Born on March 30, 1762, in Lancaster County, Province of Pennsylvania, British America,[1] McNairy read law in 1788.[1] He entered private practice in Jonesboro, North Carolina (unorganized territory from April 2, 1790, Southwest Territory from May 26, 1790) starting in 1788.[1] He was a Judge of the Superior Court of Law and Equity, Mero District, starting in 1788.[Note 1][2][1] He was nominated to the Territorial Court for the Southwest Territory by President Washington on June 7, 1790,[3] and was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 8, 1790, serving in that post until his appointment to the District of Tennessee.[4]
Federal judicial service
Portrait of McNairy by unknown artist, early 1800s.
The Judiciary Act of 1801 abolished the United States District Court for the District of Tennessee on February 13, 1801, and assigned McNairy to serve as a district judge on the United States Circuit Court for the Sixth Circuit.[1] The Act was repealed on March 8, 1802, reestablishing the district court as of July 1, 1802.[1]
Death
McNairy died on November 12, 1837, near Nashville, Tennessee.[1]
^The Superior Court was established by the State of North Carolina in 1788 to serve the residents of what would become Tennessee and continued to exist during the territorial period and after Tennessee gained statehood, but was abolished by Tennessee in 1809.
