Taney, Roger Brooke

Born March 17, 1777, in Calvert County, MD
Died October 12, 1864, in Washington, DC

Federal Judicial Service:
Chief Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
Nominated by Andrew Jackson on December 28, 1835, to a seat vacated by John Marshall. Confirmed by the Senate on March 15, 1836, and received commission on March 15, 1836. Service terminated on October 12, 1864, due to death.

Supreme Court Oath:
March 28, 1836

Allotment as Circuit Justice:

Fourth Circuit, March 22, 1836-October 12, 1864

Education:
Dickinson College, 1795
Read law, 1799

Professional Career:

State delegate, Maryland, 1799-1800
Private practice, Frederick, Maryland, 1801-1823
Director, state bank branch, Frederick, Maryland, 1810-1815
State senator, Maryland, 1816-1821
Director, Frederick County [Maryland] Bank, 1818-1823
Private practice, Baltimore, Maryland, 1823-1831
Attorney general, State of Maryland, 1827-1831
Acting secretary of war, 1831
Attorney General of the United States, 1831-1833
Secretary of the Treasury, 1833-1834

Other Nominations/Recess Appointments:

Nominated to Supreme Court of the United States, January 15, 1835; no Senate vote

Bibliography

Acheson, Dean G. “Roger Brooke Taney: Notes upon Judicial Self Restraint.” Illinois Law Review, vol. 31, no. 6 (Feb. 1937): 705-17.

Armstrong, Walter P. “The Rehabilitation of Roger B. Taney.” Tennessee Law Review, vol. 14, no. 4 (Jun. 1936): 205-18.

Borchard, Edwin. “Taney’s Influence on Constitutional Law.” Georgetown Law Journal, vol. 24, no. 4 (May 1936): 848-63.

Boudin, Louis B. “John Marshall and Roger B. Taney.” Georgetown Law Journal, vol. 24, no. 4 (May 1936): 864-909.

Braley, Henry K. “Roger Brooke Taney, Chief Justice of the United States.” Green Bag, vol. 22, no. 3 (Mar. 1910): 149-67.

Christian, George L. “Roger Brooke Taney.” American Law Review, vol. 46, no. 1 (Jan.-Feb. 1912): 1-23.

Dumont, Smith F. “Roger Brooke Taney.” Texas Law Review, vol. 1, no. 3 (Apr. 1923): 261-80.

Edwards, Isaac. “Chief Justice Taney: A Sketch and a Criticism.” Albany Law Journal, vol. 8, no. 3 (July 19, 1933): 33-9.

Fehrenbacher, Don E. “Roger B. Taney and the Sectional Crisis.” Journal of Southern History, vol. 43, no. 4 (Nov. 1977): 555-66.

Gregory, Charles Noble. “A Great Judicial Character, Roger Brooke Taney.” Yale Law Journal, vol. 18, no.1 (Nov. 1908): 10-27.

Harris, Robert J. “Chief Justice Taney: Prophet of Reform and Reaction.” Vanderbilt Law Review, vol. 10, no. 2 (Feb. 1957)” 227-58.

Huebner, Timothy S. “Roger B. Taney and the Slavery Issue: Looking beyond – and before – Dred Scott.” Journal of American History, vol. 97, no. 1 (Jun. 2010): 17-38.

Hughes, Charles Evans. “Roger Brooke Taney.” American Bar Association Journal, vol. 17, no. 12 (Dec. 1931): 785-90.

Jacobsen, John Gregory. Jackson's Judges: Six Appointments Which Shaped a Nation. Covenant Books: Murrell's Inlet, S.C., 2024.

Jones, Francis R. “Roger Brooke Taney.” Green Bag, vol. 14, no. 1 (Jan. 1902): 1-8.

King, James S. Roger Brooke Taney. New York: Charles Barmore, 1904.

Lewis, Walker. “At Home with Chief Justice Taney.” American Bar Association Journal, vol. 51, no. 9 (Sep. 1965): 829-34.

________. “The Unjust Judge: Who Wrote It?” American Bar Association journal, vol. 50, no. 10 (Oct. 1964): 932-7.

________. Without Fear or Favor: A Biography of Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1965.

Livingston, John A. “Roger Brooke Taney, 1877-1864.” Commercial Law Journal, vol. 40, no. 5 (May 1935): 232-7.

McGinty, Brian. The Body of John Merryman: Abraham Lincoln and the Suspension of Habeas Corpus. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2011.

Mikell, William E. “Chief Justice Roger Brooke Taney.” West Virginia Law Quarterly and the Bar, vol. 30, no. 2 (Jan. 1924): 87-104.

Palmer, Ben W. Marshall and Taney: Statesmen of the Law. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1939.

Ransom, William Lynn. “Roger Brooke Taney: Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1836-1864).” Georgetown Law Journal, vol. 24, no. 4 (May 1936): 809-47.

Smith, Walter George. “Roger Brooke Taney.” American Law Register, vol. 47, no. 4 (Apr. 1899): 201-34.

Spector, Robert M. “Lincoln and Taney: A Study in Constitutional Polarization.” American Journal of Legal History, vol. 15, no. 3 (Jul. 1971): 199-216.

Swisher, Carl Brent. “Roger B. Taney and the Tents of Democracy.” Maryland Historical Magazine, vol. 34, no. 4 (Sep. 1939): 207-21.

Taney, Edward S. “Roger Brooke Taney.” Green Bag, vol. 7, no. 8 (Aug, 1895): 361-4.

Taney, Mary Florence. “Roger Brooke Taney.” Records of the American Catholic Historical Society of Philadelphia, vol. 11, no. 1 (1900): 33-42.

Tyler, Samuel and Roger Brooke Taney. Memoir of Roger Brooke Taney, L.L.D., Chief Justice of the United States. Baltimore: John Murphy and Co., 1872.

Warren, Earl. “Roger Brooke Taney: Fifth Chief Justice of the United States.” American Bar Association Journal, vol. 41, no. 6 (Jun. 1955): 504-06.

“Chief Justice Roger B. Taney – His Career as a Lawyer.” American Law Review, vol. 52, no. 4 (Jul.-Aug. 1918): 535-70.

“Chief Justice Taney.” Albany Law Journal, vol. 7, no. 1 (Jan. 4 1873): 2-5.

“Chief Justice Taney.” Journal of the Patent Office Society, vol. 13, no. 12 (Dec. 1931): 654-5.

“Great American Judges – The Supreme Court of the United States.” Harvard Law Review, vol. 12, no. 2 (May 25, 1898): 135-7.

“Roger B. Taney.” Chicago Law Times, vol. 2, no. 4 (Oct. 1888): 317-27.

“Roger Brooke Taney.” Current Comment and Legal Miscellany, vol. 2, no. 8 (Aug. 15, 1890): 449-60.

“Roger Brooke Taney (Continued).” Current Comment and Legal Miscellany, vol. 2, no. 9 (Sep. 15, 1890): 513-17.

“Roger Brooke Taney.” United States Jurist, vol. 3, no. 2 (Apr. 1873): 127-37.

The Unjust Judge: A Memorial of Roger Brooke Taney, Late Chief Justice of the United States. New York: Baker & Goodwin, 1865.

Manuscript Collections

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library
Springfield, Ill.
Roger Brooke Taney legal documents, 1802-1814.
5 items. Documents in four cases in Frederick County, Maryland, for which Taney was an attorney.

Dickinson College
Carlisle, Pa.
Robert B. Taney papers, ca. 1795-1864.
ca. 3 ft.; collection contains legal papers (1802-1823) from the files of Taney's law office in Frederick, Md.; letters and legal opinions (1811-1864); and other material.

Gilder Lehrman Collection
Pierpont Morgan Library
New York, N.Y.
Roger B. Taney miscellaneous letters and documents, 1802-1862.
18 letters, 3 documents, and 2 books; finding aid; letters and documents concerning Taney's law practice, politics, and various cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Historical Society of Frederick County
Frederick, Md.
Taney Family Papers, 1805-1864.
0.5 linear feet. The Taney Family Collection contains business and personal correspondence, Court Opinions, and personal papers relating to Roger Brooke Taney and his family. An appointment must be made with the Archivist to see these items.

Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, Md.
Roger B. Taney collection of papers, 1811-1856.
66 items; collection contains Taney's family and professional correspondence.

Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Roger B. Taney papers, 1815-1859.
110 items; collection contains correspondence, legal files, writings, and miscellany.

University of Virginia Law School
Charlottesville, Va.
Roger B. Taney papers, 1792-1818.
40 items; finding aid; miscellaneous legal documents from Taney's Frederick, Md., law practice (1805-1812).

Federal Judicial Center

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Taney, Roger Brooke