Mortimer M. Jackson

The Honorable
Mortimer M. Jackson
The Honorable Mortimer M. Jackson
Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court
	ex officio
	In office; September 1848 – June 1, 1853
Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the 5th Circuit
	In office; September 1848 – June 1, 1853
Preceded by	Position Established
Succeeded by	Montgomery M. Cothren
3rd and 5th Attorney General of the Wisconsin Territory
	In office; 1845 – January 22, 1846
Governor	Henry Dodge
Preceded by	William Pitt Lynde
Succeeded by	A. Hyatt Smith
	In office; June 26, 1842 – 1844
Governor	James Duane Doty
Preceded by	Horatio Wells
Succeeded by	William Pitt Lynde
Personal details
Born	Mortimer Melville Jackson; March 5, 1809; Rensselaerville, New York
Died	October 13, 1889 (aged 80); Madison, Wisconsin
Resting place	Forest Hill Cemetery; Madison, Wisconsin
Nationality	American
Political party	Republican; Whig (before 1855);
Spouses	Catharine Garr; (m. 1838; died 1875);
Occupation	lawyer, judge

Mortimer Melville Jackson (March 5, 1809 – October 13, 1889) was an American lawyer, judge, and diplomat. He was a justice of the original Wisconsin Supreme Court from 1848 through 1853 and was later a United States consul general in Canada for twenty years. Prior to Wisconsin statehood, he was Attorney General of the Wisconsin Territory.

Biography

Jackson was born in Rensselaerville, New York.^[1] He received his education in New York City, where he studied law and was admitted to the bar. In 1838, Jackson moved to Milwaukee,^[1] and then in 1839, to Mineral Point, Wisconsin Territory,^[1] where he practiced law, involving the lead-mining industry.^[2]

In 1842, Wisconsin Territorial Governor James Duane Doty appointed Jackson Attorney General of the Wisconsin Territory, where he served until 1846.^[1] When Wisconsin became a state in 1848, Jackson was elected one of the first five Wisconsin Circuit Court judges. At the time, the Wisconsin Supreme Court was constituted of the five circuit court judges; thus, Jackson was also a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court until a separate Supreme Court was formed in 1853.^[1]

Politically, Judge Jackson was involved with the Whig Party from as early as 1834, and joined the Republican Party when it was formed in the 1850s.^[1] In 1857 he was a candidate for the United States Senate, but was defeated by James Rood Doolittle. In 1861, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Jackson United States consul general in Halifax, Canada.^[2] As consul general, he was instrumental in the seizure of about $3,000,000 worth of Confederate property during the American Civil War (about $49,000,000 in inflation-adjusted dollars).^[1] He would remain in this role for 21 years until his retirement in 1882. He then returned to Madison, Wisconsin, where he died seven years later at the Park Hotel.^[3]^[1]

Legacy

Jackson's will donated $20,000 to the Law School at the University of Wisconsin to create the Mortimer M. Jackson Professorship of Law.^[4]^[5]^[6]^[2]

Electoral history

Wisconsin Attorney General (1857)

Wisconsin Attorney General Election, 1857^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
General Election, November 3, 1857
	Democratic	Gabriel Bouck	44,764	50.23%	-1.00%
	Republican	Mortimer M. Jackson	44,362	49.77%
Plurality			402	0.45%	-1.99%
Total votes			89,126	100.0%	+22.35%
	Democratic hold

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "A Pioneer Jurist Gone". The Representative. October 18, 1889. p. 2. Retrieved April 16, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b ^c Berryman, John R., ed. (1898). History of the Bench and Bar of Wisconsin. Vol. 1. Chicago: H. C. Cooper, Jr. pp. 98–101. Retrieved January 19, 2020.
^ "Wisconsin Court System - Mortimer M. Jackson". Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2011-02-22.
^ "Generous Jackson". The Oshkosh Northwestern. October 16, 1889. p. 1. Retrieved April 17, 2018 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Mortimer M. Jackson (1809-1889)". Wisconsin Court System. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
^ Blue Book of the State of Wisconsin. Madison: Democrat Printing Company. 1907. p. 763.
^ "Official Footings". Wisconsin State Journal. Madison, Wisconsin. December 5, 1857. p. 2. Retrieved August 8, 2020.

External links

Mortimer M Jackson at Find a Grave

Party political offices
Preceded by Alexander Randall	Republican nominee for Attorney General of Wisconsin 1857	Succeeded by James Henry Howe
Legal offices
Preceded by Horatio Wells	Attorney General of the Wisconsin Territory 1842 – 1844	Succeeded by William Pitt Lynde
Preceded by William Pitt Lynde	Attorney General of the Wisconsin Territory 1845 – 1846	Succeeded by A. Hyatt Smith
New court	Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the 5th Circuit 1848 – 1853	Succeeded by Montgomery M. Cothren
New court	Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court 1848 – 1853	Court abolished