Samuel Putnam (May 13, 1768 – July 3, 1853) was a justice of the

Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Although the claim is disputed by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, the SJC claims the distinction of being the oldest continuously fu ...

from 1814 to 1842. He was appointed by Governor

Caleb Strong Caleb Strong Jr. (January 9, 1745 – November 7, 1819) was an American lawyer, politician, and Founding Father who served as the sixth and tenth governor of Massachusetts between 1800 and 1807, and again from 1812 until 1816. He assisted in ...

Career

Born in

Danvers, Massachusetts Danvers is a New England town, town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, located on the Danvers River near the northeastern coast of Massachusetts. The suburb is a fairly short ride from Boston and is also in close proximity to the beach ...

, Putnam attended

Phillips Academy Phillips Academy (also known as PA, Phillips Academy Andover, or simply Andover) is a Private school, private, Mixed-sex education, co-educational college-preparatory school for Boarding school, boarding and Day school, day students located in ...

Andover Andover may refer to: Places Australia *Andover, Tasmania Canada * Andover Parish, New Brunswick * Perth-Andover, New Brunswick United Kingdom * Andover, Hampshire, England ** RAF Andover, a former Royal Air Force station United States * Andov ...

, and later graduated from Harvard in 1787. He was admitted to the Essex Bar in 1794 establishing a practice in Salem. Putnam was elected in 1808 and 1809 to represent Salem in the

state senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...

. He eventually became a justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court in 1814 where he wrote an opinion in '' Harvard College v. Amory'', which established the

Prudent man rule The prudent man rule is based on common law stemming from the 1830 Massachusetts court formulation '' Harvard College v. Amory''. The prudent man rule, written by Massachusetts Justice Samuel Putnam (1768–1853), directs trustees "to observe how ...

in US Law. Concurrently during his tenure he was also elected in 1822 as a trustee of Dummer Academy (now

The Governor's Academy The Governor's Academy (informally known as Governor's or Govs) is a co-educational, college-preparatory day and boarding school in Byfield, Massachusetts. Established in 1763 in memory of Massachusetts governor William Dummer, Governor's is ...

). Putnam was honored in 1825 when he received a doctorate from the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in England. Putnam retired from the Massachusetts Judicial Court in 1842 and was replaced by associate justice Samuel Hubbard.

Personal life

The childhood home of Samuel Putnam included his parents Gideon (1726–1811), and Hannah of the

Putnam family The Putnam family of prominent old colonial Americans was founded by Puritans John and Priscilla (Gould) Putnam in the 17th century, in Salem, Massachusetts. Many notable individuals are descendants of this family, including those listed below. ...

. Samuel went on to marry Sarah Gooll (1772–1864) on October 28, 1795, and they had eight children. Some of his more prominent include Sarah Gooll Putnam (Crowninshield), and Elizabeth Cabot Putnam who was the wife of Augustus Lowell. Putnam died in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, at the age of 85.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Putnam, Samuel People from colonial Boston People from Danvers, Massachusetts 1768 births 1853 deaths Harvard College alumni Massachusetts state senators Justices of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court 19th-century Massachusetts state court judges