William Sprigg (1770 – September 9, 1827) was an American attorney who twice served as Justice of the

Ohio Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of Ohio is the highest court in the U.S. state of Ohio, with final authority over interpretations of Ohio law and the Ohio Constitution. The court has seven members, a chief justice and six associate justices, ...

, as well as adjudicated on the Superior Court of the

Orleans Territory The Territory of Orleans or Orleans Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from October 1, 1804, until April 30, 1812, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Louisiana. History In 180 ...

and the highest court of the

Illinois Territory The Territory of Illinois was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 1, 1809, until December 3, 1818, when the southern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Illinois. Its ...

Early life

Sprigg was born in 1770 in

Prince George's County, Maryland Prince George's County (often shortened to PG County or PG) is located in the U.S. state of Maryland bordering the eastern portion of Washington, D.C. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the population was 967,201, making it ...

to Joseph Sprigg and Hannah Lee. His uncle,

Thomas Sprigg Thomas Sprigg (1747 – December 13, 1809) was an 18th-century American politician. He represented the fourth district of Maryland in the United States House of Representatives from 1793 to 1797. Sprigg was born in Prince George's County, Mary ...

, was a Member of Congress from Maryland from 1793 to 1797. His half-brother,

Samuel Sprigg Samuel Sprigg ( ca. 1783 – April 21, 1855) served as the 17th Governor of the state of Maryland in the United States from 1819 to 1822. Background Little is known of Sprigg's early life. He was possibly born in Washington County or Prince G ...

, was

Governor of Maryland The governor of the State of Maryland is the head of government of Maryland, and is the commander-in-chief of the state's National Guard units. The governor is the highest-ranking official in the state and has a broad range of appointive powers ...

from 1818 to 1820.

Career

Sprigg headed westward to Hagerstown and

Cumberland, Maryland Cumberland is a city in Allegany County, Maryland, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 19,075. Located on the Potomac River, Cumberland is a regional business and comm ...

(where relatives were merchants) then continued along the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

. He became a pioneer and early attorney in

Adams County, Ohio Adams County is a county in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,477. Its county seat and largest village is West Union. The county is named after John Adams, the second President of the United States. Geogr ...

, then in the

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from part of the unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolution. Established ...

. When

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

became a state in 1803, the state legislature appointed Sprigg to the Ohio Supreme Court. He served as a justice of the Supreme Court from April 1803 to April 1806, and again from 1808 to 1810. During the interim period, Sprigg received an appointment from President

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

to serve on the highest court in the

Territory of Orleans The Territory of Orleans or Orleans Territory was an organized incorporated territory of the United States, organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from October 1, 1804, until April 30, 1812, when it was Admission to ...

, which he did from January 1806 to November 1808.''Celebration of the Centenary of the Supreme Court of Louisiana'' (March 1, 1913), in John Wymond, Henry Plauché Dart, eds., ''The Louisiana Historical Quarterly'' (1922), p. 113. In 1812, Governor

Ninian Edwards Ninian Edwards (March 17, 1775July 20, 1833) was an American political figure who was prominent in Illinois. He served as the first and only governor of the Illinois Territory from 1809 to until the territory earned statehood in 1818. He was then ...

of the newly formed

appointed Sprigg as a judge for that territory. Sprigg served on the Illinois court for several years alongside Jesse B. Thomas and

Stanley Griswold Stanley Griswold (November 14, 1763August 21, 1815) was a Democratic-Republican politician from Ohio. He served in the U.S. Senate. Born in Torrington, Connecticut, Griswold served in the militia during the Revolutionary War. After graduating f ...

. However, when

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

was on the verge of becoming a state, he and Thomas became the center of controversy about the relative relationship between the judicial and legislative branches, and both wrote to the U.S. Congress. By April, 1818 Judge Sprigg was either removed or had resigned from the bench. When Illinois became a state in December 1818, the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 representativ ...

approved none of the territorial judges to the newly formed

Illinois Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Illinois is the state supreme court, the highest court of the judiciary of Illinois. The court's authority is granted in Article VI of the current Illinois Constitution, which provides for seven justices elected from the fiv ...

. Sprigg sought nomination for Judge of the

United States District Court for the District of Illinois The following are former United States district courts, which ceased to exist because they were subdivided into smaller units. With the exception of California, each of these courts initially covered an entire U.S. state, and was subdivided as the ...

, but failed.

Death and legacy

Judge Spriggs returned eastward, moving to

Hagerstown, Maryland Hagerstown is a city in Washington County, Maryland, United States, and its county seat. The population was 43,527 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Hagerstown ranks as Maryland's List of municipalities in Maryland, sixth-most popu ...

, where he died among relatives on September 9, 1827. Sprigg Township in Adams County, Ohio is named for Judge Sprigg.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sprigg, William 1770 births Justices of the Louisiana Supreme Court United States federal judges appointed by Thomas Jefferson People from Prince George's County, Maryland 1827 deaths Justices of the Supreme Court of Ohio Illinois Territory officials Politicians from Hagerstown, Maryland Sprigg family