John M. Read

John Meredith Read, Sr. (July 21, 1797 – November 29, 1874) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was one of the founders of the Republican Party and Chief Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

Early life

Read John was born on Chestnut Street across the street from Independence Hall, the eldest son of lawyer John Read and Martha Meredith Read. Both of his grandfathers (George Read and Samuel Meredith) had served in the Continental Congress. After an education at home, Read graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, then read law, and was admitted to the bar in 1818. He started a law practice in Philadelphia.

Political career

Read began his political career when he was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 1822. He served until 1824 while remaining in the private practice of law. After this he served on the Philadelphia City Council, and for several years was the city's solicitor. Although his family had been Federalists, he became an ardent supporter of the Free Soil wing of the Democratic Party.

From 1837 to 1841, Read was the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. In 1845 President John Tyler nominated him to the Supreme Court of the United States; but, his earlier stance against the expansion of slavery into the territories caused the southern Democratic Senators to oppose his nomination and it was withdrawn. From June until December 1845 he served as the Attorney General of Pennsylvania.

Read became an early supporter and organizer for the Republican Party. When they won in their first statewide races in 1858, Read was elected to the state supreme court. He then served until December 2, 1872, the last year as chief justice. When the Republicans held their first national convention at Philadelphia in 1856, Read was a convention organizer and delivered the convention keynote address. At the 1860 Republican Convention in Chicago, he received one vote on the first ballot for presidential nominee; still, he supported Lincoln as the nominee.

Family

Read was married twice, first to Priscilla Marshall in 1828. They had five children. After Priscilla's death, Read married Amelia Thompson in 1855. Read died at home in Philadelphia in 1874. His son, J. Meredith Read, was a noted American diplomat.

References

•  Wilson, James Grant; Fiske, John, eds. (1900). "Read, John, planter". Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography. New York: D. Appleton. 
• John M. Read at Find a Grave

External links

• The John Meredith Read papers, which include materials covering his legal and political careers, are available for research use at the Historical Society of Pennsylvania

Chief Justices of Pennsylvania
18th Century	David Lloyd Jeremiah Langhorne James Logan William Allen Benjamin Chew Thomas McKean Edward Shippen, IV
19th Century	William Tilghman John Bannister Gibson Jeremiah S. Black Ellis Lewis Walter H. Lowrie George W. Woodward James Thompson John M. Read Daniel Agnew George Sharswood Ulysses Mercur Isaac G. Gordon Edward M. Paxson James P. Sterrett Henry Green J. Brewster McCollum
20th Century	James T. Mitchell D. Newlin Fell J. Hay Brown Robert von Moschzisker Robert S. Frazer John W. Kephart William I. Schaffer George W. Maxey James B. Drew Horace Stern Charles Alvin Jones John C. Bell Jr. Benjamin R. Jones Michael J. Eagen Henry X. O'Brien Samuel J. Roberts Robert N. C. Nix Jr. John P. Flaherty Jr. Ralph Cappy
21st Century	Ronald D. Castille Thomas G. Saylor