by David Barton
Richard Stockton (1730-1781; New Jersey) Attorney, jurist, and public official; graduated from Princeton (1748); admitted to the bar (1754); (interestingly, Stockton married the sister of Elias Boudinot and Elias Boudinot married Stockton’s sister); those who studied under Stockton include Elias Boudinot (President of Congress), William Paterson (signer of the Constitution); and Joseph Reed (a general and the Governor of Pennsylvania); recruited the Rev. Dr. John Witherspoon for the presidency of Princeton (1768); member of the Executive Council of New Jersey (1768-74); member of the Provincial Supreme Court (1774-76); associate justice of the State Supreme Court (1774-76); member of the Continental Congress (1776) where he signed the Declaration of Independence (1776); elected but declined to sit as Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court (1776); betrayed by Loyalists and captured by the British (1776); treated harshly but released (1777); health shattered, his estate and fortune pillaged, he died an invalid at age 50.
Thomas Stone (1743-1787; Maryland) Attorney and public official; received a classical education under a Scottish schoolmaster; studied law and admitted to the bar (1764); State senator (1775-87); member of the Continental Congress (1775-76, 1778, 1784) and although he initially opposed independence because he hated the thought of war, he eventually signed the Declaration of Independence (1776); helped draft the Articles of Confederation (1778); selected as delegate to the Constitutional Convention but declined to serve because of poor health of wife who died in June 1787; heartbroken, he retired from all public life and decided to visit England but died at the age of 44.
Joseph Story (1779-1845; Massachusetts) Attorney, public official, educator, and jurist; grew up being strongly instructed in the principles of American liberty since his father was one of the “Indians” in the Boston Tea Party (1773); graduated from Harvard second in his class (1798); delivered a eulogy on the death of Washington (1800); admitted to the bar (1801); member of the Massachusetts Legislature (1805-07, 1811) and its Speaker (1811); U. S. Representative (1808-09); appointed to the U. S. Supreme Court by President James Madison (1811-45); considered the founder of Harvard Law School and its Professor of Law (1829-45); authored numerous legal works; is considered one of the most prolific judicial writers; in fact, of his 34 years on the Supreme Court (much of the time when John Marshall was Chief Justice), Story authored opinions in 286 cases, of which 269 were reported as the majority opinion or the opinion of the Court; his contributions to American law have caused him to be called, along with Chancellor James Kent, the “Father of American Jurisprudence.”
Caleb Strong (1745-1819; Massachusetts) Attorney and public official; graduated from Harvard (1764); on way home from Harvard, contracted smallpox which permanently injured his sight; studied law and admitted to the bar (circa 1768); member of State House of Representatives (1776-78); member of State senate (1780-88); elected to the Continental Congress but did not attend (1780); delegate to the Constitutional Convention but did not sign the federal Constitution (1787); member of the State ratification convention for the federal Constitution (1788); U. S. Senator (1789-96); Governor of Massachusetts (1800-07, 1812-15); opposed the War of 1812 and withheld the State militia until 1814; vice-president of the American Bible Society (1816-1819).
James Sullivan (1744-1808; Massachusetts) Attorney, jurist, public official, and philanthropist; completed preparatory studies and entered the study of law; admitted to the bar (1770); member of King’s Council (1770); early advocate of the Revolutionary cause; member of the State Provincial Congress (1775); judge of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts (1776); elected to the Continental Congress but did not attend (1782); State Attorney-General (1790-1807); Governor (1807-08); influential in the adoption of the Eleventh Amendment regarding judicial powers; member of the Society for Propagating the Gospel Among the Indians and Others; member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; principle founder of the Massachusetts Historical Society, serving as president for many years.
Increase Sumner (1746-1799; Massachusetts) Educator, attorney, jurist, and public official; graduated from Harvard with distinction (1767); taught school at Roxbury (1768-70); studied law and admitted to the bar (1770); representative in the General Court (1776-79); delegate to the State constitutional convention (1779-80); State Senator (1780-82); associate justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts (1782); delegate to the State ratification convention for the federal Constitution (1788); Governor (1797-99), and was sworn in for his third term while on his death bed.
Zephaniah Swift (1759-1823; Connecticut) Attorney, public official, author, and jurist; graduated from Yale in the same class with several other notables, including Joel Barlow, Uriah Tracy, and Oliver Wolcott (1778); studied law and admitted to the bar (1783); member of the State House of Representatives (1787-93) and its speaker (1792); Clerk of the State House (1788-91); authored the System of Laws in Connecticut, the first American legal text (1792); member of the U. S. Congress (1793-97); member of the Abolition Society (1795); secretary of the French mission (1800); judge of the State Superior Court (1801-19) and its Chief Justice (1806-19); member of the Hartford Convention for framing a State constitution (1814); member of the State House of Representatives (1820-22); authored both legal and religious works.
Clarence Thomas (1948- ; Georgia) Attorney, public official, and jurist; graduated from Yale Law School (1974); served as Assistant Secretary of Education and the Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under President Ronald Reagan; as a conservative, he often found himself at odds with much of the civil right movement; appointed by President George Bush to the District of Columbia Federal Circuit Court of Appeals (1990); nominated by President George Bush as the 106th Justice of the Supreme Court (1991); unsubstantiated charges of sexual harassment raised against him by a former disgruntled employee, Anita Hill, caused his confirmation to the Court to be approved by a margin of only 52-48 – the smallest margin in over 100 years; has proven himself to be a conservative on all issues and a strict constructionist in upholding the original intent of the Constitution.
Charles Thomson (1729-1824; Ireland, Pennsylvania) Public official, theologian; born in Ireland and came to America at age ten (1740); adopted by the Delaware tribe with the name “man who tells the truth” (1756); became master of the Latin school at the Philadelphia Academy (1757-1760); became a merchant (1760); Secretary of the Continental Congress (1774-1789); was one of only two delegates, along with John Hancock, to sign the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 (the others Founders signed the Declaration on August 2); notified George Washington of his unanimous election as the first President of the United States (1789); spent 20 years translating the Greek Septuagint (i.e., the full Bible in Greek) into English, his translation was published under the title The Holy Bible Containing the Old and New Covenant, Commonly Called the Old and New Testament (1808 – the first translation of the Greek Septuagint into English, still available in bookstores today); also published A Synopsis of the Four Evangelists (1815).
Smith Thompson (1768-1843; New York) Educator, attorney, public official, and jurist; graduated from Princeton (1788); while teaching school, studied law under Chancellor James Kent and was admitted to the bar (1792); member of the State legislature (1800); delegate to the State constitutional convention (1801); associate justice of the State Supreme Court (1802-18) and its Chief Justice (1814-18); Secretary of the Navy under President James Monroe (1818-23); appointed to the U. S. Supreme Court by President James Monroe (1823-43); was opposed to many of the views of Chief Justice John Marshall; vice-president of the American Bible Society (1816-30).
William Tilghman (1756-1827; Pennsylvania) Public official, jurist, and philanthropist; entered the College, Academy, and Charitable School of Philadelphia (now the University of Pennsylvania) and graduated (1772); studied law (1772-76); was considered a loyalist and consequently remained on his estate during the Revolution; admitted to legal practice (1783); member of the State Assembly (1788-90); delegate to the State
ratification convention for the federal Constitution (1788); member of the State Senate (1791); admitted to the bar (1794); appointed by President John Adams as a “midnight judge” and Chief Judge of the Third Circuit Court (1800); trustee of the University of Pennsylvania (1802-27); Judge of the Court of Common Pleas; judge of the Pennsylvania High Court of Errors and Appeals; Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1806-27); president of the American Philosophical Society (1824-27); vice-president of the American Bible Society; was also an active member of the Society for Promoting Agriculture and for the last ten years of his life, he refused to wear any clothing not made in the United States.
Alexis Henri Charles Maurice Clerel Comte de Tocqueville (1805-59; France) French observer of America; assistant magistrate (1830); sent on a mission from the government to examine prisons and penitentiaries in America, and later published a report of his full tour, De la Démocratie en Amérique [Democracy in America] (1835); vice-president of the French assembly (1849); minister of foreign affairs; wrote the first book of reasoned politics on democratic government in America and concluded that equality of condition was the foundation of American democracy and was amazed that without violence America had been transformed from what was essentially aristocratic rule to a more extended suffrage.
Daniel Tompkins (1774-1825; New York) Public official and jurist; graduated from Columbia College (1795); studied law and admitted to the bar (1797); delegate to the State constitutional Convention (1801); member of the State Assembly (1803); elected to the U. S. Congress in 1804, but resigned before he took office to become Associate Justice of the State Supreme Court (1804-07); Governor (1807-17); during the War of 1812, he helped finance the defense of New York largely from personal and from borrowed funds; declined appointment as Secretary of State under President James Madison (1814); served as Vice-President under President James Monroe (1817-25); was reimbursed for his expenses in the War of 1812 (1823-24); president of the State constitutional convention (1821); died from broken health and overwork.
John Treadwell (1745-1823; Connecticut) Attorney, public official, and jurist; graduated from Yale (1767); studied law and admitted to the bar (circa 1770); member of the State legislature (1776-84); Clerk of the Court of Probate (1777-84); member of the Continental Congress (1784, 85, 87); member of the Governor’s Council (1785); member of the State Council (1786-97); Judge of Probate and of the Supreme Court of Errors (1789-1809); Lieutenant-Governor (1798-1809); delegate to the State ratification convention for the federal Constitution (1788); Governor (1809-11); delegate to the State constitutional convention (1818).
Robert Troup (1757-1832; New York) Attorney, public official, and jurist; graduated from King’s College (1774); studied law under John Jay; Lieutenant in the Continental Army; captured by the British and exchanged (1776); Lieutenant-Colonel (1777); present at Burgoyne’s surrender (1777); Secretary of the Board of War (1778-79); Secretary of the Board of Treasury (1779-80); returned to private life and continued legal studies under William Paterson; campaigned for the adoption of the federal Constitution (1788); member of the State Assembly (circa 1790); judge of the U. S. District Court of New York (1796); helped develop and settle the western part of the State (1800-32); helped found Geneva (now Hobart) College (1822); vice-president of the American Bible Society (1830-32).
Rev. Jonathan Trumbull (1710-1785; Connecticut) Clergyman, businessman, jurist, and public official; his name was spelled “Trumble” until 1766; graduated from Harvard (1727); returned home to prepare for the ministry and was licensed to preach and called to a church at Colchester (1731); studied law, but no record of admission to the bar (1731); when his older brother – his father’s business partner – died, Trumbull assumed his position from a sense of duty and became a successful merchant for thirty-five years; member of the General Assembly (1733-40) and its Speaker (1739-40); member of the Governor’s Council (1740-50); member of the General Assembly (1751-54) and its Speaker (1753-54); member of the Governor’s Council (1754-66); Deputy Governor and Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court (1766-69); Governor (1769-84); was a staunch supporter of American rights and was the only Colonial Governor to take the American side; was the only Governor who served from the start to the finish of the American Revolution; he probably contributed more to the Revolution in the way of arms, munitions, supplies, men, etc. than any other Governor; was a close counsel of General Washington throughout the War; on his retirement following the close of the Revolution, he returned to theological pursuits.
William Tyndale (1490-1536; England) Theologian and reformer; graduated from Oxford (1515); ordained to the priesthood (circa 1521); translated the New Testament, the Pentateuch, Jonah, and sections from Joshua and Chronicles but could not get them published in England; traveled to Hamburg, visited Luther at Wittenberg, and settled in Cologne (1524); had some success printing there but was stopped by a church leader; went to Worms and completed his octavo edition of the Bible (1526); threatened with arrest and thus fled to Marbury (1526); abandoned formal Romanism and published Parable of the Wicked Mammon and Obedience of a Christian Man which delineated the two main principles of the English Reformation: (1) the supremacy of the Scriptures in the church and (2) the supremacy of the King in the state (1528); moved to Antwerp (1529); published Practice of Prelates – a strong indictment of Roman Catholicism and of Henry VIII’s divorce of Catherine (1530); was betrayed by a supposed follower, imprisoned in Brussels (1535); despite efforts by Thomas Cromwell (Henry VIII’s parliamentary representative), Tyndale was tried for heresy, condemned, and strangled at the stake; his body was later burned (1536).
John Vining (1758-1802; Delaware) Attorney and public official; studied law and admitted to the bar (1782); member of the Continental Congress (1784-85); U. S. Representative (1789-93) where he helped frame the Bill of Rights; member of the State Senate (1793); U. S. Senator (1793-98).
Peter Vroom (1791-1873; New Jersey) Attorney, public official, jurist, and diplomat; graduated from Columbia (1808); studied law and admitted to the bar (1813); member of the State Assembly (1826-27, 1829); Governor (1829, 1831, 1833-36); appointed a commissioner to adjust the claims of the Choctaw Indians (1837); U. S. Representative (1839-41); delegate to the State constitutional convention (1844); Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court (1853); appointed Minister to Prussia by President Franklin Pierce (1854-57); member of peace conference which attempted to prevent the Civil War (1861); law reporter for New Jersey Supreme Court (1865-73); vice-president of the American Bible Society; vice-president of the American Colonization Society; member of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions.
Samuel Ward (1725-1776; Rhode Island) Farmer and public official; attended only grammar school and then began agricultural pursuits; member of the General Assembly (1756-59); Chief Justice of Rhode Island (1761-62); one of the founders and trustees of Rhode Island College – now called Brown (1764-76); member of the Continental Congress (1774-76); helped secured the appointment of George Washington as Commander-in-Chief (1775); died of smallpox in Philadelphia.
Earl Warren (1891-1974; California) Attorney, soldier, public official, and jurist; graduated from the University of California (1912); graduated from University of California law school (1914); admitted to the bar (1914); served in the Army as Lieutenant; Clerk of State legislative committee (1919); Deputy City Attorney of Oakland (1919-20); Deputy District Attorney of Alameda County (1920-25) and then District Attorney (1925-39); State Attorney General (1939-43); Governor (1943-53); in 1946 when he ran for Governor, he was the first candidate for Governor ever to win both the Democratic and the Republican nominations; ran for Vice-President with Dewey (1948); ran for President against Dwight D. Eisenhower (1952); appointed as Chief Justice of the U. S. Supreme Court by President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-69); Chairman of Presidential Commission to investigate the assassination of President John F. Kennedy (1963-64); a liberal who was devoted to extremes in the area of civil liberties and to the reshaping of t
he Constitution into a progressive, evolutionary document; under his leadership, the Court began its assault on public religious expressions.
Mercy Otis Warren (1728-1814; Massachusetts) Author and historian; sister of James Otis; married James Warren (1754), a prominent Massachusetts political leader and a descendent of the Pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower; knew personally most of the leaders of the Revolution and was continually in the center of events; very astute in both literature and politics; strong leader and advocate of women’s political abilities; wrote several plays, poetry, and political satire; authored the three-volume work A History of the Rise, Progress, and Termination of the American Revolution (1805).
Bushrod Washington (1762-1829; Virginia) Soldier, attorney, public official, and jurist; nephew of George Washington; early educated by a tutor in the home of Richard Henry Lee, the signer of the Declaration and the President of Congress; graduated from William & Mary (1778); enlisted in the Continental Army (1781); studied law in Philadelphia under James Wilson and admitted to the bar (circa 1784); member of the Virginia House (1787); delegate to the State ratification convention for the federal Constitution (1788); appointed to the U. S. Supreme Court by President John Adams to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Justice James Wilson (1798); was the executor of George Washington’s will and inherited Mount Vernon after Martha Washington died as well as Washington’s private library; supervised the preparation of John Marshall’s Life of George Washington; vice-president of the American Bible Society (1816-29); one of the original vice-presidents of the American Sunday School Union.
