Isaac Blackford
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Isaac Newton Blackford (1786 - 1859) was an Indiana judge and politician. He was born on November 6, 1786, in Bound Brook, Somerset County, New Jersey. He graduated from Princeton University in 1806. He completed his legal studies under Gabriel Ford, of Morristown, New Jersey, after which he moved to Indiana, settling in Vincennes in 1812.
Blackford was clerk and recorder in Washington County, Indiana. In 1813, he was elected principal clerk for the Indiana Territory House of Representatives, but resigned when he was appointed a judge in the 1st Circuit Territorial Court, where he served from 1814 to 1815. He was an Indiana State Representative from 1816 to 1817 and was chosen Speaker during his term.
In 1817, Blackford was appointed to the Indiana Supreme Court where he served until 1853. He ran for Governor and U.S. Senate, unsuccessfully, in 1825 and 1826. He was a trustee for Indiana University from 1838 to 1841 and compiled Blackford’s Reports (8 volumes 1830-1850).
In 1855, Blackford was appointed to the newly created federal Court of Claims in Washington, D.C., where he served until his death on December 31, 1859, in Washington, D.C. He was buried at Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis, Indiana.
Blackford County, Indiana was named in honor of Justice Blackford in 1838.
