Thomas Settle (January 23, 1831 – December 1, 1888) was a United States Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Peru, an associate justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida.

Education and career

Born on January 23, 1831, in Rockingham County,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia a ...

, Settle received an

Artium Baccalaureus Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1850 from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which r ...

and

read law Reading law was the 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 under th ...

Richmond Hill Law School Richmond Hill Law School is a historic home and law school building located near Richmond Hill, Yadkin County, North Carolina. It was built in 1848, and is a two-story, three bay, "T"-plan, brick building. It has a low hipped roof and deep ove ...

in 1854. He was private secretary to

Governor of North Carolina The governor of North Carolina is the head of government of the U.S. state of North Carolina. The governor directs the executive branch of the government and is the commander in chief of the military forces of the state. The current governor, ...

David Settle Reid David Settle Reid (April 19, 1813 – June 19, 1891) was the 32nd governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1851 to 1854 and a U.S. Senator from December 1854 to March 1859. His uncle was Congressman Thomas Settle. He was born in wha ...

from 1850 to 1854. He entered private practice in Rockingham County in 1854. As a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, Settle was elected as a member of the North Carolina House of Commons (now the

North Carolina House of Representatives The North Carolina House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The House is a 120-member body led by a Speaker of the House, who holds powers similar to those of the President pro-tem in the North ...

) from 1854 to 1859, serving as Speaker from 1858 to 1859. He resumed private practice in North Carolina from 1860 to 1861. He was solicitor for the Fourth Judicial Circuit of North Carolina in 1861, and from 1862 to 1868. He was a Captain in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

from 1861 to 1862. After the war ended, he was elected as a member of the North Carolina Senate and was speaker of that body. A supporter of Gov. William W. Holden, Settle helped Holden found the

North Carolina Republican Party The North Carolina Republican Party (NCGOP) is the affiliate of the Republican Party in North Carolina. Michael Whatley has been the chair since 2019. History Nineteenth century Although Republicans first nominated a candidate for President of ...

.NCpedia biography of Thomas Settle, Jr.
/ref> He was an associate justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina from 1868 to 1871, and from 1872 to 1876. He wrote the opinion for a unanimous court in '' State v. Linkhaw'', reversing the criminal conviction of a man who sang so badly in church that he was found guilty of disturbing a religious congregation. In between his stints on the court, he served as United States Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Peru in 1871. Settle resigned from the Supreme Court in 1876 to accept the Republican nomination for

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

. He lost the election to former Gov.

Zebulon B. Vance Zebulon Baird Vance (May 13, 1830 – April 14, 1894) was the 37th and 43rd governor of North Carolina, a U.S. Senator from North Carolina, and a Confederate officer during the American Civil War. A prolific writer and noted public speake ...

Federal judicial service

Settle was nominated by President Ulysses S. Grant on January 26, 1877, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida vacated by Judge

Philip Fraser Philip Fraser (January 27, 1814 – July 26, 1876) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida. Education and career Born in Montrose, Pennsylvania, Fraser was an attorney in pr ...

. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and ...

on January 30, 1877, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on December 1, 1888, due to his death in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Family

Settle's father was also named Thomas Settle, as was his son, Thomas Settle. Both his father and his son served in the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washi ...

.. He was the cousin of North Carolina Governor David Settle Reid, under whom he had served as private secretary. He was married to Mary Glen of

Yadkin County Yadkin County is located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 37,214. Its county seat is Yadkinville. Yadkin County is included in the Winston-Salem, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also in ...

and lived at Mulberry Island Plantation.http://files.usgwarchives.net/nc/rockingham/history/other/dan1.txt

References

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Settle, Thomas 1831 births 1888 deaths Ambassadors of the United States to Peru Justices of the North Carolina Supreme Court Judges of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida 19th-century American diplomats United States federal judges appointed by Ulysses S. Grant 19th-century American judges People from Rockingham County, North Carolina Settle family United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law