Alexander Wolcott
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Alexander Wolcott (September 15, 1758 – June 26, 1828) was a United States politician, customs inspector, and nominee to the
Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...
. Nominated by
James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...
in 1811, to replace the late
William Cushing William Cushing (March 1, 1732 – September 13, 1810) was an American lawyer who was one of the original five associate justices of the United States Supreme Court; confirmed by the United States Senate on September 26, 1789, he served until ...
, he was rejected by the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
by a vote of 9–24. He was later a delegate to the 1818 convention that drafted the
Constitution of Connecticut The Constitution of the State of Connecticut is the basic governing document of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was approved by referendum on December 14, 1965, and proclaimed by the governor as adopted on December 30. It comprises 14 artic ...
.


Early and family life

Wolcott was born in
Windsor, Connecticut Windsor is a New England town, town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States, and was the first English settlement in the state. It lies on the northern border of Connecticut's capital, Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. The town is part of ...
, on September 15, 1758, to Mary Richards Wolcott. His father, also Alexander Wolcott, was a medical doctor who assisted the Patriot forces during the
American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...
. He had an elder half sister, Lydia Wolcott Austin (1737–1820) as well as two sisters – Esther Wolcott Treat (1749–1841) and Elizabeth Wolcott Wolcott (1763–1817) – and a brother, Guy Wolcott (1763–1823). The younger Alexander Wolcott attended
Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...
, where he studied law and graduated in 1778. He went on to practice law in
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
and Connecticut. After marrying Frances Burbank in 1785, he settled in
Middletown, Connecticut Middletown is a city in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. Located along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, 16 miles (25.749504 km) south of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. Middletown is the largest city in the L ...
. They had two sons and two daughters. Their son, Alexander Wolcott Jr. (or III) (1790–1830), also attended Yale, became a surgeon's mate during the
War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
and then had a private medical practice in Boston and
Vincennes, Indiana Vincennes is a city in, and the county seat of, Knox County, Indiana, United States. It is located on the lower Wabash River in the southwestern part of the state, nearly halfway between Evansville and Terre Haute. It was founded in 1732 by F ...
before becoming the federal Indian Agent for the Great Lakes region (as well as marry in 1823), but died in Chicago not long after his father's demise in Connecticut.


Political role in Connecticut

Wolcott served as the
Democratic-Republican Party The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed li ...
's leader in the
Connecticut General Assembly The Connecticut General Assembly (CGA) is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is a bicameral body composed of the 151-member House of Representatives and the 36-member Senate. It meets in the state capital, Hartford. The ...
from 1796 to 1801. In 1800,
Democratic-Republicans The Democratic-Republican Party (also referred to by historians as the Republican Party or the Jeffersonian Republican Party), was an American political party founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in the early 1790s. It championed li ...
in Connecticut formally organized the
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...
presidential campaign. The inaugural meeting took place at the residence of Pierpont Edwards in
New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...
, and Wolcott was among the leaders in Connecticut who were supporters of the campaign. After the 1800 presidential election, Wolcott was one of the Connecticut Republicans that the administration consulted on appointments. In July 1801, Jefferson appointed him as collector of customs as Middletown, a position that was worth $3,000 at the time and which he held until his death. Pierpont Edwards had insisted that Wolcott was brought in to replace the previous collector of customs, described as "a violent, irritable, priest-ridden, implacable, ferocious federalist". In the 1802 Connecticut elections, Wolcott was involved in a controversy where he was accused of profligacy by a close friend of his, Senator Uriah Tracy. In a letter to Senator James Hillhouse, who had also joined Tracy in accusing Wolcott of profligacy, Wolcott said, "If I am a profligate man, to prove it will not be difficult, nor to you an unpleasant task." Prior to elections in April 1804, a pamphlet, allegedly written by Federalist
David Daggett David Daggett (December 31, 1764 – April 12, 1851) was a U.S. senator, mayor of New Haven, Connecticut, Judge of the Connecticut Supreme Court of Errors, and a founder of the Yale Law School. He helped block plans for the first college for Afr ...
, accused Wolcott of striving "to destroy the state" and "unworthy of any trust or respect". In 1806, Wolcott caused a scandal by accusing Federalists of having "priests and deacons, judges and justices, sheriffs and surveyors, with a host of corporations and privileged orders, to aid their elections." He went on to say: "Let it be known that plain men, without titles or hope of offices, can do better than the mercenary troops of Federalism." In 1807, Wolcott was the prosecutor in a case in which Azel Backus had been accused of libeling Jefferson. With Pierpont Edwards as the judge, there were widespread accusations of bias, as both were fervent supporters of Jefferson.


Supreme Court nomination

Wolcott was nominated by
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...
to the
US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all Federal tribunals in the United States, U.S. federal court cases, and over Stat ...
in 1811 to fill a vacancy left by the death of
William Cushing William Cushing (March 1, 1732 – September 13, 1810) was an American lawyer who was one of the original five associate justices of the United States Supreme Court; confirmed by the United States Senate on September 26, 1789, he served until ...
. He had not been Madison's first choice, as he had nominated former
US Attorney General The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government. The attorney general acts as the principal legal advisor to the president of the ...
Levi Lincoln already in January 1811. Despite being confirmed by the Senate, Lincoln refused the honor. Madison's decision to nominate Wolcott was taken for primarily political reasons. Although Wolcott was recognized as a leader among Republicans, and Lincoln supported his nomination, many others criticized Madison and his choice. The ''
Columbian Centinel The ''Columbian Centinel'' (1790–1840) was a Boston, Massachusetts, newspaper established by Benjamin Russell (journalist), Benjamin Russell. It continued its predecessor, the ''Massachusetts Centinel and the Republican Journal'', which Russe ...
'' wrote that "Even those most acquainted with modern degeneracy were astounded at his abominable nomination." The ''New-York Gazette Advertiser'' decried his nomination by writing: "Oh degraded Country! How humiliating to the friends of moral virtue – of religion and of all that is dear to the lover of his Country!" Opposition to Wolcott's nomination centered on two main reasons: his strict enforcement of controversial non-intercourse and embargo acts as customs inspector and his lack of qualifications. Due to lack of judicial experience, Wolcott was widely believed to be unqualified and incapable of serving in such an important judicial position. On the second point, Wolcott was criticized for his strict enforcement and support of the
Embargo Act of 1807 The Embargo Act of 1807 was a general trade embargo on all foreign nations that was enacted by the United States Congress. Much broader than the ineffectual 1806 Non-importation Act, it represented an escalation of attempts to persuade Br ...
. The law, passed under Jefferson, prevented goods from
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,
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, and other countries, from entering the US. It was extremely unpopular among merchants and farmers whose profits were significantly harmed by the law. Wolcott's nomination was received by the Senate on February 4, 1811. It was referred to a select committee of three members, making him the only nominee referred to a committee prior to the creation of the
Senate Judiciary Committee The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally known as the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a Standing committee (United States Congress), standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the United States Departm ...
in 1816. The committee voted on his nomination on February 13, and later that day he was referred to the Senate floor, where he was rejected by a vote of 9—24. This was despite the Democratic-Republican Party having a 28 to 6 majority in the Senate. Wolcott's nomination was only the second to have been rejected in US history, the one prior to it being
John Rutledge John Rutledge Jr. (September 17, 1739 – June 21, 1800) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father, politician, and jurist who served as one of the original Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States ...
's rejection in 1795 as
George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...
's nominee for Chief Justice. It had been rejected nine days after its receipt by the Senate. Prior to 1816, this was the longest period of deliberation by the Senate over a Supreme Court nominee, and the only one longer than seven days. After his rejection, Madison nominated
John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...
, who also passed in the Senate but turned down the appointment. The seat eventually went to
Joseph Story Joseph Story (September18, 1779September10, 1845) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1812 to 1845. He is most remembered for his opinions in ''Martin ...
, who became the youngest person to have sat on the Supreme Court.


Role in the 1815–18 depression and later politics

After the
War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
and the Treaty of Ghent's ratification, the British made a policy of selling their goods at a loss. Such economic strategy harmed budding American manufacturers who might attempt to sell to the European markets. This caused a commercial depression in the United States from 1815 to 1818. In 1816, a tariff was brought in, which aided manufacturers, although some New England cotton and wool manufacturers remained discontented. The Connecticut Society for the Encouragement of Manufactures was formed during this depression. Wolcott took a leadership position, and was known as the "boss". Among its other leaders were
Thomas Macdonough Thomas Macdonough, Jr. (December 31, 1783 – November 10, 1825) was a United States Navy officer noted for his roles in the First Barbary War and the War of 1812. He was the son of a revolutionary officer, Thomas Macdonough, Sr. who lived near ...
,
Titus Hosmer Titus Hosmer (1736 – August 4, 1780) was an American Founding Father, lawyer, and jurist from Middletown, Connecticut. He was a delegate for Connecticut to the Continental Congress in 1778, when he signed the Articles of Confederation. Biograph ...
, and Asher Miller, a close associate of the Governor. Its purpose was to advance manufacturers "in every legitimate way". Wolcott led the delegation of Republicans to the convention on the
Constitution of Connecticut The Constitution of the State of Connecticut is the basic governing document of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was approved by referendum on December 14, 1965, and proclaimed by the governor as adopted on December 30. It comprises 14 artic ...
in 1818. He sparked controversy at the convention by supporting the expulsion of any judge who declared a legislative act unconstitutional, effectively taking a position in opposition to
judicial review Judicial review is a process under which a government's executive, legislative, or administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. In a judicial review, a court may invalidate laws, acts, or governmental actions that are in ...
. John Milton Niles, a colleague of Wolcott, described him after his death as someone who "more than any other individual, deserves to be considered as the father and founder of the Jeffersonian school of politics n Connecticut"


Death and legacy

Wolcott died on June 26, 1828. He is buried in Middletown's Mortimer cemetery.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolcott, Alexander 1758 births 1828 deaths United States Customs Service personnel Unsuccessful nominees to the United States Supreme Court Yale College alumni