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Jonathan Robinson (August 11, 1756November 3, 1819) was an American politician, lawyer, and judge from the state of
Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
who served as chief justice of the
Vermont Supreme Court The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The Court ...
and a
United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...
.


Early life

Robinson was born in
Hardwick, Massachusetts Hardwick is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States, about west of the city of Worcester. It had a population of 2,667 at the 2020 census. It includes the villages of Hardwick, Gilbertville, Wheelwright and Old Furnace. Hist ...
on August 11, 1756, a son of Samuel Robinson (1707–1767) and Mercy (Leonard) Robinson (1714–1793). He was raised in Hardwick, and in 1761 he moved with his family to
Bennington Bennington is a town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester. As of the 2020 US Census, the population was 15,333. Bennington is the most populous to ...
, in what would later become Vermont but was then governed as part of New Hampshire – the
New Hampshire Grants The New Hampshire Grants or Benning Wentworth Grants were land grants made between 1749 and 1764 by the colonial governor of the Province of New Hampshire, Benning Wentworth. The land grants, totaling about 135 (including 131 towns), were made o ...
. Robinson's father was an important leader in the New Hampshire Grants, and died while in England attempting to resolve a dispute over whether New Hampshire or New York had the right to grant land and town charters. After moving to Bennington, Robinson was educated locally, then served in the militia during 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 ...
. He served as a
private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
and
corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non ...
in the company commanded by Joseph Safford, which was part of the regiment commanded by Ebenezer Walbridge. Safford's company was mobilized in May 1779, November 1780, August 1781, and August 1782. Robinson later went into business as the proprietor of the State Arms House tavern, which was located where the
Bennington Battle Monument The Bennington Battle Monument is a stone obelisk located at 15 Monument Circle, in Bennington, Vermont, United States. The monument commemorates the Battle of Bennington during the American Revolutionary War. In that battle, on 16 August 1777, ...
now stands. He later decided to study law, and he was
admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...
in 1796.


Career

Robinson was a longtime holder of local and state office, and became identified with the
Democratic-Republican Party The Democratic-Republican Party, known at the time as the Republican Party and also referred to as the Jeffersonian Republican Party among other names, was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early ...
at its founding. In addition to terms as a Bennington
justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...
and member of the board of selectmen, among the offices in which he served were: member of the
Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives ar ...
(1789–1796, 1797–1802, 1818–1819); Bennington town clerk (1795–1801); judge of probate for the Bennington district (1795–1798, 1800–1801, 1815–1818); and
chief judge A chief judge (also known as presiding judge, president judge or principal judge) is the highest-ranking or most senior member of a lower court or circuit court with more than one judge. According to the Federal judiciary of the United States, th ...
of the
Vermont Supreme Court The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The Court ...
(1801–1807). In addition to his business, legal, and political careers, Robinson was also active in the Vermont Militia; in April 1787, he was appointed a
major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
in the militia's 1st Brigade. In August 1787, he was assigned as the brigade's
judge advocate Judge-advocates are military lawyers serving in different capacities in the military justice systems of different jurisdictions. Australia The Australian Army Legal Corps (AALC) consists of Regular and Reserve commissioned officers that provi ...
. In each year from 1803 to 1806, Robinson was the Democratic-Republican nominee for governor, and lost each time to
Isaac Tichenor Isaac Tichenor (February 8, 1754December 11, 1838) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as the third and fifth governor of Vermont and United States Senator from Vermont. Biography Tichenor was born in Newark in the Province of N ...
. In 1807, Robinson was elected to 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 ...
, filling the unexpired term of
Israel Smith Israel Smith (April 4, 1759 – December 2, 1810) was an American lawyer and politician. He held a wide variety of positions in the state of Vermont, including as a member of the United States House of Representatives, a member of the United Sta ...
, who had resigned. He was elected to a full term in 1809 and served until retiring after the end of his term in 1815.


Awards

In 1790, Robinson received the
honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
of
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
from
Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
. In 1803, Dartmouth awarded Robinson an honorary
Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
.


Death and burial

Robinson died on November 3, 1819 in Bennington, Vermont. He is interred at the Old Bennington Cemetery in Bennington.


Family

Robinson was the husband of Mary (Fassett) Robinson. They were the parents of four children: Jonathan Edwards, Mary, Henry, and Isaac Tichenor. Mary Robinson was the wife of Orsamus Cook Merrill. Robinson's brother
Moses Robinson Moses Robinson (March 22, 1741 – May 26, 1813) was a prominent Vermont political figure. When Vermont was an independent republic, he was its first chief justice and served a one-year term as governor. As governor he superintended the negoti ...
served as governor during the
Vermont Republic The Vermont Republic ( French: ''République du Vermont''), officially known at the time as the State of Vermont ( French: ''État du Vermont''), was an independent state in New England that existed from January 15, 1777, to March 4, 1791. The ...
as a U.S. senator. Brother
David Robinson David Maurice Robinson (born August 6, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1989 to 2003, and minority owner of the Spurs. Nicknamed ...
was a major general in the Vermont Militia and U.S. Marshal for Vermont. Brother
Samuel Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...
was a colonel in the militia and served as Speaker of the
Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives ar ...
.


Attempt to locate portrait

Robinson is one of approximately 45 U.S. senators for whom the Senate's photo historian has no likeness. Attempts to locate one have proved unsuccessful.


See also

*
Politics of the United States The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a bi ...


References


External links

*
Jonathan Robinson
at The Political Graveyard
Govtrack.us: Sen. Jonathan Robinson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Robinson, Jonathan 1756 births 1819 deaths Vermont state court judges Chief Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court Members of the Vermont House of Representatives United States senators from Vermont People from Hardwick, Massachusetts Vermont lawyers People from Bennington, Vermont Vermont Democratic-Republicans Democratic-Republican Party United States senators Burials in Vermont 19th-century American lawyers