John Moses Cheney (January 6, 1859 – June 2, 1922) was a
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
attorney and a
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 ...
of the
. A Republican, Cheney represented African American clients during the segregation era and supported voter registration drives during his U.S. Senate campaign in the era of
white supremacy
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White su ...
supported by the Democratic Party in Florida and across the south. Efforts to register African Americans resulted in the
Ocoee massacre.
Education and career
Born on January 6, 1859, in
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...
,
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
,
Cheney received a
Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...
in 1885 from the
Boston University School of Law
Boston University School of Law (Boston Law or BU Law) is the law school of Boston University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top law schools in the United States and considered an eli ...
. He entered private practice in
Orlando
Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...
,
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
from 1886 to 1906. He was city attorney for Orlando from 1889 to 1890. He was a Supervisor for the
United States Census for Florida in 1900. He was the owner of the Orlando Light and Water Company from 1901 to 1922. He 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 c ...
for the Southern District of Florida from 1906 to 1912.
Federal judicial service
Cheney received a
recess appointment
In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the president of a federal official when the U.S. Senate is in recess. Under the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate, and with the advi ...
from President
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) was the 27th president of the United States (1909–1913) and the tenth chief justice of the United States (1921–1930), the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected pr ...
on August 26, 1912, to a seat on the
vacated by Judge
James William Locke. He was nominated to the same position by President Taft on December 3, 1912. His service terminated on March 3, 1913, after his nomination was not confirmed by 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 ...
, which never held a vote on his nomination.
Later career and death
Cheney resumed private practice in Orlando from 1913 to 1922. He died on June 2, 1922, in Orlando.
See also
*
Ocoee massacre
References
Sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cheney, John Moses
1859 births
1922 deaths
People from Orlando, Florida
Lawyers from Milwaukee
Florida lawyers
Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
Boston University School of Law alumni
Unsuccessful recess appointments to United States federal courts
United States district court judges appointed by William Howard Taft
20th-century American judges
United States Attorneys for the Southern District of Florida