Charles Herman Ruggles (February 10, 1789 – June 16, 1865) was an American lawyer and politician who was a
U.S. Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
from
New York and Chief Judge of the
New York Court of Appeals.
Early life
Ruggles was born on February 10, 1789, in
New Milford,
Litchfield County, Connecticut
Litchfield County is in northwestern Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, the population was 185,186. The county was named after Lichfield, in England. Litchfield County has the lowest population density of any county in Connecticut and is the ...
. He was the son of Joseph Ruggles (1757–1834) and Mercy (
née Warner) Ruggles (1761–1798). His brother David Ruggles was married to Sarah Colden, a great-granddaughter of
Cadwallader Colden
Cadwallader Colden (7 February 1688 – 28 September 1776) was a physician, natural scientist, a lieutenant governor and acting Governor for the Province of New York.
Early life
Colden was born on 7 February 1688 in Ireland, of Scottish pare ...
, the
colonial governor of New York
The territory which would later become the state of New York was settled by European colonists as part of the New Netherland colony (parts of present-day New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Delaware) under the command of the Dutch West India ...
.
He graduated from
Litchfield Law School
The Litchfield Law School of Litchfield, Connecticut, was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietary school was unaffiliated with any college or university. (Wh ...
in 1803, was
admitted to the bar
An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...
and began practice in
Kingston, New York
Kingston is a city in and the county seat of Ulster County, New York, United States. It is north of New York City and south of Albany. The city's metropolitan area is grouped with the New York metropolitan area around Manhattan by the United ...
.
Career
He was a member from
Sullivan and
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...
Counties of the
New York State Assembly in 1820.
Ruggles was elected as a
Federalist to the
17th United States Congress
The 17th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. While its term was officially March 4, 1821, t ...
, and served from December 3, 1821, to March 3, 1823.
He was Judge of the
Second Circuit Court of New York from 1831 to 1846, and was a delegate to the
New York State Constitutional Convention
The Constitution of the State of New York establishes the structure of the government of the State of New York, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of New York. Like most state constitutions in the United States, New York's constituti ...
of 1846.
On June 7, 1847,
he was elected one of the first judges of the
New York Court of Appeals.
[There Shall Be a Court of Appeals]
/ref> On June 22, he drew a term of six years and a half,[ and took office on July 5. He became Chief Judge after the resignation of Greene C. Bronson in April 1851 and remained on this post until the end of 1853. In November 1853, Ruggles was re-elected to an eight-year term as an associate judge.][State Biography]
/ref> In June 1855, he fell ill and was absent from the Court's June and September terms.
at p.106, footnote 20George F. Comstock
George Franklin Comstock (1811–1892) was an American lawyer and politician. He was Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1860 to 1861.
Personal life
Comstock was born on August 24, 1811, in Williamstown, New York. He graduated fro ...
was elected in November 1855 to fill the vacancy.
Personal life
After the early death of his brother David in 1837, Charles raised his nephew and David's son, George David Ruggles (1833–1904), an officer in the United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...
who served as Adjutant General of the U.S. Army from 1893 to 1897.Poughkeepsie, New York
Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsi ...
, Dutchess County, New York
Dutchess County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 295,911. The county seat is the city of Poughkeepsie. The county was created in 1683, one of New York's first twelve counties, and later or ...
, on June 16, 1865, and interred at Christ Church (Episcopal) Cemetery. In 1888, all remains at this burying ground were removed to Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery
The Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery is a rural cemetery located in Poughkeepsie, New York and includes the gravesites of several notable figures. It also has a crematory. The forty-four acres of land used for the cemetery were purchased by Matthew Vass ...
.
See also
* George D. Ruggles
References
Sources
''The New York Civil List''
compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (pages 301, 348 and 355; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
''Historical Society of the Courts of New York State''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruggles, Charles Herman
1789 births
1865 deaths
Litchfield Law School alumni
People from New Milford, Connecticut
Chief Judges of the New York Court of Appeals
Members of the New York State Assembly
Politicians from Kingston, New York
Politicians from Poughkeepsie, New York
New York (state) lawyers
Burials at Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery
Federalist Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state)
19th-century American politicians
19th-century American judges
19th-century American lawyers