Original Intent: The Courts, the Constitution, and Religion
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George Read (1733-1798; Delaware) Attorney, and public official; studied independently; began the study of law at age 15 and was admitted (1753); Crown Attorney-General for Delaware (1763-74); protested the Stamp Act (1765); member of the Continental Congress (1774-77) where he signed the Declaration of Independence (1776); president of the State constitutional convention (1776); State vice-president (1776-78); member of the State House of Representatives (1779-80); judge of the Court of Appeals (1782-88); delegate to the Constitutional Convention where he signed the federal Constitution (1787); U. S. Senator where he helped frame the Bill of Rights (1789-93); Chief Justice of Delaware (1793-98); one of only six who signed both the Declaration and the Constitution.
Joseph Reed (1741-1785; Pennsylvania) Attorney, public official, and soldier; graduated from Princeton (1757); studied law and admitted to the bar (1763); two additional years of legal study at the Middle Temple in London before returning to the U. S. (1765); deputy secretary of New Jersey (1767); member of the Committee of Correspondence for Philadelphia (1775-75); Lieutenant-Colonel in the Pennsylvania militia and then General Washington’s military secretary and aide-de-camp during the Revolution (1775); became Adjutant General (1776-77); was appointed first Chief Justice of the Court of Pennsylvania but declined in order to remain on Washington’s staff; served with distinction at the Battles of Brandywine (1777), Germantown (1777), and Monmouth (1777); member of the Continental Congress (1778); President of the Supreme Executive Council of Pennsylvania (1778-81); trustee of the University of Pennsylvania (1782-85); the British are said to have offered £10,000 and any office Reed wished if he would abandon the cause of independence; his reply was, “I am not worth purchasing, but, such as I am, the king of Great Britain is not rich enough to do it”; elected to Congress in 1784 but declined to serve because of poor health.
William Rehnquist (1924-2005; Wisconsin, Arizona) Attorney, public official, and jurist; graduated from Stanford Law School (1951); law clerk for Justice Jackson (1952); Assistant Attorney-General for the office of Legal Counsel in Washington (1969-71); appointed to the U. S. Supreme Court by President Richard Nixon (1972) and elevated to Chief Justice by President Ronald Reagan (1986-2005); considered a conservative and was one of the Court’s best historical scholars.
Paul Revere (1735-1818; Massachusetts) Merchant and soldier; educated at North Grammar School in Boston and entered apprenticeship as silversmith under his father; fought in the expedition against Crown Point in the French and Indian War (1756); one of fifty other “Indians” who were involved in the Boston Tea Party (1773); carried the news of the Tea Party of New York City (1773); made the famous midnight-ride to warn the patriots in Lexington and Concord of the impending British attack and to alert Hancock and Adams to flee (1775); member of the Committee of Correspondence (1776); made the first official seal for the Colonies; made the State seal for Massachusetts; joined in the ill-fated expeditions to Rhode Island (1778) and Penobscot Bay (1779); manufactured gunpowder, copper balls, and cannons; made metal protective plating for frigates, including the Constitution – “Old Ironsides”; worked with Robert Fulton to develop boilers for steamboats; wore uniforms of the Revolution every day until his death.
Rev. Chandler Robbins (1758-1799; Massachusetts) Congregational clergyman and educator; son of a clergyman; graduated from Yale (1756); became a teacher in Dr. Wheeler’s “Indian School” (Dartmouth College); studied theology and licensed to preach; became pastor of a church in Plymouth (1759-99); ordained (1760); received his Doctorate of Divinity from Dartmouth (1792); in 1795, that church numbered 2,500 members and was believed to be the largest in the State; he published numerous orations and sermons.
Daniel Roberdeau (1727-1795; Pennsylvania) Merchant, soldier, and public official; member of the State Assembly (1756-60); manager of the Pennsylvania Hospital (1756-58, 1766-76); Warden of Philadelphia (1756-61); Brigadier General (1776); member of the Continental Congress (1777-79); volunteered in Congress to establish a lead mine (1778) and then built Fort Roberdeau to protect the mine; spent a year traveling in Europe (1783-84).
Caesar Rodney (1728-1784; Delaware) Soldier, public official, and jurist; no formal education; High Sheriff of Kent County (1755-58); Captain of the Kent County Militia (1756); member of the State Assembly (1762-69); associate justice of the State Supreme Court (1769-77); member of the Continental Congress (1774-76) where he signed the Declaration of Independence (1776); interestingly, he had been called away from Congress on June 22, 1776, and later received emergency notification that his vote for Independence was drastically needed; he therefore rode eighty miles on horseback, arriving just in time to cast his vote for Independence; Brigadier-General (1777); Major-General (1777); President of Delaware (1778-82); he finally died from face cancer, which for ten years had consumed both his face and his health (1784).
Rev. William Rogers (1751-1824; Pennsylvania) Clergyman and educator; graduated from Rhode Island college (1769); also received degrees from the University of Pennsylvania (1773 and another in 1790), Yale (1780), and Princeton (1786); pastor of the 1st Baptist church in Philadelphia (1772-75); chaplain of the Pennsylvania rifle regiment (1776-78); brigade chaplain in the Continental army (1778-81); Professor of Oratory and English Literature at the College of Philadelphia (1789-92) and the University of Pennsylvania (1792-1811); vice-president of the Pennsylvania society for the gradual abolition of slavery (1794, 1796); chaplain to the Philadelphia militia (1805) chaplain to the Pennsylvania legislature (1816-17); vice-president of the Religious Historical Society of Philadelphia (1819); published numerous moral, religious, and political pieces.
Benjamin Rush (1745-1813; Pennsylvania) Physician, educator, philanthropist, and public official; graduated from Princeton (1760); studied medicine in Philadelphia, Edinburgh, London, and Paris; began practice in Philadelphia (1769); member of the Continental Congress (1776-77) where he signed the Declaration of Independence (1776); suggested to Thomas Paine that he write Common Sense (1776) and supplied the title for it as well as helped publish it; Surgeon-General of the Continental Army (1777-78); joined the staff of the Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia (1783); one of the founders of Dickinson College (1783); an influential delegate to the State ratification convention for the federal Constitution (1787); along with James Wilson, one of the principal coauthors of the Pennsylvania constitution (1789-90); Treasurer of the U. S. Mint under Presidents John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and James Madison (1797-1813); mediated reconciliation between long time political rivals John Adams and Thomas Jefferson; among his philanthropic involvements, was a founder of the Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery (1774) and its president; founder and Vice-president of the Philadelphia Bible Society (1808-13); member of the First Day Society of Philadelphia (1790); member of the Abolition Society (1794-97); called the “Father of American Medicine” for his numerous medical discoveries.
John Rutledge (1739-1800; South Carolina) Attorney, public official, and jurist; educated by his father, who was a physician and clergyman; studied law in London and admitted to the bar (1760); elected to the State Commons House (1761); delegate to the Stamp Act Congress (1765); member of the Continental Congress (1774-75); wrote South Carolina’s new constitution (1776); president of the State House of Representatives (1776-78); Governor (1779-82); when Charleston fell to the British, his property was confiscated (1780); with General Nathanael Greene, reestablished the State government (1781); member of the State House of Representatives (1782, 1784-90); member of the Continental Congress (1782-83); judge on the State chancery court (1784); delegate to the Constitutional Convention where he signed the federal Constitution (1787); appointed to the U. S. Supreme Court by President George Washington (1789-91); Chief Justice of South Carolina (1791-95); briefly served as Chief Justice of the U. S. Supreme Court, succeeding John Jay, but his nomination was ultimately rejected by the Senate (1795); after his wife’s death (1792), he suffered periodic fits of insanity which ended his career.
Dred Scott (1795-1858; Virginia, Missouri) Slave; spent the early part of his life on the Virginia plantation of his master Captain Peter Blow, but the moved to Missouri (1827); after his master’s death, Scott was assigned to his master’s daughter (1831); he was purchased two years later by John Emerson, a surgeon in the United States Army; he married a slave woman named Harriet (1836); became the body servant of Colonel Henry Bainbridge at Jefferson Barracks (1838); after Emerson’s death (circa 1840) was passed to his widow, Irene; with her, Scott spent three years in the States of Illinois and Wisconsin; Mrs. Emerson married Calvin Chaffee of Maine, a rabid anti-slavery Congressman; when she moved to Maine, she returned Scott to St. Louis (1845); Taylor and Henry T. Blow, the wealthy sons of Peter Blow, felt partially responsible for Scott and instituted and financed suits in the Missouri State courts to secure the freedom of Scott and his family (1846), arguing that after sojourning in free territory (Illinois and Wisconsin), that Scott was free upon his return to Missouri; after an unfavorable decision by Judge William Scott (1852) the case went before the federal courts (1854-57); the United States Supreme Court declared that Scott was not free by reason of his removal either to Illinois or to Wisconsin Territory (1857); he was transferred to Taylor Blow, who emancipated him that same year (1857); he spent the remainder of his life as the porter at Barnum’s Hotel in St. Louis and died of tuberculosis (1858); Henry Blow paid for his funeral.
Jonathan Mitchell Sewell (1748-1808; Massachusetts, New Hampshire) Attorney, poet, orator; his parents died early and he was raised by an uncle; studied law and admitted to the bar (1773); became a poet and authored a ballad called “War and Washington” which became popular in the Continental Army (1776); authored three odes which were sung when President George Washington visited Portsmouth, New Hampshire (1789); authored “A Verification of President Washington’s Excellent Farewell Address” (1798); after Washington’s death in December 1799, Sewell pronounced a eulogy which was published in 1800; authored “Miscellaneous Poems” (1801).
Isaac Shelby (1750-1826; Maryland, Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina) Soldier and public official; born in Maryland and spent early years there; no record of any formal education; moved to Tennessee (circa 1771); Surveyor for Transylvania, Kentucky (1775); Captain of Virginia Minutemen (1775); appointed Commissary General of Virginia forces by Governor Patrick Henry (circa 1776); served in the Virginia legislature (1779) but because of border dispute, became resident of North Carolina; Colonel of the guerilla fighters in Sullivan County (1779-80); led part of the campaign of “Kings” Mountain (1780) and Cowpens (1781); member of the North Carolina legislature (1781-82); moved to Kentucky and became active in helping obtain Statehood; delegate to the Kentucky State constitutional convention (1792); first governor of Kentucky (1792-96) and was elected to another term (1812-16); offered but declined Secretary of War under President James Monroe (1817); helped General Andrew Jackson negotiate treaty with the Chickasaw Indians (1818); vice-president of the American Bible Society.
Roger Sherman (1721-1793; Massachusetts, Connecticut) Born in Massachusetts and grew up as a farmer and cobbler; no formal education, although he independently studied math, law, and theology; moved to Connecticut (1743); county surveyor (1745); held a number of local offices; admitted to the bar (1754); Justice-of-the-Peace for Litchfield County (1755-61); Justice-of-the-Peace and member of the Court of Connecticut (1765-66); member of the State Senate (1766-85); Judge of the Superior Court (1766-67, 1773-88); member of the Council of Safety (1777-79); member of the Continental Congress (1774-81, 1784) where he signed the Declaration of Independence (1776); mayor of New Haven (1784-93); delegate to the Constitutional Convention where he signed the federal Constitution (1787); one of his major contributions in that Convention was the introduction of the plan for two houses in Congress; member of the U. S. House of Representatives (1789-91) where he helped frame the Bill of Rights; U. S. Senator (1791-93); one of only six Founders who signed both the Declaration and the Constitution and the only Founder who signed the Declaration, the Articles of Association, the Articles of Confederation, and the Constitution.
Peter Sylvester (1734-1808; New York) Attorney and public official; studied law and was admitted to the bar (1763); member of Council of Safety (1774); member of Provincial Congress (1775-76); County Judge (1786); regent of the University of New York (1787-1808); member of the State Assembly (1788, 1803-06); member of the U. S. House of Representatives (1789-93) where he helped frame the Bill of Rights; State senator (1796-1800).
George Smathers (1913-2007 ; Florida) Attorney, soldier, and public official; born in New York but educated in public schools in Florida; graduated from the University of Florida (1936); graduated from the University of Florida law school and admitted to the bar (1938); Major in the U. S. Marine Corps (1942-45); special assistant to the U. S. Attorney General (1945-46); U. S. Representative (1947-51); U. S. Senator (1951-69); retired to law practice in Washington, D. C. and Miami (1969).
Jeremiah Smith (1759-1842; New Hampshire) Soldier, attorney, public official, and jurist; attended Harvard College (1777) but graduated from Rutgers (1780); served in the Revolution under General Stark in the Battle of Bennington (1777); studied law and admitted to the bar (1786); member of the State House of Representatives (1788-91); delegate to the State constitutional convention (1791-92); member of the U. S. House of Representatives (1791-97); appointed U. S. federal judge by President John Adams (1801-02); Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Judicature of New Hampshire (1802-1809); presidential elector (1808); Governor (1809-10); Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of New Hampshire (1813-16); resumed law practice, but retired in 1820; served as president of a bank and treasurer of Phillips Exeter Academy.
John Cotton Smith (1765-1845; Connecticut) Attorney, public official, jurist, and philanthropist; graduated from Yale (1783); studied law and admitted to the bar (1787); member of the State House of Representatives (1793, 1796, 1800) and its speaker (1800); U. S. Representative (1800-06); judge of the Supreme Court of Connecticut (1809); Lieutenant-Governor (1810); Governor (1813-18); president of the Litchfield County Foreign Missionary Society; president of the County Temperance Society; first president of the Connecticut Bible Society; vice-president of the American Bible Society (1816-31) and its president (1831-45); member of the American Board of Foreign Missions (1826-45).
Jonathan Bayard Smith (1742-1812; Pennsylvania) Soldier, public official, educator, and jurist; graduated from Princeton (1760); active promoter of the Revolutionary cause; secretary of the Committee of Safety (1775); secretary of Philadelphia Committee of Safety (1775-77); member of the Continental Congress (1777-78); founder of the University of the State of Pennsylvania (1778); justice of the Court of Common Pleas, Quarter Sessions, and Orphans Court (1778); trustee of Princeton (1779-1808); Auditor of Accounts of Pennsylvania Troops in the Service of the United States (1781); trustee of University of Pennsylvania (1791-1812); Auditor-General of Pennsylvania (1794); member of the American Philosophical Society.
Richard Dobbs Spaight (1758-1802; Ireland, North Carolina) Soldier and public official; orphaned at 8, was early schooled in Ireland; graduated from the University of Glasgow, Scotland; returned to North Carolina as military aide to General Richard Caswell (1778); involved in the Battle of Camden (1780); member of the North Carolina House of Commons (1
779-83) and was its Speaker (1785-87); member of the Continental Congress (1783-85); delegate to the Constitutional Convention where he signed the federal Constitution (1787), being one of the youngest signers; Governor (1792); presidential elector (1793-97); member of Congress, (1798-1801); member of the State Senate (1801-02); both his son and grandson were U. S. Representatives; died from wounds received in a duel with a political rival.
Baron Frederick William Augustus von Steuben (1730-1794; Germany) Soldier; served in the Prussian Army under Frederick II (the Great); he was sent by Benjamin Franklin to serve in the American Continental Army under Washington (1777); drilled and trained the troops at Valley Forge after the hard winter (1777-78); turned the troops into an effective, disciplined, strategic fighting force; put in command of Virginia and participated in the Yorktown siege (1781); retired from the army (1784); became a citizen by acts of the Pennsylvania and New York legislatures.
John Paul Stevens (1920- ; Illinois) Attorney, sailor, educator, and jurist; graduated from the University of Chicago (circa 1942); received his law degree from Northwestern University (circa 1943); spent three years in the Navy in WWII; law clerk to Justice Rutledge (1947-48); private practice specialized in anti-trust law; taught at Northwestern University law school; appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit by President Gerald Ford and was President Ford’s only nomination (1975- ); an inconsistent Justice in that he is very liberal on social issues but conservative in many other areas.
Potter Stewart (1915-1985; Ohio) Attorney, sailor, public official, and jurist; attended college at Hotchiss College, graduating in 1933 and graduated from Yale (1937); graduated from Yale law school (1941); began law practice on Wall Street, but following the attack on Pearl Harbor, he joined the Navy as an officer and received three battle stars for service on tankers in the Atlantic and Mediterranean; returned to law practice on Wall Street but then moved to Cincinnati as a litigator; served two terms on the city council and one term as mayor; served as a judge on the sixth circuit federal court of appeals (1954-58); appointed to the U. S. Supreme Court by President Dwight D. Eisenhower (1958-81); on many significant issues he became the swing vote and is considered a moderate, being termed a liberal on a conservative Court and a conservative on a liberal Court.