Jeremiah S. Black | |
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 Portraitc. 1870–1880 | |
| 6thUnited States Supreme Court Reporter | |
| In office 1861–1862 | |
| Preceded by | Benjamin Howard |
| Succeeded by | John Wallace |
| 23rdUnited States Secretary of State | |
| In office December 17, 1860 – March 5, 1861 | |
| President | James Buchanan Abraham Lincoln |
| Preceded by | Lewis Cass |
| Succeeded by | William Seward |
| 24thUnited States Attorney General | |
| In office March 6, 1857 – December 16, 1860 | |
| President | James Buchanan |
| Preceded by | Caleb Cushing |
| Succeeded by | Edwin Stanton |
| Chief Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court | |
| In office December 1, 1851 – November 13, 1854 | |
| Preceded by | John Bannister Gibson |
| Succeeded by | Ellis Lewis |
| Associate Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court | |
| In office December 1, 1851 – March 6, 1857 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Burnside |
| Succeeded by | James Armstrong |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Jeremiah Sullivan Black (1810-01-10)January 10, 1810 Stony Creek, Pennsylvania, U.S.(newGlades) |
| Died | August 19, 1883(1883-08-19) (aged 73) York, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Mary Forward(1836–1883) |
| Children | 4, includingChauncey |
| Signature | .png) |
Jeremiah Sullivan Black (January 10, 1810 – August 19, 1883) was an American statesman and lawyer. He served as a justice on theSupreme Court of Pennsylvania (1851–1857) and as the Court'sChief Justice (1851–1854). He also served in theCabinet ofPresidentJames Buchanan, first asAttorney General (1857–1860), and thenSecretary of State (1860–1861).
Jeremiah S. Black was born on January 10, 1810, inStony Creek, Pennsylvania, nearDauphin, Pennsylvania. He was the son ofRepresentativeHenry Black and Mary (Sullivan) Black. Jeremiah Black was largely self-educated before beginning tostudy law withChauncey Forward.[1] He wasadmitted to the Pennsylvania bar before he was 21. He gradually became one of the leading American lawyers, and was a member of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1851–1857), serving as Chief Justice (1851–1854).[2]
In 1857, he joined theadministration of James Buchanan as the Attorney General. In this capacity, he successfully contested the validity of the California land claims to about 19,000 square miles (49,000 km2) of land, fraudulently alleged to have been granted to land-grabbers and others by theMexican government prior to the close of theMexican–American War.[2]
When Secretary of StateLewis Cass resigned in December 1860, Black was appointed to replace him, serving from December 17, 1860, to the end of Buchanan's term on March 4, 1861.[2] Black successfully urged the appointment ofEdwin M. Stanton as his successor as Attorney General.
Black was perhaps the most influential of President Buchanan's official advisers too, during the secession crisis. He denied the constitutionality of secession, and urged thatFort Sumter be properly reinforced and defended.[2] However, he argued that a state could not be legally coerced by the Federal government.
On February 5, 1861, President Buchanan nominated him for a seat on theSupreme Court of the United States; but a February 21 motion to proceed to consider the nomination was defeated 25–26, and it lapsed at the end of the36th Congress.[3] Subsequently, Black was namedReporter of Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States, a position he held for two years. After publishing thereports for 1861 and 1862 (U.S. 66–67), he resigned and devoted himself almost exclusively to his private law practice.[2]
After theCivil War, he vigorously opposed the Congressional plan forReconstruction and drafted PresidentAndrew Johnson's message vetoing theReconstruction Act passed on March 2, 1867;[2] the veto was overridden. Black was also briefly part of the president's defense team at the outset ofhis 1868 impeachment trial before theUnited States Senate.
From 1866 to 1868, Black sought U.S. recognition of his clients'Guano Islands Act claim onAlto Velo Island, which was disputed by the Dominican Republic.[4]
Later, from 1869 to 1876, Black served withMontgomery Blair andMatthew H. Carpenter asCounsel forU.S. Secretary of WarWilliam W. Belknap, who in 1876 was impeached on a charge of corruption.[5] Black also representedSamuel J. Tilden during thecontest for the presidency between Tilden andRutherford B. Hayes.[2] He died on August 19, 1883, at the age of 73, and was buried atProspect Hill Cemetery inYork, Pennsylvania.
On March 23, 1836, Black married the former Mary Forward. They had four children, Rebekah Black,Chauncey Black, Henry Black, Jr., and Mary Sullivan Black.
Attribution:
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Black, Jeremiah Sullivan".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 4 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 18.| Legal offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Chief Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court 1851–1854 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Associate Justice of thePennsylvania Supreme Court 1854–1857 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Attorney General 1857–1860 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Supreme Court Reporter of Decisions 1861–1862 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | United States Secretary of State 1860–1861 | Succeeded by |
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