James Putnam (1725 – October 23, 1789) was a judge and political figure in

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

. He served as a member of New Brunswick's first Council. Putnam was born in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

, was educated at

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

and studied law with chief justice

Edmund Trowbridge Edmund Trowbridge (1709 – April 2, 1793) was an American judge and lawyer. He is best known for being an associate justice for the Massachusetts Superior Court of Judicature, the highest court in the Province of Massachusetts Bay, during the B ...

. In 1749, he set up practice in

Worcester, Massachusetts Worcester ( , ) is a city and county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, the city's population was 206,518 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the second-List of cities i ...

. He married Elizabeth Chandler in 1754. Putnam succeeded Trowbridge as Attorney General for Massachusetts.

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

studied law with Putnam. At the start of the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

, Putnam left with the British army for

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and later went to Halifax, finally settling in

Saint John, New Brunswick Saint John is a seaport city of the Atlantic Ocean located on the Bay of Fundy in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Saint John is the oldest incorporated city in Canada, established by royal charter on May 18, 1785, during the reign of Ki ...

. He was proscribed in the

Massachusetts Banishment Act The Massachusetts Banishment Act, officially named the "Banishment Act of the State of Massachusetts", was passed in September 1778 "to prevent the return to this state of certain persons therein named and others who have left this state or either o ...

of 1778. He was named to the province's Council in 1783 and served as a judge in the

Supreme Court of New Brunswick The Court of King's Bench of New Brunswick (in French: ''Cour du Banc du Roi du Nouveau-Brunswick'') is the superior trial court of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. Structure The Court of King's Bench of New Brunswick consists of a C ...

until his death at the age of 64. His son

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

served in the Nova Scotia assembly.

References

Wall, Caleb A ''Reminiscences of Worcester from the Earliest Period, Historical and Genealogical ...'' (1877)

Hannay, J ''History of New Brunswick. Volume 1'' (1909)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Putnam, James 1725 births 1789 deaths Harvard University alumni Politicians from Salem, Massachusetts People of colonial Massachusetts Massachusetts lawyers Colony of New Brunswick judges