Richard Morris (August 15, 1730 O.S. – April 11, 1810) was an American lawyer and politician from

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. He was chief justice of the

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the trial-level court of general jurisdiction in the New York State Unified Court System. (Its Appellate Division is also the highest intermediate appellate court.) It is vested with unlimited civ ...

from 1779 to 1790.

Early life

He was born on August 15, 1730, in Morrisania, then located in

Westchester County, New York Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...

, the third son of

Lewis Morris Lewis Morris (April 8, 1726 – January 22, 1798) was an American Founding Father, landowner, and developer from Morrisania, New York, presently part of Bronx County. He signed the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Continen ...

(1698–1762) and Katrintje "Catherine" (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Staats) Morris (1697–1731). His paternal grandfather was Governor of New Jersey

. His brothers included Continental Congressman

and Gen. Staats Long Morris. His half-brother was U.S. Senator Gouverneur Morris and Assemblyman

Richard Valentine Morris Richard Valentine Morris (March 8, 1768 – May 13, 1815) was a United States Navy officer and politician. Early life He was born on March 8, 1768, in Morrisania, then a town in Westchester County, which became in 1898 a neighborhood in the boro ...

was his nephew. Morris was a graduate of

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in 1748. Then he studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1752.

Career

In 1762, he was appointed by Governor

Robert Monckton Lieutenant-General Robert Monckton (24 June 1726 – 21 May 1782) was an officer of the British Army and colonial administrator in British North America. He had a distinguished military and political career, being second in command to General J ...

to the New York Court of Vice-Admiralty. At the outbreak of the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

he sided with the Patriots, and resigned from the bench in 1775. On March 4, 1778, he was appointed by the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assem ...

to the

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature; the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Its members are elected to two-year terms; there are no term limits. There are 63 seats in the Senate. Partisan com ...

as one of the representatives of the Southern District, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Dr. John Jones. He remained in the State Senate until October 1779, sitting in the 1st,

2nd A second is the base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI). Second, Seconds or 2nd may also refer to: Mathematics * 2 (number), as an ordinal (also written as ''2nd'' or ''2d'') * Second of arc, an angular measurement unit ...

and

3rd New York State Legislature The 3rd New York State Legislature, consisting of the New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly, met from August 18, 1779, to July 2, 1780, during the third year of George Clinton's governorship, first at Kingston, then at Albany, ...

s. On October 23, 1779, he was appointed by the Council of Appointment as Chief Justice of the

, and remained on the bench until September 1790 when he reached the constitutional age limit. In 1788, he was a delegate to the New York Convention to Ratify the U.S. Constitution. On October 19, 1789, he administered the oaths of office to Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

John Jay John Jay (December 12, 1745 – May 17, 1829) was an American statesman, patriot, diplomat, abolitionist, signatory of the Treaty of Paris, and a Founding Father of the United States. He served as the second governor of New York and the first ...

. In December 1794, he ran on the

Federalist 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 ...

ticket for Congress in the Westchester–Richmond district, but was defeated by Democratic-Republican Philip Van Cortlandt.

Personal life

On June 13, 1759, he married Sarah Ludlow (1730–1791), the daughter of Henry Ludlow (1701–1784) and Mary Corbett and the sister of William Henry Ludlow. Together, they had five children:"Richard Morris Family Bible"
/ref> *

Lewis Richard Morris Lewis Richard Morris (November 2, 1760 – December 29, 1825) was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a United States representative from Vermont. Early life Morris was born in Scarsdale in the Province of New York to Sarah Ludlo ...

(1760–1825), who married Theodosia Olcott (d. 1800), who died soon after. He later married Ellen Hunt (1781–1865), daughter of

Jonathan Hunt Jonathan Hunt may refer to: * Jonathan Hunt (New Zealand politician) (born 1938), politician from New Zealand * Jonathan Hunt (Vermont congressman) (1787–1832), U.S. Representative from Vermont * Jonathan Hunt (Vermont lieutenant governor) (1738� ...

. * Robert Morris (1762–1851), who married Frances Ludlum (1766–1852). * Mary Morris (1763–1836), who married William Popham. * Catherine Morris (1765–1765), who died in infancy. * Catherine Morris (1766–1767), who also died in infancy. He owned estates in Westchester county at Mount Fordham and in Scarsdale. Mount Fordham was burned by the British 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 died on April 11, 1810, in Scarsdale, New York; and was buried at the

Trinity Churchyard The parish of Trinity Church has three separate burial grounds associated with it in New York City. The first, Trinity Churchyard, is located in Lower Manhattan at 74 Trinity Place, near Wall Street and Broadway. Alexander Hamilton, Albert Galla ...

in New York City.

Descendants

His granddaughter, Mary Morris (1790–1869), married

James Alexander Hamilton James Alexander Hamilton (April 14, 1788 – September 24, 1878) was an American soldier, acting Secretary of State, and the third son of Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He entered politics as a Democrat ...

(1788–1878), son of Founding Father

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first United States secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795. Born out of wedlock in Charlest ...

. His grandson,

Lewis Gouverneur Morris Lewis Gouverneur Morris II (June 4, 1882 – August 14, 1967) was a banker and prominent social figure in New York and Newport Society. Early life Morris was born on June 4, 1882 in Newport, Rhode Island. He was the son of Francis Morris (1845– ...

(1808–1900), was married to Emily Lorillard (1819–1850), of the Lorillard Tobacco family.

Sources

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Richard 1730 births 1810 deaths Morris family (Morrisania and New Jersey) People from the Bronx New York (state) state senators New York Supreme Court Justices Yale College alumni People of the Province of New York