Samuel Prentiss
Samuel Prentiss | |
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| Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont | |
| In office April 8, 1842 – January 15, 1857 | |
| Appointed by | John Tyler |
| Preceded by | Elijah Paine |
| Succeeded by | David Allen Smalley |
| United States Senator from Vermont | |
| In office March 4, 1831 – April 11, 1842 | |
| Preceded by | Dudley Chase |
| Succeeded by | Samuel C. Crafts |
| Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court | |
| In office 1829–1830 | |
| Preceded by | Richard Skinner |
| Succeeded by | Titus Hutchinson |
| Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court | |
| In office 1825–1829 | |
| Preceded by | Joel Doolittle |
| Succeeded by | Titus Hutchinson |
| Member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Montpelier | |
| In office 1824–1825 | |
| Preceded by | Araunah Waterman |
| Succeeded by | William Upham |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Samuel Prentiss March 31, 1782 Stonington, Connecticut |
| Died | January 15, 1857 (aged 74) Montpelier, Vermont |
| Resting place | Green Mount Cemetery Montpelier, Vermont |
| Political party | Federalist National Republican Whig |
| Spouse(s) | Lucretia Houghton (m. 1804-1855, her death) |
| Children | 12 (including Theodore Prentiss) |
| Relatives | John Holmes Prentiss (brother) |
| Profession | Attorney |
Samuel Prentiss (March 31, 1782 – January 15, 1857) was an Associate Justice and Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, a United States Senator from Vermont and a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont.
Education and career[]
Born on March 31, 1782, in Stonington, Connecticut,[1] Prentiss moved with his family to Worcester, Massachusetts, and then to Northfield, Massachusetts, in 1786, completed preparatory studies and was instructed in the classics by private tutor Reverend Samuel C. Allen.[1] He studied law in Northfield with attorney Samuel Vose,[1] and Brattleboro, Vermont, with attorney John W. Blake[1] in 1802.[1] He was and practiced in Montpelier, Vermont, from 1803 to 1824.[2]
He was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1824 to 1825.[1] He was an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1825 to 1829,[3] and Chief Justice from 1829 to 1830.[3]
Political affiliations and unsuccessful candidacy[]
In addition to practicing law, Prentiss became active in politics, first as a Federalist,[4] and later as a National Republican[5][6] and Whig.[7] He was an unsuccessful candidate for the United States House of Representatives in 1816.[4]
Congressional service[]
Prentiss was elected in 1831 to the United States Senate as a National Republican. He was reelected as a Whig in 1837 and served from March 4, 1831, to April 11, 1842, when he resigned to accept a judicial appointment.[6] He was Chairman of the Committee on Patents and the Patent Office for the 27th United States Congress.[6]
Anti-dueling statute[]
While in the Senate, Prentiss was the originator and successful advocate of the law to suppress dueling in the District of Columbia.[1]
Federal judicial service[]
Prentiss was nominated by President John Tyler on April 8, 1842, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Vermont vacated by Judge Elijah Paine.[1] He was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 8, 1842, and received his commission the same day.[1] His service terminated on January 15, 1857, due to his death in Montpelier.[1] He was interred in Green Mount Cemetery in Montpelier.[8]
Family[]
The fourth in his family to be named Samuel Prentiss, Prentiss was the son of Lucretia (Holmes) Prentiss and Samuel Prentiss III (1759–1818), a physician who served as an army surgeon during the American Revolution.[1][9] His grandfather, Colonel Samuel Prentiss II (1736–1809), was also a veteran of the Revolution.[1][9] Prentiss was the brother of John Holmes Prentiss, a United States Representative from New York.[2] In 1804, Prentiss married Lucretia Houghton (1786–1855) of Northfield.[1] They were the parents of 12 children.[10] Their son Theodore Prentiss was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly.[citation needed]
Notable law student[]
Among the lawyers who received their education and training in Prentiss's office was William Upham, who later served in the United States Senate.[11]
Other service and honors[]
Prentiss was a trustee of Dartmouth College from 1820 to 1827;[12] he received the honorary degrees of Artium Magister[12] and Legum Doctor[12] from Dartmouth in 1817 and 1832.[12]
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References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m The History of the Town of Montpelier, pp. 447–451.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Samuel Prentiss". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- ^ Jump up to: a b History of Vermont, Natural, Civil and Statistical, p. 124.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Vermont Election Results", p. 2.
- ^ Annual Report of the American Historical Association, p. 507.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774–2005, p. 1762.
- ^ Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005, p. 1762.
- ^ "Prominent People Buried in Vermont:Samuel Prentiss".
- ^ Jump up to: a b DAR Lineage Book, p. 273.
- ^ The History of the Town of Montpelier, p. 451.
- ^ The History of the Town of Montpelier, p. 454.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d General Catalogue of Dartmouth College, p. 67.
Sources[]
Books[]
- American Historical Association (1903). Annual Report of the American Historical Association. I. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.
- Bisbee, Marvin Davis (1900). General Catalogue of Dartmouth College and the Associated Schools 1769–1900. Hanover, NH: Dartmouth College. p. 67.
- Dolliver, Louise Pearsons (1907). Lineage Book - National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. XXIII. Harrisburg, PA: Telegraph Printing Company.
- Hemenway, Abby Maria (1882). The History of the Town of Montpelier, Including that of the Town of East Montpelier. Montpelier, VT: A. M. Hemenway. p. 447.
- Thompson, Zadock (1842). History of Vermont, Natural, Civil and Statistical. I. Burlington, VT: Chauncey Goodrich. p. 124.
- Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-2005. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office. 2005. ISBN 978-0-16-073176-1.
Internet[]
- "Prominent People Buried in Vermont:Samuel Prentiss". www.voca58.org/. Burlington, VT: Vermont Old Cemetery Association. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
- Vermont State Archives and Records Administration. "Vermont Election Results: United States Representative (Six Districts), 1812–1820" (PDF). www.sec.state.vt.us/. Montpelier, VT: Vermont Secretary of State. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
External links[]
- Samuel Prentiss at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
- "Samuel Prentiss". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Samuel Prentiss at Find a Grave
- Binney, Charles J. F. (1883). Memoirs of Judge Samuel Prentiss, of Montpelier, Vt., and his Wife, Lucretia (Houghton) Prentiss. Boston, MA: C. J. F. Binney.
- Phelps, Edward John (1883). Address on the Life and Public Services of the Hon. Samuel Prentiss. Montpelier, VT: Vermont Watchman & Journal Press.
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- 1782 births
- 1857 deaths
- United States senators from Vermont
- Members of the Vermont House of Representatives
- Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont
- United States federal judges appointed by John Tyler
- 19th-century American judges
- Vermont lawyers
- People from Stonington, Connecticut
- Chief Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court
- Vermont Whigs
- 19th-century American politicians
- Vermont National Republicans
- National Republican Party United States senators
- Burials in Vermont