Samuel Hitchcock (March 23, 1755 – November 30, 1813) was the 1st

Attorney General of Vermont The Vermont attorney general is a statewide elected executive official in the U.S. state of Vermont who is elected every two years. It was created by an act of the Vermont General Assembly in 1790, repealed in 1797, and revived in 1904. The office ...

, a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...

of the

United States District Court for the District of Vermont The United States District Court for the District of Vermont (in case citations, D. Vt.) is the United States district court, federal district court whose jurisdiction is the federal district of Vermont. The court has locations in Brattleboro, ...

and a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit. He was the son-in-law of

Ethan Allen Ethan Allen ( – February 12, 1789) was an American farmer, writer, military officer and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of Vermont and for the capture of Fort Ticonderoga during the American Revolutionary War, and wa ...

and the father of Ethan A. Hitchcock.

Education and career

Born on March 23, 1755, in Brimfield,

Province of Massachusetts Bay The Province of Massachusetts Bay was a colony in New England which became one of the thirteen original states of the United States. It was chartered on October 7, 1691, by William III and Mary II, the joint monarchs of the kingdoms of Eng ...

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, Hitchcock graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

in 1777. He

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

with

Jedediah Foster Jedediah Foster (October 10, 1726October 17, 1779) was a judge and advocate for independence during the American Revolution, and ultimately a justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Foster was born in Andover, Massachusetts and studi ...

in West Brookfield,

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 ...

, attained admission to the bar, and practiced in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

, Massachusetts. He moved to

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Republic of Vermont The Vermont Republic, officially known at the time as the State of Vermont, was an independent state in New England that existed from January 15, 1777, to March 4, 1791. The state was founded in January 1777, when delegates from 28 towns met ...

in 1784. Hitchcock continued private practice in Burlington, Republic of Vermont from 1786 to 1787. He was state's attorney for Chittenden County, Republic of Vermont from 1787 to 1790. He was the 1st

(Republic of Vermont until March 4, 1791, State of

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

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on and from that date) from 1790 to 1793. He was a member of the

Vermont House of Representatives The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members, with each member representing around 4,100 citizens. Representatives a ...

(under the Republic of Vermont and State of Vermont) from 1789 to 1793. Hitchcock also served as a Justice of the Peace and heard cases in Burlington. In 1791, Hitchcock was a delegate to the Vermont convention which ratified the

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and enabled Vermont to join the Union as the 14th state, and was an unsuccessful candidate for its 1st congressional district. Hitchcock drafted the charter for the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, commonly referred to as the University of Vermont (UVM), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont, United States. Foun ...

, was an original member of its board of trustees, and was the longtime secretary of the board. In 1792, he was one of Vermont's presidential electors, casting his ballots for Washington for

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and Adams for

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. He again ran for the 1st congressional district in 1796 as the Federalists' final candidate, but lost to

Matthew Lyon Matthew Lyon (July 14, 1749 – August 1, 1822) was an Irish-born American printer, farmer, soldier and politician, who served as a United States representative from both Vermont and Kentucky. Lyon represented Vermont in Congress from 1797 to ...

after three ballots.

Federal judicial service

Hitchcock 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

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 September 3, 1793, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge

Nathaniel Chipman Nathaniel Chipman (November 15, 1752February 13, 1843) was an American politician who served as a United States Senator from Vermont and Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court. A Yale College graduate and Continental Army veteran of ...

. He was nominated to the same position by President Washington on December 27, 1793. 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 December 30, 1793, and received his commission on January 28, 1794. His service terminated on February 20, 1801, due to his elevation to the Second Circuit. Hitchcock was nominated by President

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

on February 18, 1801, to the United States Circuit Court for the Second Circuit, to a new seat authorized by . He was confirmed by the Senate on February 20, 1801, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on July 1, 1802, due to abolition of the court.

Later career and death

Following his departure from the federal bench, Hitchcock resumed private practice in Vergennes and Burlington, Vermont from 1802 to 1813. He died in Burlington on November 30, 1813. He was buried in Burlington's Elmwood Cemetery.

Family

Hitchcock was the son of Noah and Mary Hitchcock. He was married to Lucy Caroline Allen (1768–1842), the daughter of

. Their children who lived to adulthood included Lorraine Allen Hitchcock, Henry Hitchcock, Mary Anne Hitchcock, Ethan A. Hitchcock, Caroline P. Hitchcock, and Samuel Hitchcock. File:Henry Hitchcock (Alabama).jpg, Henry Hitchcock File:Gen Ethan Allen Hitchcock.jpg, Ethan Allan hitchcock

Note

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hitchcock, Samuel 1755 births 1813 deaths American people of English descent Harvard College alumni Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Vermont Judges of the United States circuit courts Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Politicians from Burlington, Vermont People from Brimfield, Massachusetts Lawyers from Worcester, Massachusetts State's attorneys in Vermont United States federal judges appointed by George Washington United States federal judges appointed by John Adams Vermont attorneys general Vermont lawyers Vermont state court judges Candidates in the 1790–1791 United States elections Candidates in the 1796 United States elections