John Meredith Read Sr. (July 21, 1797 – November 29, 1874) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician from
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
. He was one of the founders of the
Republican Party and chief justice of the
Pennsylvania Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Unified Judicial System. It also claims to be the oldest appellate court in the United States, a claim that is disputed by the Massachusetts Supreme Ju ...
.
Early life
Read John was born on Chestnut Street across the street from
Independence Hall
Independence Hall is a historic civic building in Philadelphia, where both the United States Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution were debated and adopted by America's Founding Fathers. The structure forms the centerpi ...
, the eldest son of lawyer
John Read and Martha Meredith Read. Both of his grandfathers (
George Read George Read may refer to:
* George Reade (colonial governor) (1608–1671), politician, judge, and Acting Governor of Virginia Colony
* George Read (American politician, born 1733) (1733–1798), lawyer, signer of Declaration of Independence and U ...
and
Samuel Meredith) had served in the
Continental Congress. After an education at home, Read graduated from the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
, then
read law, and was admitted to the bar in 1818. He started a law practice in Philadelphia.
Political career
Read began his political career when he was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1822. He served until 1824 while remaining in the private practice of law. After this he served on the Philadelphia City Council, and for several years was the city's solicitor. Although his family had been
Federalists
The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters called themselves ''Federalists''.
History Europe federation
In Europe, proponents of de ...
, he became an ardent supporter of the ''Free Soil'' wing of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
.
From 1837 to 1841, Read was the
United States Attorney
United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...
for the
Eastern District of Pennsylvania
The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (in case citations, E.D. Pa.) is one of the original 13 federal judiciary districts created by the Judiciary Act of 1789. It originally sat in Independence Hall in Phil ...
. In 1845,
President John Tyler nominated him to the
Supreme Court of the United States; but, his earlier stance against the expansion of slavery into the territories caused the southern Democratic Senators to oppose his nomination and it was withdrawn. From June until December 1845 he served as the Attorney General of
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
.
In 1863, he was elected as a member to the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
.
Read became an early supporter and organizer for the
Republican Party. When they won in their first statewide races in 1858, Read was elected to the state supreme court. He then served until December 2, 1872, the last year as chief justice. When the Republicans held their first national convention at Philadelphia in 1856, Read was a convention organizer and delivered the convention
keynote address
A keynote in public speaking is a talk that establishes a main underlying theme. In corporate or commercial settings, greater importance is attached to the delivery of a keynote speech or keynote address. The keynote establishes the framework f ...
. At the 1860 Republican Convention in Chicago, he received one vote on the first ballot for presidential nominee; still, he supported
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincol ...
as the nominee.
Family
Read was married twice, first to Priscilla Marshall in 1828. They had five children. After Priscilla's death, Read married Amelia Thompson in 1855. Read died at home in Philadelphia in 1874. His son,
J. Meredith Read, was a noted American diplomat.
References
*
External links
*Th
John Meredith Read papers which include materials covering his legal and political careers, are available for research use at the
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a long-established research facility, based in Philadelphia. It is a repository for millions of historic items ranging across rare books, scholarly monographs, family chronicles, maps, press reports and v ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Read, John M.
1797 births
1874 deaths
Chief Justices of Pennsylvania
Lawyers from Philadelphia
Members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Pennsylvania Democrats
Pennsylvania Republicans
Philadelphia City Council members
Justices of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
United States Attorneys for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law
Unsuccessful nominees to the United States Supreme Court
19th-century American politicians
19th-century American judges
19th-century American lawyers