NELSON, SAMUEL.-He was born in Hebron, Washington County, New York, November 10, 1792, of Irish descent; graduated at Middlebury College, Vermont, in 1813; studied law and came to the bar of New York in 1817; located himself in Cortland County, where he practised his profession with great success; in 1820 he was a Presidential Elector; was a Delegate to the "State Constitutional Convention" of 1821; during the same year was appointed Postmaster of Cortland Village; in 1823 he was made a Judge of the Circuit Court, which he held for eight years; in 1831 he was appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of the State; in 1837 he was made Chief Justice and held the position until 1845, when he was appointed, by President Tyler, a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. In 1846 he was elected a Delegate to the "State Convention" of that year, but declined to serve. He received the degree of LL.D. from Middlebury College, Columbia College, and Geneva College, and a sketch of his career was published in the "Pioneers of Cortland County," by H. C. Goodwin. SWAYNE, NOAI H.-[The editor very much regrets that a sketch of this gentleman, promised to him more than a year ago, was not received in time for the present edition.] TANEY, ROGER B.-He was born in Calvert County, Maryland, March 17, 1777; graduated at Dickinson College in 1795; studied law and came to the bar in 1799; in 1801 he was elected to the State Assembly and settled at Frederick; subsequently served four years in the State Senate, and removed to Baltimore in 1822; in 1827 he was chosen Attorney-General of Maryland; in 1831 he was appointed Attorney-General of the United States in President Jackson's Cabinet; was also appointed Secretary of the Treasury, but rejected by the Senate; was appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, but again rejected by the Senate; and in 1836 he was appointed, by President Jackson, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, in the place of John Marshall, which office he filled with acknowledged ability until his death, which occurred in Washington City, October 12, 1864. Some of his decisions, as a Cabinet officer and especially as Chief Justice, excited great interest throughout the country. THOMPSON, SMITH.-Born in New York in 1767; graduated at Nassau Hill in 1788; adopted the profession of law; in 1801 he was appointed a Judge of the Supreme Court of New York; in 1814 Chief Justice of the State, which he held until 1818, when he became Secretary of the Navy; and in 1823 he was appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He received from Princeton and Harvard Colleges the degree of LL.D., and died at Poughkeepsie, New York, December 18, 1843. TODD, THOMAS.-Born in King and Queen County, Virginia, January 23, 1765; received a good education; served as a substitute in the Revolutionary War; emigrated to Kentucky in 1782; became a tutor in the house of a friend, studied law, and was Clerk of the Federal Court of Kentucky and also of the Court of Appeals; in 1801 he was appointed Judge of the Court of Appeals; in 1806 promoted to Chief Justice; and in 1807 he was appointed, by President Jefferson, a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Died February 7, 1826. TRIMBLE, ROBERT.-Born in Berkley County, Virginia, in 1776; received a good plain education; studied law, came to the bar in 1803, and settled in Kentucky; was soon afterwards elected to the State Legislature; in 1808 he was chosen Judge of the Court of Appeals, but soon resigned the position; in 1810 he was made Chief Justice of the State; in 1813 District Attorney for the State; in 1816 he was appointed Federal Judge of Kentucky by President Madison, and in 1826 he was appointed, by President J. Q. Adams, a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. A county was named for him in Kentucky, and he died August 25, 1828. WASHINGTON, BUSHROD.-Born in Westmoreland County, Virginia; educated at William and Mary College; studied law, and, on coming to the bar, practised in his native county; in 1781 he was a member of the House of Delegates; subsequently published two volumes of the Decisions of the Supreme Court of Virginia; and in 1798 he was appointed, by President Adams, a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Died in 1829. He was the favorite nephew of George Washington, the devisee of Mount Vernon, and a man of ability and high character. CLERKS OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. JOHN TUCKER, of Massachusetts, appointed February 3, 1790. Resigned. SAMUEL BAYARD, of Delaware, appointed August 1, 1791. Resigned. ELIAS B. CALDWELL, of New Jersey, appointed August 15, 1800. Died. WILLIAM GRIFFITH, of New Jersey, appointed February 9, 1826. Died. WILLIAM T. CARROLL, District of Columbia, appointed January 20, 1827. T. WESLEY MIDDLETON, District of Columbia, appointed in 1862. Present incumDent. Died. REPORTERS OF DECISIONS OF THE SUPREME COURT. ALEXANDER J. DALLAS, reported from 1789 to 1800, inclusive. Under the construction of the Judiciary Act of 1789, the Marshals of all the Districts were required to attend the sessions of the Supreme Court, until, by the Act of June 9, 1794, the Marshal of the District alone in which the Court shall sit was required to attend its sessions. DAVID LENOX, Marshal of the District of Pennsylvania, attended from January 28, 1794, to February, 1801. DANIEL CARROLL BRENT, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from August 3, 1801, to August, 1808. WASHINGTON BOYD, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from February, 1, 1808, to August, 1818. TENCH RINGGOLD, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from November 30, 1818, to August, 1831. HENRY ASHTON, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from February 4, 1831, to February, 1834. ALEXANDER HUNTER, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from March 6, 1834, to December, 1848. ROBERT WALLACE, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from December 5, 1848, to December, 1849. RICHARD WALLACH, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from December 4, 1849, to May, 1853. JONAH D. HOOVER, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from May 31, 1853, to April, 1858. WILLIAM SELDEN, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from April 1, 1858, to 1861. WARD H. LAMON, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from 1861 to June, 1865. D. S. GOODING, Marshal of the District of Columbia, attended from June, 1865, to April 3, 1867. RICHARD C. PARSONS, Marshal of the Supreme Court, appointed April 3, 1867. [Court meets first Monday in December, at Washington.] A LIST OF DIPLOMATIC APPOINTMENTS MADE BETWEEN 1789 AND 1866, BOTH INCLUSIVE. An asterisk prefixed to a name indicates that the individual has been a member of Congress, and that further information concerning him |