John Cadwalader (jurist)

John Cadwalader (April 1, 1805 – January 26, 1879) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician who served as a United States Representative from Pennsylvania and a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

John Cadwalader
Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
In office April 24, 1858 – January 26, 1879
Appointed by	James Buchanan
Preceded by	John K. Kane
Succeeded by	William Butler
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania's 5th district
In office March 4, 1855 – March 3, 1857
Preceded by	John McNair
Succeeded by	Owen Jones
Personal details
Born	John Cadwalader April 1, 1805 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Died	January 26, 1879 (aged 73) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Resting place	Christ Church Burial Ground Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Political party	Democratic
Relations	Horace Binney Edith Wharton
Relatives	Clement Biddle John Cadwalader George Cadwalader Thomas Cadwalader Mary Cadwalader Rawle Jones Beatrix Farrand
Education	University of Pennsylvania (B.A.) read law

Education and career

Born on April 1, 1805, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,[1] Cadwalader received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1821 from the University of Pennsylvania and read law in 1825.[1]

He entered private practice in Philadelphia from 1825 to 1855.[1] He was Solicitor for the Second Bank of the United States in Philadelphia in 1830.[1]

He was Vice Provost of the Law Academy of Philadelphia from 1833 to 1853.[1] He was a Captain in the Pennsylvania State Militia in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in 1844,[1] which was called out for the Philadelphia Nativist Riots.[2]

Congressional service

Cadwalader was elected as a Democrat from Pennsylvania's 5th congressional district to the United States House of Representatives of the 34th United States Congress, serving from March 4, 1855, to March 3, 1857.[2] He declined to be a candidate for renomination in 1856.[2] He briefly resumed the practice of law in Philadelphia.[2]

Federal judicial service

Cadwalader was nominated by President James Buchanan on April 19, 1858, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania vacated by Judge John K. Kane.[1] He was confirmed by the United States Senate on April 24, 1858, and received his commission the same day.[1] His service terminated on January 26, 1879, due to his death in Philadelphia.[1][3] He was interred in Christ Church Burial Ground at the old Christ Church in Philadelphia.[2] He was succeeded by Judge William Butler, who was nominated by President Rutherford B. Hayes.[4]

Personal life and family

Portrait of the jurist's son, John Cadwalader Jr.

His granddaughter, Mary Cadwalader Rawle, painted by William Oliver Stone (1868)

Cadwalader was the son of Mary (née Biddle) Cadwalader (1781–1850), of the Philadelphia Biddle family, and military leader Thomas Cadwalader (1779–1841).[5] Among his siblings was General George Cadwalader.[5] His paternal grandfather was General John Cadwalader and his great-grandfather was Dr. Thomas Cadwalader.[5] His maternal grandfather, Clement Biddle, was also a military leader, having served under George Washington during the Revolutionary War.[5]

Cadwalader first married Mary Binney (1805–1831), daughter of Horace Binney, an Anti-Jacksonian United States Representative known for his public speeches; he founded the Hasty Pudding Club at Harvard.[6] Together, Mary and John had two daughters,[7] Following his first wife's death from complications of childbirth, he married Henrietta Maria Bancker (1806–1889) with whom he had six children.[8]

Through his eldest daughter Mary, Cadwalader was the grandfather of Mary Cadwalader Rawle (1850–1935), who was married on March 24, 1870 to Frederick Rhinelander Jones, the brother of Edith Wharton; their daughter in turn was landscape architect Beatrix Cadwalader Jones Farrand (1872–1959).[7]

Cadwalader's grandson, John Cadwalader III (1874–1934), became trustee of the estate of his aunt Sophia Georgiana (née Fisher) Coxe (1841–1926) which funded the MMI Preparatory School.[9]

References

1. John Cadwalader at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
2. United States Congress. "John Cadwalader (id: C000011)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
3. "Death of Judge Cadwalader: The Career of a Remarkable Jurist Ended" (PDF). New York Times. January 27, 1879.
4. William Butler at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
5. "All-in-One Tree of John Cadwalader, Brg. Gen" (PDF). Cadwalader collection. Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
6. "Binney family papers 1809-1894". quod.lib.umich.edu. Manuscripts Division William L. Clements Library University of Michigan. Retrieved 1 December 2017.
7. Charles Penrose Keith (1883). The provincial councillors of Pennsylvania, who held office between 1733–1776: and those earlier councillors who were some time chief magistrates of the province, and their descendants. W.S. Sharp Printing Company. pp. 260, 381–382. ISBN 9780788417658.
8. "John Cadwalader Descent to Thomas F. Cadwalader II". Cadwalader Family Genealogy web site. Archived from the original on November 20, 2010. Retrieved March 11, 2011.
9. "John Cadwalader, III Collection" (PDF). Collection 3014. Historical Society of Pennsylvania. 2007. Retrieved March 11, 2011.

External links

• The Cadwalader Family Papers, documenting the Cadwalader family through four generations in America, are available for research use at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
• John Cadwalader at Find a Grave

• United States Congress. "John Cadwalader (id: C000011)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• "Mary Cadwalader "Minnie" Rawle". Geer Family Master File. Rootsweb. Retrieved March 11, 2011.