Washington, Bushrod

Born June 5, 1762, in Westmoreland County, VA
Died November 26, 1829, in Philadelphia, PA

Federal Judicial Service:
Associate Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
Received a recess appointment from John Adams on September 29, 1798, to a seat vacated by James Wilson; nominated to the same position by John Adams on December 19, 1798. Confirmed by the Senate on December 20, 1798, and received commission on December 20, 1798. Service terminated on November 26, 1829, due to death.

Supreme Court Oath:
November 9, 1798

Allotment as Circuit Justice:

Southern Circuit, Fall 1798, Fall 1800
Middle Circuit, Fall 1799
Eastern Circuit, Spring 1800
Second Circuit, April 29, 1802-March 2, 1803
Third Circuit, March 3, 1803-November 26, 1829

Education:
College of William and Mary, A.B., 1778
Read law, 1784

Professional Career:

Continental Army private, 1781-1782
Private practice, Westmoreland County, Virginia, 1784
Private practice, Alexandria, Virginia, 1785-1790
State delegate, Virginia, 1787
Delegate, Virginia convention to ratify the U.S. Constitution, 1788
Private practice, Richmond, Virginia, 1790-1798

Bibliography

Annis, David Leslie. “Mr. Bushrod Washington: Supreme Court Justice on the Marshall Court.” Ph.D. Diss., University of Notre Dame, 1974.

Binney, Horace. Bushrod Washington. Philadelphia: C. Sherman & Son, 1858.

Custer, Lawrence B. “Bushrod Washington and John Marshall: A Preliminary Inquiry.” American Journal of Legal History, vol. 4, no. 1 (Jan. 1960): 34-48.

Faber, David A. “Justice Bushrod Washington and the Age of Discovery in American Law.” West Virginia Law Review, vol. 102, no. 4 (Summer 2000): 735-808.

Gerber, Scott Douglas. Seriatim: The Supreme Court before John Marshall. New York: NYU Press, 1998.

Johnson, Herbert A. “Bushrod Washington.” Vanderbilt Law Review, vol. 62, no. 2 (Mar. 2009): 447-90.

Lynch, David. The Role of Circuit Courts in the Formation of United States Law in the Early Republic: Following Supreme Court Justices Washington, Livingston, Story and Thompson. Oxford, UK: Hart Publishing, 2018.

Powell, Lewis F. “Supreme Court Justices from Virginia.” The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, vol. 84, no. 2 (Apr. 1976): 131-41.

Sawyer, E.R. “The Family of Washington.” Proceedings of the New York State historical Association, vol. 5 (1905): 144-52.

Six, Fred N. “Chief Justice John Marshall – Justice Bushrod Washington.” Journal of the Kansas Bar Association, vol. 41, no. 4 (Winter 1972): 349-56.

Washington, Bushrod C. “The Late Mr. Justice Bushrod Washington.” The Green Bag, vol. 9, no. 8 (Aug. 1897): 329-35.

“Biographical Sketch of Bushrod Washington.” American Law Magazine, vol. 5, no. 2 (Jul. 1845): 249-67.

Manuscript Collections

Duke University
Durham, N.C.
Bushrod Washington papers, 1686-1828.
98 items; papers include an indenture (1686) and correspondence concerning legal, financial, and family matters.

Harvard Law School
Cambridge, Mass.
Bushrod Washington letters and legal opinion, 1798-1823.
5 sheets; legal opinion on an equity case, four letters, and newspaper clippings regarding Washington's life and career.

Mount Vernon Ladies Association of the Union
Mount Vernon, Va.
Papers of Bushrod Washington, 1779-1829.
158 items; personal and family correspondence, including a 42-letter correspondence with George Washington (1788-1799).

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Washington, Bushrod