Thomas Phoenix was an American lawyer and politician from
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
.
Name
The family name Phoenix, sometimes spelled Phœnix, derives from the
homophonous
A homophone () is a word that is pronounced the same (to varying extent) as another word but differs in meaning. A ''homophone'' may also differ in spelling. The two words may be spelled the same, for example ''rose'' (flower) and ''rose'' (p ...
English family name Fenwicks which is pronounced like FENN-ix. (This is quite different from the Greek mythological bird and the Arizona state capital which are pronounced like FEE-nix.) The Fenwicks resided originally at the
Fenwick Tower in
Northumberland
Northumberland () is a ceremonial counties of England, county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Ab ...
.
Life
Phoenix graduated
A.B. from
Columbia College Columbia College may refer to one of several institutions of higher education in North America:
Canada
* Columbia College (Alberta), in Calgary
* Columbia College (British Columbia), a two-year liberal arts institution in Vancouver
* Columbia In ...
in 1795. He was admitted to the bar in 1798.
He was
New York County District Attorney
The New York County District Attorney, also known as the Manhattan District Attorney, is the elected district attorney for New York County (Manhattan), New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New York state la ...
from 1835 to 1838. In 1836, he prosecuted Richard P. Robinson for the murder of
Helen Jewett
Helen Jewett (born Dorcas Doyen;The trial of Richard P. Robinson for the murder of Helen Jewett. New York City, 1836 In American state trials / John D.Lawson, editor pp 426-487 Wilmington, Del. : Scholarly Resources, 1972 October 18, 1813 – Ap ...
, but lost the case to
Ogden Hoffman, his predecessor in the D.A's office, who appeared for the defence and secured Robinson's acquittal.
Sources
''Prominent Families of New York''(page 309)
''Catalogue of Officers and Graduates''issued by Columbia College (page 47)
''Proceedings of the Board of Supervisors''(1839, pages 653ff; with a report on his accounts as D.A.)
''Documents of the Board of Aldermen''(1841–42, Vol. VIII, page 29, rejecting his claim for extra compensation as D.A.)
''The New York Civil List''compiled by Franklin Benjamin Hough (page 377; Weed, Parsons and Co., 1858)
Year of birth missing
Year of death missing
New York County District Attorneys
Columbia College (New York) alumni
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