Matthew Birchard (January 19, 1804 – June 16, 1876) was a judge in the U.S. State of

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

who was an

Ohio Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of Ohio is the highest court in the U.S. state of Ohio, with final authority over interpretations of Ohio law and the Ohio Constitution. The court has seven members, a chief justice and six associate justices, ...

Judge 1842–1849. Matthew Birchard was born in

Becket, Massachusetts Becket is a New England town, town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts, Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,931 ...

, and came to

Trumbull County, Ohio Trumbull County is a County (United States), county in the far northeast portion of the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 201,977. Its county seat and largest city is Warren, Ohio, Warren, ...

, near

Warren Warren most commonly refers to: * Warren (burrow), a network dug by rabbits * Warren (name), a given name and a surname, including lists of persons so named Warren may also refer to: Places Australia * Warren (biogeographic region) * War ...

at age eight. Medico Legal Journal : 179-180 of supplement He was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1828, and formed a partnership with future

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

David Tod David Tod (February 21, 1805 – November 13, 1868) was an American politician and industrialist from the U.S. state of Ohio. As the 25th governor of Ohio, Tod gained recognition for his forceful and energetic leadership during the American Civil ...

, and six years later was elected Common Pleas Judge. Reed 1897 : 21 Birchard accepted an appointment with the Federal Government for a time from his friend

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...

, first as Solicitor for the

United States General Land Office The General Land Office (GLO) was an Independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the United States government responsible for Public domain (land), public domain lands in the United States. It was created in 1812 ...

, and then to succeed Henry D. Gilpin as

Solicitor of the United States Treasury The Solicitor of the Treasury position was created in the United States Department of the Treasury by an act of May 29, 1830 , which changed the name of the Agent of the Treasury. Function The Solicitor of the Treasury served as legal advisor to t ...

. Poore 1878 : 230 He returned to Warren in 1841. He was elected from Trumbull County by the

Ohio General Assembly The Ohio General Assembly is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio. It consists of the 99-member Ohio House of Representatives and the 33-member Ohio Senate. Both houses of the General Assembly meet at the Ohio Statehouse in Colu ...

as a judge of the Ohio Supreme Court for a seven-year term, and served 1842–1849. Neff 1921 : 59-60 He was elected to the

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in ...

in 1853 and served in the 51st General Assembly, 1854–1855. Ohio 1917 : 285 He lost election to Congress in 1856 as the Democratic nominee in the . Smith 1898 : 66 In 1867, Birchard purchased the newspaper ''Warren Constitution'' and ran it with his son until his death in 1876 in Warren. He is buried at Oakwood Cemetery. One author appraised Birchard thus: "His written opinions are characterized by felicity of expression and perspicuity of thought. His pertinacity has been bluntly denominated stubbornness." Another opined : "The opinions of Judge Birchard were characterized by fluency of expression and clearness of logic. He was known as a man of strong convictions, great will of power, and possessed pertinacity of the sort that causes one juror out of twelve to dissent from the opinion of colleagues." While a third stated: "...his opinions show him to have been a man of learning and research, with a strong sense of justice." Birchard married Jane E. Weaver of Bella Vista, Virginia in 1841 and raised two children.

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References

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Birchard, Matthew Justices of the Supreme Court of Ohio People from Warren, Ohio 1804 births 1876 deaths Ohio lawyers Democratic Party members of the Ohio House of Representatives United States Department of the Treasury officials People from Becket, Massachusetts 19th-century American state court judges 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century members of the Ohio General Assembly