William Pinhorne (died 1720) was an American colonial politician and

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...

, who served in various capacities in both

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 * '' ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

Career

New York

William Pinhorne probably arrived in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

from

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

in the 1670s. In May 1683 he purchased a house on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

. That year he was commissioned as Alderman for the East Ward of New York City. In 1685 he was Speaker of the New York General Assembly. In 1691, with the accession of Governor

Henry Sloughter Henry Sloughter (died July 23, 1691) was briefly colonial governor of New York in 1691. Sloughter was the governor who put down Leisler's Rebellion, which had installed Jacob Leisler as ''de facto'' governor in 1689. He died suddenly in July 16 ...

, Pinhorne was appointed to the New York Provincial Council, where he served on the Committee for Preparing the Prosecution of

Jacob Leisler Jacob Leisler ( – May 16, 1691) was a German-born colonist who served as a politician in the Province of New York. He gained wealth in New Amsterdam (later New York City) in the fur trade and tobacco business. In what became known as Leisler's ...

. He then served as a judge in a special session of the Court of

Oyer and Terminer In English law, oyer and terminer (; a partial translation of the Anglo-French ''oyer et terminer'', which literally means "to hear and to determine") was one of the commissions by which a judge of assize sat. Apart from its Law French name, the ...

which convened to try Leisler on charges of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

. Leisler was convicted, sentenced to death, and executed. On May 15, 1691, William Pinhorne was appointed Fourth Justice on the New York Supreme Court of Judicature. In 1692 he moved to a plantation of over at

Snake Hill Snake Hill (known officially as Laurel Hill) is an igneous rock intrusion jutting up from the floor of the Meadowlands in southern Secaucus, New Jersey, at a bend in the Hackensack River., Variant name: Snake Hill It was largely obliterated in t ...

East Jersey The Province of East Jersey, along with the Province of West Jersey, between 1674 and 1702 in accordance with the Quintipartite Deed, were two distinct political divisions of the Province of New Jersey, which became the U.S. state of New Jersey. ...

, which resulted in his suspension on September 1 from his positions for non-residence. Returning to New York the following year, he was appointed Second Justice of the New York Supreme Court of Judicature on March 22, 1693, and on June 10 he was restored to the Council. On June 7, 1698, Lord Bellomont took office as governor, and Pinhorne was stripped of all New York offices for a remark made nearly a decade earlier which Bellomont interpreted as being in support of

Jacobitism Jacobitism (; gd, Seumasachas, ; ga, Seacaibíteachas, ) was a political movement that supported the restoration of the senior line of the House of Stuart to the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British throne. The name derives from the first name ...

, and for "harbouring and entertaining one Smith a

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

in his house."

New Jersey

In 1698 William Pinhorne was appointed one of the

East New Jersey Provincial Council The East New Jersey Provincial Council or Governor's Council was the upper house of the East New Jersey Legislature under proprietary rule until the surrender of the right of government to The Crown, and Queen Anne's acceptance. History The Coun ...

during the administration of Governor

Jeremiah Basse Jeremiah Basse (died 1725) was a governor of both West Jersey and East Jersey. He became governor of West Jersey in 1697, and became governor of East Jersey in 1697. Basse was not an effective governor, however, after Andrew Hamilton returned ...

; he held the position up through the surrender of government to the Crown. After the late 1690s the government of

East East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

and

West Jersey West Jersey and East Jersey were two distinct parts of the Province of New Jersey. The political division existed for 28 years, between 1674 and 1702. Determination of an exact location for a border between West Jersey and East Jersey was often ...

became increasingly dysfunctional. This ultimately resulted in the surrender by the Proprietors of

and those of

of the right of government to Queen Anne. Anne's government united the two colonies as the

Province of New Jersey The Province of New Jersey was one of the Middle Colonies of Colonial America and became the U.S. state of New Jersey in 1783. The province had originally been settled by Europeans as part of New Netherland but came under English rule after the ...

, a

royal colony A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony administered by The Crown within the British Empire. There was usually a Governor, appointed by the British monarch on the advice of the UK Government, with or without the assistance of a local Council ...

, establishing a new system of government. On July 29, 1703, in the instructions to Governor Viscount Cornbury Pinhorne was appointed to the

New Jersey Provincial Council The New Jersey Provincial Council was the upper house of the New Jersey Legislature under colonial rule until it was replaced by the New Jersey Legislative Council under the New Jersey Constitution of 1776. History The Provincial Council was estab ...

, and would serve through the administrations of several governors. In 1704 Cornbury named him Second Justice of the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice Roger Mompesson, was Pinhorne's son in law. Lord Lovelace, Cornbury's successor as governor, died on May 6, 1709.

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

Richard Ingoldesby Richard Ingoldesby (or Ingoldsby; died 1 March 1719) was a British army officer and lieutenant governor of both New Jersey and New York. He became the acting governor for the two colonies from May 1709 to April 1710. Life Ingoldesby served ...

became acting governor, and on June 16 suspended

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 ...

, President of Council. William Pinhorne, being next in precedence, became president. Unbeknownst to Ingoldesby, his own commission as lieutenant governor was revoked in October 1709, but the news only reached him in April 1710. Pinhorne, as President of Council, became acting governor until June 10, 1710, when Governor Robert Hunter took office. Pinhorne and Hunter soon found themselves in opposition to each other, with Hunter demanding Pinhorne's removal from all offices in New Jersey in 1711. Hunter continued lobbying London for the replacement of Pinhorne and other Councillors, and on April 23, 1713 the

Lords of Trade The Board of Trade is a British government body concerned with commerce and industry, currently within the Department for International Trade. Its full title is The Lords of the Committee of the Privy Council appointed for the consideration of ...

wrote to Hunter that the crown had approved the appointment of new councilors. William Pinhorne died in early 1720.''New Jersey Colonial Documents, Archives of the State of New Jersey, First Series, Vol. III''; Daily Advertiser Publishing House, Newark, New Jersey, 1881. p. 299

Family

William Pinhorne married Mary, a daughter of

. A daughter, Martha, was the wife of Chief Justice Roger Mompesson 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 ...

. Pinhorne had another daughter, Mary, and a son, John.

References

External links

"William Pinhorne Biography at Historical Society of the New York Courts"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pinhorne, William Colonial governors of New Jersey Justices of the Supreme Court of New Jersey Members of the New Jersey Provincial Council Members of the East New Jersey Provincial Council People from New York City New York City Council members English emigrants 1720 deaths