| Richard Stockton | |
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| United States Senator from New Jersey |
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| In office November 12, 1796 – March 4, 1799 |
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| Preceded by | Frederick Frelinghuysen |
| Succeeded by | Jonathan Dayton |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 17, 1764 Princeton, New Jersey |
| Died | March 7, 1828 (aged 63) Princeton, New Jersey |
| Political party | Federalist |
Richard Stockton (April 17, 1764 – March 7, 1828) was a lawyer who represented New Jersey in the United States Senate and later served in the United States House of Representatives. He was the first U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey, holding that office from 1789 to 1791, and ran unsuccessfully for Vice President in the 1820 election as a member of the Federalist Party, which did not nominate a candidate for President.
Stockton was born in Princeton, New Jersey, the son of Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was tutored privately, and graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University) in 1779. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1784 and commenced practice in Princeton.
He was elected as a Federalist to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Frederick Frelinghuysen and served from November 12, 1796 to March 4, 1799, but declined to be a candidate for reelection. He was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of New Jersey in 1801, 1803, and 1804. He was elected as a Federalist to the Thirteenth Congress, serving from March 4, 1813 to March 4, 1815, and declined to be a candidate for renomination to the Fourteenth Congress.
After leaving Congress, he resumed the practice of his profession. He died at Morven, near Princeton, and was interred in Princeton Cemetery in Princeton.
His brother Lucius Horatio Stockton served as U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey.
His son was the naval officer Commodore Robert F. Stockton, who defeated the Mexican army in 1846 and became the first military governor of the State of California, and later became a Senator from New Jersey like his father before him.
His daughter Annie Stockton was the first wife of U.S. Senator John Renshaw Thomson.
| United States Senate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Frederick Frelinghuysen |
United States Senator (Class 2) from New Jersey November 12, 1796–March 4, 1799 Served alongside: John Rutherfurd, Franklin Davenport |
Succeeded by Jonathan Dayton |
| United States House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by At-large: Adam Boyd, Lewis Condict, Jacob Hufty, George C. Maxwell, James Morgan, Thomas Newbold |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New Jersey's 2nd congressional district March 4, 1813–March 4, 1815 alongside (At-large): James Schureman |
Succeeded by At-large: Benjamin Bennet, Henry Southard |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by John Eager Howard |
Federalist Party vice presidential candidate 1820 (lost) |
Succeeded by (none) |
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