Justin Smith Morrill (April 14, 1810December 28, 1898) was an American politician and entrepreneur who represented

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, 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 (state), New York to the west, and the Provin ...

in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

(1855–1867) and

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 po ...

(1867–1898). He is most widely remembered for the

Morrill Land-Grant Acts The Morrill Land-Grant Acts are United States statutes that allowed for the creation of land-grant colleges in U.S. states using the proceeds from sales of federally-owned land, often obtained from indigenous tribes through treaty, cession, or s ...

that provided federal funding for establishing many of the United States' public colleges and universities. Originally a Whig, after that party became defunct Morrill was one of the founders of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

. A native of

Strafford, Vermont Strafford is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,094 at the 2020 census. The town of Strafford was created on August 12, 1761 by way of a royal charter which King George III of Great Britain issued to Governor ...

, Morrill was educated in the schools of Strafford, Thetford Academy and Randolph Academy. He worked as a merchant's clerk in Maine and Vermont, then embarked on a business career. In partnership with Jedediah H. Harris, Morrill owned and operated several stores in towns throughout Vermont. The success of his stores enabled Morrill to invest profitably in a farm, banks, railroads, and real estate. Morrill was active in politics as a Whig, and was elected to Congress in 1854. The party became defunct soon afterwards, and Morrill was a founder of the new Republican Party. He won reelection to the U.S. House every two years from 1856 to 1864, and he served from March 1857 to March 1867. During his House service, Morrill served as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee and the

House Republican Conference The House Republican Conference is the party caucus for Republicans in the United States House of Representatives. It hosts meetings and is the primary forum for communicating the party's message to members. The Conference produces a daily pu ...

. In 1866, Morrill was elected to the U.S. Senate, and he served from March 1867 until his death. During his Senate career, Morrill was chairman of the

Senate Finance Committee The United States Senate Committee on Finance (or, less formally, Senate Finance Committee) is a standing committee of the United States Senate. The Committee concerns itself with matters relating to taxation and other revenue measures general ...

and the Joint Committee on Public Buildings. Morrill died in Washington, D.C. on December 28, 1898. He was buried at Strafford Cemetery.

Early life

Morrill was born in

on April 14, 1810, the son of Mary Hunt (Proctor) Morrill and Nathaniel Morrill, a farmer, blacksmith, and militia leader who attained the rank of

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

. Morrill attended the common schools of Strafford, Thetford Academy and Randolph Academy. He then trained for a business career by working as a merchant's clerk in Strafford and

Portland, Maine Portland is the largest city in the U.S. state of Maine and the seat of Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 in April 2020. The Greater Portland metropolitan area is home to over half a million people, the 104th-largest metropo ...

. He then was a merchant in Strafford, and the partnership in which he participated with Judge Jedediah H. Harris grew to own and operate four stores throughout the state. Morrill also served in local offices including Town Auditor and Justice of the Peace. One of Judge Harris's daughters married Portus Baxter, who also served in Congress. Baxter and Morrill became close friends as a result of the connection to Judge Harris, with Morrill referring to Baxter as "one of nature's noblemen" and Baxter consciously patterning his business and political career on Morrill's. Morrill invested in several successful ventures, including banks, railroads, and real estate. By the late 1840s he was financially secure enough to retire, and he became a gentleman farmer. In addition to farming, Morrill became active in the Whig Party, including serving as chairman of the Orange County Whig Committee, a member of the Vermont State Whig Committee, and a Delegate to the

1852 Whig National Convention The 1852 Whig National Convention was a presidential nominating convention held from June 17 to June 20, in Baltimore, Maryland. It nominated the Whig Party's candidates for president and vice president in the 1852 election. The convention sel ...

Congressional career

In 1854 Morrill was elected to the Thirty-fourth Congress as a Whig. He was a founder of the

, and won reelection five times as a Republican, serving from March 4, 1855 to March 3, 1867. He served as chairman of the

Committee on Ways and Means The Committee on Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee has jurisdiction over all taxation, tariffs, and other revenue-raising measures, as well as a number of other program ...

in the Thirty-ninth Congress. He also served on the

Joint Committee on Reconstruction The Joint Committee on Reconstruction, also known as the Joint Committee of Fifteen, was a joint committee of the 39th United States Congress that played a major role in Reconstruction in the wake of the American Civil War. It was created to "inqu ...

, which drafted the

Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution The Fourteenth Amendment (Amendment XIV) to the United States Constitution was adopted on July 9, 1868, as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. Often considered as one of the most consequential amendments, it addresses citizenship rights and ...

. In 1866 Morrill was elected to the U.S. Senate as a Union Republican. He was reelected as a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

in 1872, 1878, 1884, 1890, and 1896, and served from March 4, 1867, until his death, almost thirty-one years. He served as chairman of the Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds ( Forty-first through Forty-fourth Congresses) where he played a vital role in obtaining the current

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The libra ...

main building through his work on the Joint Select Committee on Additional Accommodations for the Library. He also served as chairman of the Committee on Finance ( Forty-fifth, Forty-seventh through Fifty-second, Fifty-fourth and Fifty-fifth Congresses). In addition, Morrill was a regent of the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Found ...

from 1883 to 1898 and a trustee of the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a public land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is among the oldest universities in the Unite ...

from 1865 to 1898.

Legislation

The Morrill Tariff of 1861 was a protective tariff law adopted on March 2, 1861. Passed after anti-tariff southerners had left Congress during the process of secession, Morrill designed it with the advice of

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

economist Henry C. Carey. It was one of the last acts signed into law by

James Buchanan James Buchanan Jr. ( ; April 23, 1791June 1, 1868) was an American lawyer, diplomat and politician who served as the 15th president of the United States from 1857 to 1861. He previously served as secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and repr ...

, and replaced the

Tariff of 1857 The Tariff of 1857 was a major tax reduction in the United States that amended the Walker Tariff of 1846 by lowering rates to between 15% and 24%. The Tariff of 1857 was developed in response to a federal budget surplus in the mid-1850s. The firs ...

. Additional tariffs Morrill sponsored were passed to raise revenue during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

. Morrill is best known for sponsoring the Morrill Act, also known as the Land Grant College Act. This act was signed into law by

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...

in 1862, and established federal funding for higher education in every state of the country. In his own words: He also authored the

Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act The Morrill Anti-Bigamy Act (37th United States Congress, Sess. 2., ch. 126, ) was a federal enactment of the United States Congress that was signed into law on July 1, 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln. Sponsored by Justin Smith Morrill of Vermo ...

of 1862, which targeted

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

, based on the then-existing practice of

plural marriage Polygamy (called plural marriage by Latter-day Saints in the 19th century or the Principle by modern fundamentalist practitioners of polygamy) was practiced by leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) for more th ...

(

polygamy Crimes Polygamy (from Late Greek (') "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, sociologists call this polygyny. When a woman is marr ...

). It imposed a five-hundred dollar fine and up to five years imprisonment for the crime of polygamy. On January 6, 1879, in ''

Reynolds v. United States ''Reynolds v. United States'', 98 U.S. 145 (1878), was a Supreme Court of the United States case that held that religious duty was not a defense to a criminal indictment. ''Reynolds'' was the first Supreme Court opinion to address the First Amen ...

'' the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

, upheld the Anti-Bigamy Act's ban on plural marriage. While serving in the U.S. House, Morrill secured passage of legislation to establish the

National Statuary Hall Collection The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol is composed of statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history. Limited to two statues per state, the collection was originally set up in the old ...

inside the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

. Under the provisions of this 1864 law, each state is permitted to provide two statues of noteworthy citizens for display inside the Capitol. A second Land Grant College Act in 1890 targeted the former Confederate states and led to the creation of several

historically black colleges and universities Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of primarily serving the African-American community. ...

. The Land Grant College Acts ultimately led to the founding of 106

colleges A college ( Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offerin ...

including many state universities, polytechnic colleges, and agricultural and mechanical colleges.

Personal

In 1851, Morrill married Ruth Barrell Swan (1822–1898) of

Easton, Massachusetts Easton is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 25,058 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Greater Boston area. Easton is governed by an elected Select Board. Open Town Meeting acts as the legislative br ...

. They had two children. Justin Harris Morrill (1853–1855) died in childhood. James Swan Morrill (1857–1910) graduated from the

in 1880 and Columbian College Law School in 1882. He was a lawyer and farmer and served in a variety of offices including as a 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 are ...

. He wrote ''Self-Consciousness of Noted Persons'', published in 1886. Morrill died in Washington, D.C. on December 28, 1898. He was buried at Strafford Cemetery. At the time of Morrill's death his 43 years and 299 days of continuous Congressional service was the longest in U.S. history. He has since been surpassed, but still ranks 26th as of March 2021.

Legacy

The Justin Smith Morrill Homestead in Strafford is a National Historic Landmark. Many colleges established under the Morrill Act created a 'Morrill Hall' in his honor. Morrill was initiated into the

Delta Upsilon Delta Upsilon (), commonly known as DU, is a collegiate men's fraternity founded on November 4, 1834 at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts. It is the sixth-oldest, all-male, college Greek-letter organization founded in North Americ ...

fraternity as an honorary member in 1864. He received honorary degrees from the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...

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 ...

, and many other institutions. Justin Morrill College at

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...

was named for him. In 1962, the U.S. Postal Service issued a 4 cent postage stamp to celebrate the centennial of the Morrill Land-Grant College Act. In 1999, the Postal Service issued a 55 cent

Great Americans series The Great Americans series is a set of definitive stamps issued by the United States Postal Service, starting on December 27, 1980, with the 19¢ stamp depicting Sequoyah, and continuing through 1999, the final stamp being the 55¢ Justin S. Morr ...

postage stamp of Morrill to honor his role in establishing the land grant colleges.Cornell University
Senator Justin S. Morrill: The Land-Grant College Act and Cornell
retrieved March 10, 2014 In 1967

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pub ...

opened two residence halls on its campus. Named for Morrill and Abraham Lincoln, they are also known as The Towers. They are the tallest buildings on the OSU campus, and among the tallest in

Columbus Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

References

Vermont Public Television Vermont Public Co. is the public broadcaster serving the U.S. state of Vermont. Its headquarters, newsroom, and radio studios are located in Colchester, Vermont, Colchester, with television studios in Winooski, Vermont, Winooski. It operates tw ...

Justin S. Morrill papers
at Baker Library Special Collections, Harvard Business School. {{DEFAULTSORT:Morrill, Justin Smith 1810 births 1898 deaths People of Vermont in the American Civil War Vermont culture People from Strafford, Vermont Republican Party United States senators from Vermont Burials in Vermont Whig Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Vermont Half-Breeds (Republican Party) 19th-century American politicians Thetford Academy, Vermont alumni

Early life

Congressional career

Legislation

Personal

Legacy

See also

References

Further reading

External links