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Chief justice of the United States from 1796 to 1800
"Justice Ellsworth" redirects here. For other uses, see Justice Ellsworth (disambiguation).
Oliver Ellsworth
Portrait by Ralph Earl, 1785.
3rd Chief Justice of the United States
In office March 8, 1796 – December 15, 1800
Nominated by
George Washington
Preceded by
John Rutledge
Succeeded by
John Marshall
United States Senator from Connecticut
In office March 4, 1789 – March 8, 1796
Preceded by
Seat established
Succeeded by
James Hillhouse
Personal details
Born
(1745-04-29)April 29, 1745 Windsor, Connecticut, British America
Died
November 26, 1807(1807-11-26) (aged 62) Windsor, Connecticut, U.S.
Political party
Federalist
Spouse
Abigail Wolcott
Children
9, including William and Henry
Relatives
Henry W. Ellsworth (grandson) Delia Lyman Porter (great-granddaughter)
Education
Yale College College of New Jersey (AB)
Signature
Oliver Ellsworth (April 29, 1745 – November 26, 1807) was a Founding Father of the United States, attorney, jurist, politician, and diplomat. Ellsworth was a framer of the United States Constitution, United States senator from Connecticut, and the third chief justice of the United States. Additionally, he received 11 electoral votes in the 1796 presidential election.
Born in Windsor, Connecticut, Ellsworth attended the College of New Jersey where he helped found the American Whig–Cliosophic Society. In 1777, he became the state attorney for Hartford County, Connecticut, and was selected as a delegate to the Continental Congress, serving during the remainder of the American Revolutionary War. He served as a state judge during the 1780s and was selected as a delegate to the 1787 Philadelphia Convention, which produced the United States Constitution. While at the convention, Ellsworth played a role in fashioning the Connecticut Compromise between the more populous states and the less populous states. He also served on the Committee of Detail, which prepared the first draft of the Constitution, but he left the convention and did not sign the document.
His influence helped ensure that Connecticut ratified the Constitution, and he was elected as one of Connecticut's inaugural pair of Senators, serving from 1789 to 1796. He was the chief author of the Judiciary Act of 1789, which shaped the federal judiciary of the United States and established the Supreme Court's power to overturn state supreme court decisions that were contrary to the United States Constitution. Ellsworth served as a key Senate ally to Alexander Hamilton and aligned with the Federalist Party. He led the Senate passage of Hamiltonian proposals such as the Funding Act of 1790 and the Bank Bill of 1791. He also advocated in favor of the United States Bill of Rights and the Jay Treaty.
In 1796, after the Senate rejected the nomination of John Rutledge to serve as Chief Justice, President George Washington nominated Ellsworth to the position. Ellsworth was unanimously confirmed by the Senate, and served until 1800, when he resigned due to poor health. Few cases came before the Ellsworth Court, and he is chiefly remembered for his discouragement of the previous practice of seriatim opinion writing. He simultaneously served as an envoy to France from 1799 to 1800, signing the Convention of 1800 to settle the hostilities of the Quasi-War. He was succeeded as chief justice by John Marshall. He subsequently served on the Connecticut Governor's Council until his death in 1807.
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succeeded in 1796 by the third chief justice, OliverEllsworth (Connecticut). Both Rutledge and Ellsworth were delegates to the Constitutional Convention...
federal government of the United States. In 1787, Roger Sherman and OliverEllsworth, state delegates to the Constitutional Convention, proposed a compromise...
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The U.S. Congress adopts the Great Seal of the United States. 1787 – OliverEllsworth moves at the Federal Convention to call the government the 'United...
appointment until two vacancies occurred. In late 1800, Chief Justice OliverEllsworth resigned due to poor health. Adams nominated former Chief Justice John...
College in 1778. He passed the bar examination after studying law under OliverEllsworth and others, but was unable to find work as a lawyer. He found some...
presidential oath of office was administered to John Adams by Chief Justice OliverEllsworth. Adams was the first president to receive the oath of office from a...
receive the support of the more populous states. With the aide of OliverEllsworth, Sherman repeatedly proposed a bicameral compromise where one house...
Jersey Plan voted against it, including Connecticut's Roger Sherman and OliverEllsworth. Since several delegates from less populous states failed to strongly...
Representatives Chamber of Congress Hall in Philadelphia. Chief Justice OliverEllsworth administered the oath of office, making Adams the first president to...
as leaning Republican. Senators OliverEllsworth, William S. Johnson, and Roger Sherman were Founding Fathers. Ellsworth helped write the Judiciary Act...
14 • Connecticut elects delegates to the constitutional convention. OliverEllsworth, William Samuel Johnson and Roger Sherman will attend. May 17 • A letter...
the Judiciary Act of 1789, primarily written by Connecticut Senator OliverEllsworth. Through the Judiciary Act, Congress established a six-member Supreme...
including those who did not sign: William Richardson Davie, North Carolina OliverEllsworth, Connecticut Elbridge Gerry, Massachusetts * William Houston, New Jersey...
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