Stephen Row Bradley (February 20, 1754 – December 9, 1830) was an American lawyer, judge and politician. He served as a

United States Senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

from the 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 ...

and as the

President pro tempore of the United States Senate The president pro tempore of the United States Senate (often shortened to president pro tem) is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate, after the Vice President of the United States, vice president. According to Articl ...

during the early 1800s.

Early life

Bradley was born on February 20, 1754, in the part of

Wallingford, Connecticut Wallingford is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, New Haven County, Connecticut, United States, centrally located between New Haven, Connecticut, New Haven and Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford, and Boston and New York City. The town is part ...

that is now

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

.Franklin Bowditch Dexter,
Biographical Sketches of the Graduates of Yale College: May 1763-July 1778
' with ''Annuals of the College History'', Vol. III (Henry Holt & Co.: 1903), pp. 549-52. He was the son of Moses and Mary (Row) Bradley. He was the grandson of Stephen Bradley, a New Haven

silversmith A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exact synonyms, as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are (or were, at least) largely the same but differed in that t ...

who was one of six brothers who served in Cromwell's Ironsides before emigrating to America. Bradley graduated from

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, ...

in 1775. After his graduation, Bradley was commissioned as captain in the Connecticut Militia and rose to the rank of major. He commanded the Cheshire Volunteers and in December 1776, he served as

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

. He was promoted to vendue master (auctioneer of seized enemy and

Loyalist Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

property) and

quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land army, armies, a quartermaster is an officer who supervises military logistics, logistics and requisitions, manages stores or barracks, and distri ...

, and then served as aide-de-camp to General Wooster during the British attack on Danbury on April 27, 1777 when Wooster was fatally wounded. Bradley resigned his commission after the battle. He received a Master of Arts degree from Yale in 1778. In 1779, he moved to

Westminster, Vermont Westminster is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,016 at the 2020 census. It was also the first capital of the Republic of Vermont. It borders the state of New Hampshire. History Westminster is Vermont's o ...

and studied law, directed by

Tapping Reeve Tapping Reeve (October 1, 1744 – December 13, 1823) was an American lawyer, judge, and law educator. In 1784 he opened the Litchfield Law School, the first law school in the United States, in Litchfield, Connecticut. He was also the brother-in ...

, founder of the

Litchfield Law School The Litchfield Law School was a law school in Litchfield, Connecticut, that operated from 1774 to 1833. Litchfield was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietar ...

. Bradley was admitted to the bar in 1779 and began the practice of law in Westminster, becoming an important citizen of the town. In October 1779, the Legislature selected him as one of five agents to the U.S. Congress from Vermont; in early 1780, he wrote a tract entitled ''Vermont's Appeal to a Candid and Impartial World'', which defended Vermont's right to independence against competing claims by New York, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts.

Political career

In June 1780, Bradley was appointed

state's attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...

for Cumberland County, Vermont. He held the positions of register of probate and town clerk, and in 1783 he served as county judge. He also served for seven years in 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 ...

in the 1780s. He was speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives during 1785. Bradley continued to be given additional responsibility in the militia. Appointed a

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

in August 1780, he was promoted to

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

as commander of the 1st Regiment in October. He was later promoted to brigadier general as commander of the 8th Brigade, and served until 1791. He served as judge of the Vermont Superior Court during the 1780s, and of the

Vermont Supreme Court The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The court ...

in 1788. Bradley was instrumental in settling Vermont's boundary disputes with

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. Vermont became part of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

on March 4, 1791. Bradley and Moses Robinson were elected by the state legislature to be the first to fill Vermont's two senate seats. In 1791, he entered 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 ...

and supported the anti-administration faction. Defeated for reelection in 1794, he returned to Westminster and was active in law and local politics, serving on the town council. Bradley tried to return to the U.S. Senate in 1800 and lost to incumbent Elijah Paine. However, when Paine resigned after being appointed as a judge the following year, Bradley ran for the open seat and won against William Chamberlain. He served as President pro tempore of the Senate from the end of 1801 to near the end of 1802. After he was reelected in 1807, he served as the presiding officer again for a couple of weeks in the 1808-1809 period. Bradley is credited with writing the

Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution The Twelfth Amendment (Amendment XII) to the United States Constitution provides the procedure for electing the president and vice president. It replaced the procedure in Article II, Section 1, Clause 3, under which the Electoral College origi ...

, which was passed by Congress in 1803 and ratified in 1804. Although a Democratic-Republican, he was opposed to the War of 1812. After retiring from the Senate in 1813, he retired from politics and returned to Westminster. He lived there for five years, and in 1818 he moved to

Walpole, New Hampshire Walpole is a town in Cheshire County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 3,633 at the 2020 census. The town's central village, where 573 people resided at the 2020 census, is defined as the Walpole census-designated place (CDP) a ...

where he lived for the rest of his life. His Walpole house is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

Death

Bradley died in Walpole, Cheshire County, New Hampshire, on December 9, 1830 (aged 76 years, 292 days). His body was returned to Westminster, Vermont and he is

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and object ...

at the Westminster Cemetery.

Personal life

Known as an intelligent and eccentric man, Bradley was a good lawyer and orator. Appointed a fellow by

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont, United States. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalism in the United States, Congregationalists, Middlebury w ...

on September 1, 1800, he held the position for the rest of his life. Middlebury and Dartmouth colleges awarded him the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

LL.D. A Doctor of Laws (LL.D.) is a doctoral degree in legal studies. The abbreviation LL.D. stands for ''Legum Doctor'', with the double “L” in the abbreviation referring to the early practice in the University of Cambridge to teach both canon law ...

Bradley married Merab Atwater on May 16, 1780. After her death, he married Gratia Thankful Taylor on April 12, 1789. He married a third time, on September 18, 1803, to Belinda Willard. He had five children, and over a dozen grandchildren. His three daughters married prominent men, one of whom was Samuel Tudor. His son William Czar Bradley, also a politician, served several terms in Congress.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bradley, Stephen R. 1754 births 1830 deaths People from Cheshire, Connecticut People from colonial Connecticut American people of English descent Anti-Administration Party United States senators from Vermont Democratic-Republican Party United States senators from Vermont Vermont Democratic-Republicans Presidents pro tempore of the United States Senate Members of the Vermont House of Representatives Speakers of the Vermont House of Representatives People from Westminster (town), Vermont Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court State's attorneys in Vermont Vermont lawyers Yale College alumni 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century United States senators 18th-century United States senators Candidates in the 1800 United States elections