Joseph Dorsett Bedle, Sr. (January 5, 1831 – October 21, 1894) was an American attorney, jurist, and
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
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*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
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politician who served as the 23rd
governor of New Jersey
The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...
from 1875 to 1878.
Early life
Joseph Dorsett Bedle was born in Middletown Point, New Jersey, on January 5, 1831, to Thomas and Hannah (née Dorsett) Bedle. His father was a merchant, justice of the peace, and judge of the Monmouth County Court of Common Pleas. Through his mother, Joseph Bedle was related to
Garret D. Wall
Garret Dorset Wall (March 10, 1783November 22, 1850) was a military officer and Senator from New Jersey. He was elected as governor of New Jersey, but refused to assume office.
Early career
Born in Middletown Township, he completed preparatory s ...
, a former U.S. Senator.
Bedle was educated at a local academy but did not attend college due to his delicate health, instead working in a general store. He had a strong desire to study law, and studied in the law offices of
William L. Dayton
William Lewis Dayton (February 17, 1807 – December 1, 1864) was an American politician, active first in the Whig Party and later in the Republican Party. In the 1856 presidential election, he became the first Republican vice-presidential ...
Poughkeepsie, New York
Poughkeepsie ( ), officially the City of Poughkeepsie, separate from the Town of Poughkeepsie around it) is a city in the U.S. state of New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsi ...
, offices of Thompson and Weeks.
Bedle was admitted to the bar in New York on his twenty-first birthday, January 5, 1852. He was admitted to the New Jersey bar in 1853 after further study under Matawan lawyer Henry S. Little. For the next two years, he practiced law in Middletown Point before moving to Freehold in 1856.
New Jersey Supreme Court
In 1865, Bedle was appointed by Governor Joel Parker to the State Supreme Court (an intermediary court subordinate to the appellate New Jersey Court of Errors and Appeals) on the Hudson-Passaic-Bergen circuit. At only 34 years old, he was the second-youngest justice in the court's history.
Soon after his appointment, he relocated to
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Leon Abbett. In 1871, Bedle was mentioned as the favorite candidate for the Democratic nomination for Governor, but Abbett persuaded Governor Parker to run for a second non-consecutive term. After Parker's victory, Bedle was appointed to a second term on the bench.
While serving on the court, Bedle was a delegate to
1864 Democratic National Convention
The 1864 Democratic National Convention was held at The Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois.
The Convention nominated Major General George B. McClellan from New Jersey for president, and Representative George H. Pendleton of Ohio for vice president ...
.
Governor of New Jersey
1874 campaign
In 1874, Bedle was the unanimous choice of the Democratic Party convention for Governor. He faced Republican former U.S. Representative
George A. Halsey
George Armstrong Halsey (December 7, 1827 – April 1, 1894) was an American Republican Party politician and leather manufacturer from New Jersey, who served two non-consecutive terms representing .
Early life and education
Born in Sprin ...
of
Newark
Newark most commonly refers to:
* Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States
* Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area
Newark may also refer to:
Places Canada
* Niagara-on-the ...
. A major issue in the campaign was the government of
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Panic of 1873, which had made national Republicans and elected politicians generally unpopular.
home rule
Home rule is government of a colony, dependent country, or region by its own citizens. It is thus the power of a part (administrative division) of a state or an external dependent country to exercise such of the state's powers of governance wit ...
for municipalities, and general legislation regulating corporations (as opposed to individual charters). Bedle argued that devolution of responsibility to the municipalities, which were the primary sources of spending and taxation, would tend to reduce both. Though he hoped for the day "when every city in this State, of a certain population, will be governed by one general law," he acknowledged that this would require a constitutional amendment.
Governor Bedle's first veto killed a bill to incorporate a Newark manufacturing and trading company on the grounds that this was special legislation. He vetoed at least five similar bills for manufacturing corporations and two for fraternal lodges in his first year in office. Special legislation was restricted by a state constitutional amendment ratified by the voters in November 1875. As a result of the restriction on special legislation, activity declined precipitously and Bedle's remaining two years in office were some of the least eventful, legislatively, in New Jersey's history.
In his second year in office, Bedle declared his interpretation that the restrictive amendment did not apply to all municipal law. However, he vetoed a bill in spring 1876 that would have regulated local elections in Jersey City. He vetoed two more bills that were narrowly written to affect only Newark, though only because these were not passed with proper public notice.
In 1876, Bedle vetoed a bill which would "provide for the maintenance and education of the deaf and dumb, feeble-minded, and blind persons in ew Jersey on the grounds that the policy was too radical and not compliant with the Constitutional provision limiting bills to one subject. Though the New Jersey Senate voted to override his veto, six Assembly Republicans crossed party lines to prevent the bill's passage. However, the Republican legislature did overcome Bedle's veto to pass a prison reform bill which Bedle argued would create statutory officers too powerful to be chosen without constitutional
advice and consent
Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive branch of a government enacts something previo ...
processes.
During his final year in office, Bedle appointed his father-in-law, Bennington F. Randolph, to one of two new Jersey City judgeships, but the Democratic Senate rejected a Republican Bedle nominated for the other seat. Bedle appointed another Republican, also rejected, before dismissing the Senate and appointing the Republican ''ad interim''.
During a railroad strike in 1877, Bedle called up the state National Guard to protect the trains and replacement crews.
Post-governorship
After leaving office, Bedle returned to the private practice of law and served as legal counsel for the
Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad
The Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad (also known as the DL&W or Lackawanna Railroad) was a U.S. Class 1 railroad that connected Buffalo, New York, and Hoboken, New Jersey (and by ferry with New York City), a distance of . Incorporated in ...
. He joined the board of directors of many prominent corporations. He declined three appointments to judgeships and presidential nominations as minister to
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
and
Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
.
In the last year of his life, Bedle served on the New Jersey Constitutional Commission of 1894.
Personal life
He married Althea Fitz Randolph ( – 1926), the daughter of a local lawyer and niece of future New Jersey Governor
Theodore Fitz Randolph
Theodore Fitz Randolph (June 24, 1826November 7, 1883) was an American attorney, businessman, and politician who served as the 22nd governor of New Jersey from 1869 to 1872 and represented the state in the United States Senate from 1875 to 1881. ...
, in 1861. They had four sons, Joseph Dorsett Bedle, Jr. (1864–1917), Bennington Fitz Randolph Bedle (1862–1917), Thomas Francis Bedle (1865–1922), and Randolph Bedle (1875–1880), and two daughters, Mary Howell Bedle (1873–1880) and Althea Fitz Randolph Bedle (1871–1957).
Bedle was an Honorary Member of the
Society of the Cincinnati
The Society of the Cincinnati is a fraternal, hereditary society founded in 1783 to commemorate the American Revolutionary War that saw the creation of the United States. Membership is largely restricted to descendants of military officers wh ...
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 ...
on October 21, 1894, from complications from surgery for bladder stones. He was buried at
Maplewood Cemetery
Maplewood Cemetery is a historic cemetery on Pleasant Street in Marlborough, Massachusetts. Established in 1864, the cemetery is the city's eighth. It is laid out in a roughly rectilinear manner, departing from the popular rural cemetery mov ...
The Political Graveyard
The Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 277,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information. The name comes from the website's inclusion of burial locations of ...