Amos Morrill (August 25, 1809 – March 5, 1884) was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

of the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas (in case citations, E.D. Tex.) is a federal court in the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Fifth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. ...

Education and career

Born in

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, Morrill graduated from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...

in 1834 and

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

to enter the bar in 1836. He was in private practice in

Murfreesboro Murfreesboro is a city in and county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 152,769 according to the 2020 census, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010. Murfreesboro is located in the Nashville metropol ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

from 1836 to 1839, in Clarksville,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

from 1839 to 1856, and in

Austin Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

, Texas from 1856 to 1868. On June 9, 1847, Amos Morrill purchased the property The Grove in

Jefferson Jefferson may refer to: Names * Jefferson (surname) * Jefferson (given name) People * Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826), third president of the United States * Jefferson (footballer, born 1970), full name Jefferson Tomaz de Souza, Brazilian foo ...

, Texas and built a log cabin there, which he used during his time in Jefferson."Chain of Title: Lots 7,8,9, Block D, Alley Addition, Jefferson, Texas" Prepared by Sandra E. Mayton, Abstractor/Examiner, Port Jefferson Abstract and Title Company. Jefferson, Texas. February 2002. Morrill sold the property to Caleb Ragin and his wife Sarah on March 20, 1855. He was a justice of the

Texas Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Texas (SCOTX) is the supreme court, court of last resort for civil matters (including juvenile delinquency cases, which are categorized as civil under the Texas Family Code) in the U.S. state of Texas. A different court, the ...

from 1868 to 1870, returning to private practice in Austin from 1870 to 1872.

Federal judicial service

On January 18, 1872, Morrill was nominated by President

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Joel C. C. Winch. Morrill was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on February 5, 1872, and received his commission the same day. He served in that capacity until his retirement, on October 18, 1883.

Later career and death

After his retirement, Morill remained in private practice in Austin until he died there on March 5, 1884.

Sources

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrill, Amos 1809 births 1884 deaths Justices of the Texas Supreme Court Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas United States federal judges appointed by Ulysses S. Grant 19th-century American judges People from Salisbury, Massachusetts Lawyers from Austin, Texas United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law People from Clarksville, Texas