John Moses Cheney (January 6, 1859 – June 2, 1922) was a

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

attorney and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida. A Republican, Cheney represented African American clients during the segregation era and supported voter registration drives during his U.S. Senate campaign in the era of

white supremacy White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White supremacy has roots in the now-discredited doctrine ...

supported by the Democratic Party in Florida and across the south. Efforts to register African Americans resulted in the Ocoee massacre.

Education and career

Born on January 6, 1859, in

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, Cheney received a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

in 1885 from the Boston University School of Law. He entered private practice in Orlando,

from 1886 to 1906. He was city attorney for Orlando from 1889 to 1890. He was a Supervisor for the

United States Census The United States census (plural censuses or census) is a census that is legally mandated by the Constitution of the United States. It takes place every ten years. The first census after the American Revolution was taken in 1790 United States ce ...

for Florida in 1900. He was the owner of the Orlando Light and Water Company from 1901 to 1922. He was the

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the Southern District of Florida from 1906 to 1912.

Federal judicial service

Cheney received a

recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the President of the United States, president of a Officer of the United States, federal official when the United States Senate, U.S. Senate is in Recess (motion), recess. Under the ...

from President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

on August 26, 1912, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida vacated by Judge James William Locke. He was nominated to the same position by President Taft on December 3, 1912. His service terminated on March 3, 1913, after his nomination was not 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 ...

, which never held a vote on his nomination.

Later career and death

Cheney resumed private practice in Orlando from 1913 to 1922. He died on June 2, 1922, in Orlando.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cheney, John Moses 1859 births 1922 deaths 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers Lawyers from Orlando, Florida Lawyers from Milwaukee Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida Boston University School of Law alumni Unsuccessful recess appointments to United States federal courts United States district court judges appointed by William Howard Taft United States attorneys for the Southern District of Florida Florida Republicans

Education and career

Federal judicial service

Later career and death

See also

References

Sources