John Day (February 18, 1797 – February 15, 1859) was a

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

n politician and jurist who served as the

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds or 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Second of arc, an angular measurement unit ...

Chief Justice of Liberia The chief justice of Liberia is the head of the judicial branch of the Government of the Republic of Liberia and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of Liberia. Appointment and term Article 54(c) of the Constitution stipulates that the chief ...

from 1854 until his death in 1859. Born in Hicksford, Virginia, Day was the brother of

Thomas Day Thomas Day may refer to: Sports * Tom Day (rugby union) (1907–1980), Welsh rugby union player * Tom Day (American football) (1935–2000), American football player * Tom Day (footballer) (born 1997), English footballer Others * Thomas Day (wri ...

, a famed American furniture designer and black businessman. After being licensed as a Baptist minister in 1821, he had planned to become a Baptist missionary in

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

, but was unable to secure support among the Virginia Baptist establishment.Flowers, Elizabeth ''John Day, Southern Baptists, and the nineteenth-century mission to Liberia''
/ref> He traveled to Liberia in 1830 as part of the colonization effort by the American Colonization Society, where he was appointed by the

Baptist Board of Foreign Missions International Ministries is an international Baptist Christian missionary society. It is a constituent board affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA. The headquarters is in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, United States. History The soc ...

as the head of their mission in Liberia. In addition to his preaching, he also served as a farmer and merchant. Within one year of his family's arrival in Liberia, his wife and all five of his children had died of disease. Day served as a delegate from Grand Bassa County to Liberia's constitutional convention and signed both of its Declaration of Independence and its Constitution.Allafrica.com, ''Liberia: National Flag Day''
/ref> He served as President Pro Tempore of the Senate of Liberia in the 1840s. In 1854, he was appointed to the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

by President Joseph Jenkins Roberts, serving as the second Chief Justice of Liberia. He died in Monrovia on February 15, 1859.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Day, John Chief justices of Liberia Presidents pro tempore of the Senate of Liberia Americo-Liberian people 1797 births 1859 deaths People from Virginia People from Grand Bassa County Signatories of the Liberian Declaration of Independence 19th-century Liberian judges