John McNairy (March 30, 1762 – November 12, 1837) was a U.S. federal judge in Tennessee. He was the judge for the

Southwest Territory The Territory South of the River Ohio, more commonly known as the Southwest Territory or the old Southwest Territory, was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1790, until June 1, 1796, when it was ...

, and for the United States District Court for the District of Tennessee, the

United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee (in case citations, E.D. Tenn.) is the federal court in the Sixth Circuit whose jurisdiction covers most of East Tennessee and a portion of Middle Tennessee. The court has ju ...

and the

United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee The United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee (in case citations, W.D. Tenn.) is the federal district court covering the western part of the state of Tennessee. Appeals from the Western District of Tennessee are taken to ...

, back when one judge covered all three districts. McNairy and

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 ...

went to school together and read law together, and travelled together to the Mero District of North Carolina in the late 1780s to set up the federal judiciary in what is now Tennessee. George Washington appointed McNairy to be judge, and McNairy appointed Jackson to a position roughly equivalent to U.S. Attorney.

Education and career

McNairy was born on March 30, 1762, in Lancaster County,

Province of Pennsylvania The Province of Pennsylvania, also known as the Pennsylvania Colony, was a British North American colony founded by William Penn, who received the land through a grant from Charles II of England in 1681. The name Pennsylvania was derived from ...

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. Other sources state that he was born near Horsepen Creek in the vicinity of the now extinct settlement of Martinsville, North Carolina. His parents, Francis McNairy and Mary Boyd, had moved to the area shortly after their April 1761 marriage in Pennsylvania. Part of the American Revolutionary War

Battle of Guilford Courthouse The Battle of Guilford Court House was fought on 15 March 1781 during the American Revolutionary War, near Greensboro, North Carolina. A 2,100-man British force under the command of Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis defeated Major General Na ...

took place on the McNairy property, and the family house sheltered injured soldiers after the fight. There is no surviving record of McNairy's participation in the war other than a payment record from North Carolina. McNairy was educated under the oversight of local Presbyterian minister David Caldwell. He likely studied law with neighbor and Founding Father

Alexander Martin Alexander Martin (October 17, 1740November 2, 1807) was a Founding Father of the United States, framer of the U.S. Constitution, fourth and seventh Governor of North Carolina, and an infantry officer in the American Revolutionary War. In priv ...

. McNairy was licensed to practice in Guilford County in 1783, and then in 1784 moved to

Salisbury, North Carolina Salisbury ( ) is a city in the Piedmont (United States), Piedmont region of North Carolina, United States; it has been the county seat of Rowan County, North Carolina, Rowan County since 1753 when its territory extended to the Mississippi River. ...

where was worked with Spruce MacKay and met young

. Jackson and McNairy lived together "at the McNairy home" and worked locally as lawyers during the winter of 1787–88. In December 1787, North Carolina appointed McNairy to be the judge of the forthcoming Mero District. McNairy entered private practice in Jonesboro,

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

( unorganized territory from April 2, 1790,

from May 26, 1790) starting in 1788. He was a Judge of the Superior Court of Law and Equity, Mero District, starting in 1788.The Superior Court was established by the State of North Carolina in 1788 to serve the residents of what would become Tennessee and continued to exist during the territorial period and after Tennessee gained statehood, but was abolished by Tennessee in 1809. He was nominated to the Territorial Court for the Southwest Territory by President Washington on June 7, 1790, and was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 8, 1790, serving in that post until his appointment to the District of Tennessee. McNairy was a delegate to the 1796 Tennessee Constitutional Convention in Knoxville and contributed to drafting the state constitution.

Federal judicial service

Following the admission of the Southwest Territory to the Union as the State of

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

on June 1, 1796, McNairy was nominated by President

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 ...

on February 17, 1797, to the United States District Court for the District of Tennessee, to a new seat authorized by . He was confirmed 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 ...

on February 20, 1797, and received his commission the same day. The annual salary for the position was . McNairy was reassigned by

operation of law The phrase "by operation of law" is a legal term that indicates that a right or liability has been created for a party, irrespective of the intent of that party, because it is dictated by existing legal principles. For example, if a person dies wi ...

to the

and the

on April 29, 1802, to a new joint seat authorized by . His service terminated on September 1, 1833, due to his resignation. The

Judiciary Act of 1801 The Midnight Judges Act (also known as the Judiciary Act of 1801; , and officially An act to provide for the more convenient organization of the Courts of the United States) expanded the federal judiciary of the United States. The act was supporte ...

abolished the United States District Court for the District of Tennessee on February 13, 1801, and assigned McNairy to serve as a district judge on the United States Circuit Court for the Sixth Circuit. The Act was repealed on March 8, 1802, reestablishing the district court as of July 1, 1802. McNairy resigned from the bench in 1834.

Death and legacy

McNairy died on November 12, 1837, near

Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, Tennessee.

McNairy County McNairy County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 25,866. The county seat and largest city is Selmer. McNairy County is located along Tennessee's border with the state of Mississippi. ...

, Tennessee, is named in McNairy's honor.

Slavery

McNairy placed a runaway slave ad in 1801 offering a $5 reward for the return of an enslaved man named Ned, who "plays well on the Violin."

Personal life

McNairy got married in either 1788 or 1789 to Mary Bell Hunt (or Hunter) Robertson, who had been married twice before and widowed twice before "by Indian raids." Mary Bell's husband, Mark Robertson, brother of James Robertson, was killed March 1786 in the vicinity of Nashville "by the Indians." They had no children together. McNairy had several siblings who survived to adulthood: * Margaret McNairy m. Thomas Hamilton * Catherine McNairy m. Jason Thompson; Jason's sister Lavinia Thompson McKemey was married to another early affiliate of Andrew Jackson, Capt. Joseph Erwin * Mary McNairy m. Elisha Nicholson * James McNairy stayed in Guilford County and worked as a lawyer * Robert McNairy moved to Giles County, Tennessee * Nathaniel McNairy, lawyer * Andrew McNairy, lawyer * Boyd McNairy, physician

McNairy and Andrew Jackson

In January 1805 he was a signatory to a petition protesting the

court-martial A court-martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the arme ...

of Thomas Butler, probably produced at the behest of

and sent to

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 ...

's government, recorded in official state papers under the title "Disobedience of Orders Justified on the Grounds of Illegality." According to Judge John W. Green, writing in 1943, "Later on Andrew Jackson, who had been appointed Attorney-General for the district, fell out with McNairy over the removal of Col. James Robertson as agent of the

Chickasaw The Chickasaw ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, United States. Their traditional territory was in northern Mississippi, northwestern and northern Alabama, western Tennessee and southwestern Kentucky. Their language is ...

Indians. McNairy favored his removal and Jackson opposed it. Jackson became so enraged at the attitude of his former friend and fellow student and used such 'unparliamentary language' in regard to him that a breach occurred that time never healed." They apparently had other conflicts over the years but McNairy "endorsed his initial, unsuccessful presidential bid in 1824 and served on a committee of Nashvillians who supported Jackson's second, successful race for the presidency in 1828."

Note

References

Sources

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:McNairy, John 1762 births 1837 deaths People from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Tennessee Judges of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee Judges of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee United States federal judges appointed by George Washington 18th-century American lawyers 19th-century Tennessee state court judges Tennessee lawyers Tennessee state court judges United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law United States territorial judges