Samuel Hitchcock

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Samuel Hitchcock
Judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit
In office
February 20, 1801 – July 1, 1802
Appointed byJohn Adams
Preceded bySeat established by 2 Stat. 89
Succeeded bySeat abolished
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont
In office
September 3, 1793 – February 20, 1801
Appointed byGeorge Washington
Preceded byNathaniel Chipman
Succeeded byElijah Paine
1st Attorney General of Vermont
In office
October 1790 – September 3, 1793
GovernorThomas Chittenden
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byDaniel Buck
Personal details
Born(1755-03-23)March 23, 1755
Brimfield,
Province of Massachusetts Bay,
British America
DiedNovember 30, 1813(1813-11-30) (aged 58)
Burlington, Vermont
Resting placeElmwood Cemetery
Burlington, Vermont
Political partyFederalist[1]
SpouseLucy Caroline Allen (m. 1789-1813, his death)
RelationsEthan Allen (father-in-law)
Children6 (including Henry Hitchcock and Ethan A. Hitchcock)
EducationHarvard University
OccupationAttorney

Samuel Hitchcock (March 23, 1755 – November 30, 1813) was the 1st Attorney General of Vermont, a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont and a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit. He was the son-in-law of Ethan Allen and the father of Ethan A. Hitchcock.

Education and career[edit]

Born on March 23, 1755, in Brimfield, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British America,[2] Hitchcock graduated from Harvard University in 1777.[2] He read law with Jedediah Foster in West Brookfield, Massachusetts, attained admission to the bar, and practiced in Worcester, Massachusetts.[3] He moved to Manchester, Republic of Vermont in 1784.[4]

Hitchcock continued private practice in Burlington, Republic of Vermont from 1786 to 1787.[2] He was state's attorney for Chittenden County, Republic of Vermont from 1787 to 1790.[2] He was the 1st Attorney General of Vermont (Republic of Vermont until March 4, 1791, State of Vermont, United States on and from that date) from 1790 to 1793.[2] He was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives (under the Republic of Vermont and State of Vermont) from 1789 to 1793.[2] Hitchcock also served as a Justice of the Peace and heard cases in Burlington.[5]

In 1791, Hitchcock was a delegate to the Vermont convention which ratified the United States Constitution and enabled Vermont to join the Union as the 14th state.[6] Hitchcock drafted the charter for the University of Vermont, was an original member of its board of trustees, and was the longtime secretary of the board.[7] In 1792, he was one of Vermont's presidential electors, casting his ballots for Washington for President and Adams for Vice President.[8]

Federal judicial service[edit]

Hitchcock received a recess appointment from President George Washington on September 3, 1793, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Vermont vacated by Judge Nathaniel Chipman.[2] He was nominated to the same position by President Washington on December 27, 1793.[2] He was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 30, 1793, and received his commission on January 28, 1794.[2] His service terminated on February 20, 1801, due to his elevation to the Second Circuit.[2]

Hitchcock was nominated by President John Adams on February 18, 1801, to the United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit, to a new seat authorized by 2 Stat. 89.[2] He was confirmed by the Senate on February 20, 1801, and received his commission the same day.[2] His service terminated on July 1, 1802, due to abolition of the court.[2]

Later career and death[edit]

Following his departure from the federal bench, Hitchcock resumed private practice in Vergennes and Burlington, Vermont from 1802 to 1813.[2] He died in Burlington on November 30, 1813.[a][2][9][10] He was buried in Burlington's Elmwood Cemetery.[11]

Family[edit]

Hitchcock was the son of Noah and Mary Hitchcock.[3] He was married to Lucy Caroline Allen (1768–1842), the daughter of Ethan Allen.[3] Their children who lived to adulthood included Lorraine Allen Hitchcock, Henry Hitchcock, Mary Anne Hitchcock, Ethan A. Hitchcock, Caroline P. Hitchcock, and Samuel Hitchcock.[3]

  • Henry Hitchcock
    Henry Hitchcock
  • Ethan Allan hitchcock
    Ethan Allan hitchcock

Note[edit]

  1. ^ Many sources indicate November 20. November 30 is verified by the Burlington death and burial record for Samuel Hitchcock, as well as contemporary newspaper death notices, none of which appeared before December 1, 1813.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Ragsdale, Bruce A. (2005). "The Sedition Act Trials" (PDF). Federal Judicial Center. Washington, DC: Federal Judicial History Office. p. 35. Retrieved December 21, 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Samuel Hitchcock at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
  3. ^ a b c d "The Genealogy of the Hitchcock Family: Who are Descended from Matthias Hitchcock of East Haven, Conn., and Luke Hitchcock of Wethersfield, Conn". Press of Carpenter & Morehouse. July 7, 1894. pp. 248–251 – via Internet Archive.
  4. ^ Aldrich, Lewis Cass (1889). History of Bennington County, Vt. Syracuse, NY: D. Mason & Co. p. 200 – via Internet Archive.
  5. ^ Rann, William S. (July 7, 1886). History of Chittenden County, Vermont: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers. D. Mason & Company. p. 414 – via Internet Archive.
  6. ^ Lawson, John Davison (July 7, 1916). "American State Trials: A Collection of the Important and Interesting Criminal Trials which Have Taken Place in the United States, from the Beginning of Our Government to the Present Day: with Notes and Annotations (Volume 6)". Thomas Law Books. p. 689 – via Google Books.
  7. ^ "Obituary Record of Graduates of Yale University". Yale University. July 7, 1910. p. 135 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ Rand, Avery of (July 7, 1902). "Vermont Legislative Directory". Vermont Office of Secretary of State. p. 198 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ "Death notice, Samuel Hitchcock". Boston Commercial Gazette. Boston, MA. December 16, 1813. p. 2 – via GenealogyBank.com. At Burlington, Ver on the 30th ult., Hon. Samuel Hitchcock, age 59.
  10. ^ "The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography: Being the History of the United States as Illustrated in the Lives of the Founders, Builders, and Defenders of the Republic, and of the Men and Women who are Doing the Work and Moulding the Thought of the Present Time (Volume 11)". J. T. White Company. July 7, 1901. pp. 195–196 – via Google Books.
  11. ^ Corley, Edward B. (November 2, 1921). "Death and Burial Record for Samuel Hitchcock in the Vermont Vital Records, 1720-1908 (Copy of original)". Ancestry.com. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com LLC. Retrieved November 23, 2017.

Sources[edit]

Legal offices
Preceded by
Office established
 1st Attorney General of Vermont
1790–1793 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont
1793–1801 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Seat established by 2 Stat. 89
 Judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit
1801–1802 		Succeeded by
Seat abolished
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