ocean House -- Justice Blatchford's Condition" (PDF). The New York Times. June 26, 1893. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 5, 2020. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ "WILL REST TO-DAY IN GREENWOOD.; Justice Blatchford's Body Transported Last Night from Newport" (PDF). The New York Times. July 12, 1893. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ "JUSTICE BLATCHFORD BURIED.; His Body Rests Beside the Deceased & Members of His Family in Greenwood" (PDF). The New York Times. July 13, 1893. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
- ^ a b "JUSTICE BLATCHFORD'S WILL.; It Disposes of Personal Property and Real Estate Valued at $460,000" (PDF). The New York Times. August 18, 1893. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
Further reading
- Abraham, Henry J. (1992). Justices and Presidents: A Political History of Appointments to the Supreme Court. 3d. ed. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-506557-3.
- Cushman, Clare (2001). The Supreme Court Justices: Illustrated Biographies,1789-1995 (2nd ed.). (Supreme Court Historical Society, Congressional Quarterly Books). ISBN 978-1-56802-126-3.
- Frank, John P.; Friedman, Leon; Israel, Fred L., eds. (1995). The Justices of the United States Supreme Court: Their Lives and Major Opinions. Chelsea House Publishers. ISBN 978-0-7910-1377-9.
- Hall, Kermit L., ed. (1992). The Oxford Companion to the Supreme Court of the United States. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-505835-2.
- Martin, Fenton S.; Goehlert, Robert U. (1990). The U.S. Supreme Court: A Bibliography. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly Books. ISBN 978-0-87187-554-9.
- Urofsky, Melvin I. (1994). The Supreme Court Justices: A Biographical Dictionary. New York: Garland Publishing. p. 590. ISBN 978-0-8153-1176-8.