Matthew McAllister (May 4, 1758 – May 9, 1823) was an American politician who served as the first United States Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia (1789–1797) and Mayor of Savannah, Georgia (1798–1799 and 1814–1815).

Biography

He was born on May 4, 1758 in

York County, Pennsylvania York County ( Pennsylvania Dutch: Yarrick Kaundi) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 456,438. Its county seat is York. The county was created on August 19, 1749, from part of Lancaster ...

, the 5th child of Colonel Robert McAllister who founded the town of

Hanover, Pennsylvania Hanover is a borough in York County, Pennsylvania, southwest of York and north-northwest of Baltimore, Maryland and is north of the Mason-Dixon line. The town is situated in a productive agricultural region. The population was 16,429 at the ...

. In 1784, after graduating from Princeton, he moved to

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

where he practiced law. In 1789, he was named by

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

as the first United States Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia; he served until 1797 when he was replaced by Charles Jackson. He was linked to the Yazoo Land Fraud of 1795 and came under scathing criticism from the state's leading Republican, James Jackson which impacted his career. He later served in the

Georgia Legislature The Georgia General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is bicameral, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. Each of the General Assembly's 236 members serve two-year terms and are directly e ...

and as mayor of Savannah from 1798 to 1799 and again during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

from 1814 to 1815. He did not receive an appointment during

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

's administration (1801–1809). He married Hannah Gibbons, sister of William Gibbons. They had two children, Harriet, who died in infancy, and Judge

Matthew Hall McAllister Matthew Hall McAllister (October 26, 1800 – December 19, 1865) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Districts of California. Education and career Born on October 26, 1800, in Savannah Georgia, the s ...

. He died on May 9, 1823.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McAllister, Matthew 1758 births 1823 deaths Mayors of Savannah, Georgia Politicians from Savannah, Georgia