List of federal judges appointed by Thomas Jefferson

Following is a list of all Article III United States federal judges appointed by President Thomas Jefferson during his presidency.[1] In total Jefferson appointed 19 Article III federal judges, including 3 Justices to the Supreme Court of the United States, 7 judges to the United States circuit courts, and 9 judges to the United States district courts. Three of Jefferson's circuit court appointments were to seats that had been created by the Midnight Judges Act, signed by John Adams to allow the appointment of many of his supporters in the closing days of his administration. The service of these judges, including those appointed by Jefferson, terminated on July 1, 1802, due to the repeal of the Act and the accompanying abolition of the court.

Thomas Jefferson.

Two of Jefferson's appointees, William Cranch (whom Jefferson elevated to Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of the District of Columbia) and Henry Potter (appointed first to the Fifth Circuit, and then to the District of North Carolina) served into the 1850s. Potter's 55 years on the latter court remains the longest period of active service in United States federal court history.

  • William Johnson was Jefferson's longest serving Supreme Court appointee, and had a fiercely independent judicial philosophy.
  • William Cranch, initially appointed to the District of Columbia Circuit by John Adams, was elevated by Thomas Jefferson to be Chief Judge of that court, and became one of the longest-serving federal judges in U.S. history.

United States Supreme Court Justices
# Justice Seat State Former Justice Nomination
date		 Confirmation
date		 Began
active service		 Ended
active service
1 William Johnson 5 South Carolina Alfred Moore March 22, 1804 March 24, 1804 March 26, 1804 August 4, 1834
2 Henry Brockholst Livingston 1 New York William Paterson December 13, 1806 December 17, 1806 November 10, 1806[2] March 18, 1823
3 Thomas Todd 6 Virginia Seat established February 28, 1807 March 2, 1807 March 3, 1807 February 7, 1826

Circuit Courts
# Judge Circuit Nomination
date		 Confirmation
date		 Began active
service		 Ended active
service
1 William Kilty D.C. January 6, 1802 January 26, 1802 March 23, 1801[3][4] January 27, 1806
2 Henry Potter Fifth January 6, 1802 January 26, 1802 May 9, 1801[3][5] April 7, 1802
3 Dominic Augustin Hall Fifth January 6, 1802 January 26, 1802 July 1, 1801[3][4] July 1, 1802[6]
4 Edward Harris Fifth April 27, 1802 April 29, 1802 May 3, 1802[5] July 1, 1802[6]
5 Nicholas Battalle Fitzhugh D.C. November 21, 1803 November 25, 1803 November 25, 1803[5] December 31, 1814
6 William Cranch D.C. February 21, 1806 February 24, 1806 February 24, 1806[7] September 1, 1855
7 Allen Bowie Duckett D.C. February 28, 1806 March 3, 1806 March 17, 1806[5] July 19, 1809

District Courts
# Judge Court
[Note 1]		 Nomination
date		 Confirmation
date		 Began active
service		 Ended active
service
1 David Leonard Barnes D.R.I. January 6, 1802 January 26, 1802 April 30, 1801[3] November 3, 1812
2 William Stephens D. Ga. January 6, 1802 January 26, 1802 October 22, 1801[3] October 13, 1818
3 Henry Potter D.N.C. April 6, 1802 April 7, 1802 April 7, 1802 December 20, 1857
4 Charles Willing Byrd D. Ohio March 1, 1803 March 3, 1803 March 3, 1803 August 25, 1828
5 John Samuel Sherburne D.N.H. March 22, 1804 March 24, 1804 March 26, 1804 August 2, 1830
6 Dominic Augustin Hall D. Orleans November 30, 1804 November 30, 1804 December 11, 1804 April 30, 1812
7 Matthias B. Tallmadge D.N.Y. December 20, 1805 December 23, 1805 June 12, 1805[8] July 1, 1819[9]
8 Pierpont Edwards D. Conn. February 21, 1806 February 24, 1806 February 24, 1806 April 5, 1826
9 James Houston D. Md. April 19, 1806 April 21, 1806 April 21, 1806 June 8, 1819

See also

Notes
  1. See List of United States district and territorial courts

References
General
  • "Judges of the United States Courts". Biographical Directory of Federal Judges. Federal Judicial Center. Archived from the original on 2016-07-30. Retrieved 2009-04-03.
Specific
  1. All information on the names, terms of service, and details of appointment of federal judges is derived from the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public-domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  2. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 13, 1806, confirmed by the United States Senate on December 17, 1806, and received commission on January 16, 1807.
  3. Recess appointment; formally nominated on January 6, 1802, confirmed by the United States Senate on January 26, 1802, and received commission on January 26, 1802.
  4. Appointed as Chief Judge.
  5. Appointed as an Associate Judge.
  6. Appointed to a seat created by the Midnight Judges Act, abolished with the repeal of that act on July 1, 1802.
  7. Appointed as Chief Judge after previously serving as an Associate Judge of the same court.
  8. Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 20, 1805, confirmed by the United States Senate on December 23, 1805, and received commission on January 17, 1806.
  9. Reassigned by operation of law to the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York on April 9, 1814.

Sources
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