Mercer Beasley (March 27, 1815 – February 19, 1897) was a chief justice of the
New Jersey Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of New Jersey is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, the Supreme Court of New Jersey is the final judicial authority on all cases in the state court system, including cases challenging the ...
from 1864 to 1897.
He was born March 27, 1815, in
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 ...
, the son of Frederick and Maria Beasley. He studied at the
College of New Jersey (now Princeton) for a year and later studied the law. In 1838 he was admitted to the bar and had his practice in
Trenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.[mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...]
.
Following the death of Chief Justice
Edward W. Whelpley, Beasely was appointed by the
Governor of New Jersey
The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...
to a seven-year term to the Supreme Court as chief justice on March 8, 1864. Beasley served in that capacity for nearly 33 years.
Beasley died from pneumonia on February 19, 1897, in Trenton and was interred at
Riverview Cemetery.
Mercer Beasley School of Law was established in 1924 and was the predecessor institution to the
Rutgers School of Law – Newark.
See also
*
List of justices of the Supreme Court of New Jersey
Current justices
,
List of justices before 1947
Before 1947 and particularly after 1844, the structure of the New Jersey state judiciary was incredibly complex. In some cases, it is not entirely clear whether the following justices served on th ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beasley, Mercer
1815 births
1897 deaths
Chief Justices of the Supreme Court of New Jersey
Lawyers from Philadelphia
Politicians from Trenton, New Jersey
Whig Party (United States) politicians
19th-century American politicians
19th-century American judges
19th-century American lawyers