John Jay Jackson Jr. (August 4, 1824 – September 2, 1907) was an American lawyer, Whig politician,

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 ...

(initially of the

United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia The United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia (in case citations, W.D. Va.) is a United States district court. Appeals from the Western District of Virginia are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth ...

) and, later, the first judge of the

United States District Court for the District of West Virginia The following are former United States district courts, which ceased to exist because they were subdivided into smaller units. With the exception of California, each of these courts initially covered an entire U.S. state, and was subdivided as the ...

. He ended his career as the first judge of the

United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia The United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia (in case citations, N.D. W. Va.) is a federal court in the Fourth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are ...

Early life and education

Born on August 4, 1824, in

Parkersburg Parkersburg is a city in and the county seat of Wood County, West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Ohio and Little Kanawha rivers, it is the state's fourth-largest city and the largest city in the Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna metro ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

(now

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

), Jackson's family included several generations of lawyers, politicians and judges. His grandfather, Judge John G. Jackson, who died shortly after young John J. Jackson Jr.'s birth, had been a U.S. Congressman as well as U.S. District Judge for the Western District of Virginia. Young John J. Jackson Jr. received a private education near home, then traveled north to attend the College of New Jersey (now

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

), from which he graduated in 1845. He then

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 ...

and was admitted to the Virginia bar in 1847.

Legal and political career

Jackson began his private legal practice in

Wirt County Wirt County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,194, making it the least populous county in West Virginia. Its county seat is Elizabeth. The county was created in 1848 by the Virginia Gene ...

, Virginia (now West Virginia) from 1847 to 1848. Local judges appointed Jackson as the first Wirt County commonwealth attorney (prosecutor) in 1848, the year the county was established from portions of Wood County and Jackson County. The following year his father's friend Judge David A. McComas appointed Jackson Jr. as the commonwealth attorney for more populated

Ritchie County Ritchie County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,444. Its county seat is Harrisville. The county was created in 1843 by the Virginia General Assembly and named for Richmond newspaper pu ...

(which also became West Virginia in his lifetime and had been split from Wood County in 1843), where he served 1849 until 1850. Residents of Wood county operated considerable businesses in both counties, as well as speculated in land and other resources; the Jackson family had bought land near Harrisville (the Ritchie county seat) in connection with James B. Blair and in Wirt county near the Little Kanawha River in conjunction with William P. Rathbone and his son in law

Peter G. Van Winkle Peter Godwin Van Winkle (September 7, 1808April 15, 1872) was an American lawyer, businessman and politician. For many years a leading officer of the Northwestern Virginia Railroad, he became one of the founders of West Virginia and a United ...

. Probably Jackson continued to reside at home (Parkersburg being the Wood county seat), helped his father attend the family's considerable business interests, and only traveled to the outlying counties when court was in session. Jackson Jr. was appointed the Commonwealth attorney for Wood County and served from 1850 to 1851, when the post became elective under the new state constitution. When Jackson resumed his private legal practice, Wood County voters elected (and reelected) him as one of their delegates in the

Virginia House of Delegates The Virginia House of Delegates is one of the two parts of the Virginia General Assembly, the other being the Senate of Virginia. It has 100 members elected for terms of two years; unlike most states, these elections take place during odd-numbe ...

. Jackson served part-time from 1852 to 1855, succeeding his cousin and business associate

William Lowther Jackson William Lowther Jackson Jr. (February 3, 1825 – March 26, 1890) was an American lawyer, Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician, slaveholder and jurist who became the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia prior to the American Civil Wa ...

(a future Confederate General) and being succeeded by

Arthur I. Boreman Arthur Ingram Boreman (July 24, 1823April 19, 1896) was an American lawyer, politician and judge who helped found the U.S. state of West Virginia. Raised in Tyler County, West Virginia, he served as the state's first Governor, and a United Sta ...

(who would become West Virginia's first Governor). After leaving the legislature as 1855 closed, Jackson Jr. concentrated on his family's real estate and other business interests (which boomed after the discovery of oil at Burning Spring in Wirt County), as well as his private legal practice in Parkersburg until 1861.Cynthia Miller Leonard, Virginia's General Assembly 1619-1978 (Virginia State Library 1978) pp. 451, 457

Federal judicial service

On July 26, 1861, President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

nominated Jackson to a seat on the

vacated by Judge

John White Brockenbrough John White Brockenbrough (December 23, 1806 – February 20, 1877) was a Virginia attorney, law professor, U.S. District Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia, and Confederate States congressman and distr ...

, who had sided with Virginia's secessionists. Jackson's father had opposed secession as well as attended the

Wheeling Convention The 1861 Wheeling Convention was an assembly of Virginia Southern Unionist delegates from the northwestern counties of Virginia, aimed at repealing the Ordinance of Secession, which had been approved by referendum, subject to a vote. The first ...

in May, 1861 (following Virginia's secession vote), which ultimately led to West Virginia's statehood in 1863. Meanwhile, 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 ...

confirmed Judge Jackson Jr's appointment on August 3, 1861, and he received his commission the same day. Following West Virginia's secession from Virginia and admission to the Union on June 20, 1863, Jackson was reassigned by

operation of law The phrase "by operation of law" is a legal term that indicates that a right or liability has been created for a party, irrespective of the intent of that party, because it is dictated by existing legal principles. For example, if a person dies wi ...

to the

on June 11, 1864, the new seat having been authorized by 13 Stat. 124. Jackson was reassigned by

to the

on July 1, 1901, the new court having been authorized by 31 Stat. 736. Judge Jackson retired on March 15, 1905, ending his federal service.

Notable case

Jackson ruled in 1870 that West Virginia's ex-Confederates were eligible to vote under the Fifteenth Amendment, which had profound effects on the polity in West Virginia.

Tenure

Because Jackson had served from before the creation of the District of West Virginia until after its subdivision, Jackson was the only Judge to ever sit on the United States District Court for the District of West Virginia. Having served for nearly forty-four years, including over forty years in the federal courts in West Virginia, Jackson was known as "the Iron Judge". Jackson became the longest-serving judge appointed by Lincoln.

Death

Jackson died on September 2, 1907, in

Atlantic City Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, Boardwalk (entertainment district), boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020 United States censu ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

Family

Jackson's father, General John Jay Jackson of Wood County attended the

on West Virginia statehood. Jackson's brother

Jacob B. Jackson Jacob Beeson Jackson (April 6, 1829December 11, 1893) was the sixth Governor of West Virginia from 1881 to 1885. In 1855, he married Maria Willard."West Virginia's First Ladies," West Virginia Division of Culture and History, June 2007. In h ...

served as

Governor of West Virginia A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political r ...

and his other brother was Circuit Judge and Congressman James M. Jackson. Confederate General

Stonewall Jackson Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson (January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, considered one of the best-known Confederate commanders, after Robert E. Lee. He played a prominent role in nearl ...

was a cousin. His grandfather, John G. Jackson, preceded him as Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia. His great-grandfathers included George Jackson. The

Jackson Memorial Fountain Jackson Memorial Fountain is a historic fountain located at the entrance to City Park at Parkersburg, Wood County, West Virginia. It was built in 1905 and is a cast iron structure that originally had three tiers. The second tier is topped by Parke ...

at Parkersburg is dedicated to the Jackson family.