Black, Jeremiah S. (1810–1883)

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BLACK, JEREMIAH S. (1810–1883)

Jeremiah S. Black served on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court (1851–1857), as U.S. Attorney General (1857–1860), U.S. Secretary of State (1860–1861), and U.S. Supreme Court reporter (1861–1862). He advised andrew johnson during the early phase of his impeachment, and defended Samuel Tilden's claim to the presidency in the disputed election of 1876. A lifelong Democrat, Black was particularly antagonistic to abolitionists. During the winter of 1860–1861 Black opposed secession and urged President james buchanan to reinforce federal military bases in the South. Buchanan appointed Black to the Supreme Court of the United States, but the senate refused to confirm him.

Paul Finkelman
(1986)

Bibliography

Brigance, William N. 1934 Jeremiah Sullivan Black, a Defender of the Constitution and the Ten Commandments. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.