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Powhatan Ellis
Powhatan Ellis
Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Mississippi
	In office; July 14, 1832 – January 5, 1836
Appointed by	Andrew Jackson
Preceded by	Peter Randolph
Succeeded by	George Adams
United States Senator; from Mississippi
	In office; March 4, 1827 – July 16, 1832
Preceded by	Thomas Buck Reed
Succeeded by	John Black
	In office; September 28, 1825 – January 28, 1826
Appointed by	Walter Leake
Preceded by	David Holmes
Succeeded by	Thomas Buck Reed
Personal details
Born	Powhatan Ellis; January 17, 1790; Amherst County, Virginia
Died	March 18, 1863 (aged 73); Richmond, Virginia
Resting place	Shockoe Hill Cemetery; Richmond, Virginia
Political party	Jacksonian
Education	Washington and Lee University; Dickinson College (A.B.); College of William & Mary

Powhatan Ellis (January 17, 1790 – March 18, 1863) was a justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court, United States senator from Mississippi, and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Mississippi.

Education and career

Born on January 17, 1790, at Red Hill Farm in Amherst County, Virginia,^[1] Ellis graduated from Washington Academy (now Washington and Lee University) in 1809, received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1810 from Dickinson College and graduated from the College of William & Mary in 1814,^[2] where he studied law.^[1] He was admitted to the bar and entered private practice in Lynchburg, Virginia from 1813 to 1814 and from 1815 to 1816.^[2] He was a lieutenant in the Prevost Guards of Virginia in 1814.^[2] He resumed private practice in Natchez, Mississippi Territory in 1816.^[2] He continued private practice in Winchester, Mississippi Territory (State of Mississippi from December 10, 1817) from 1816 to 1817.^[2] He was a justice of the Mississippi Supreme Court from 1817 to 1818 and from 1818 to 1825.^[2]

Congressional service

Ellis was appointed as a Jacksonian Democrat to the United States Senate from Mississippi to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of United States Senator David Holmes and served from September 28, 1825, to January 28, 1826, when a successor was elected and qualified.^[1] He was an unsuccessful candidate for election to fill the vacancy.^[1] He was elected as a Jacksonian Democrat to the United States Senate and served from March 4, 1827, to July 16, 1832, resigning to accept a judicial position.^[1]

Federal judicial service

Ellis was nominated by President Andrew Jackson on July 13, 1832, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Mississippi vacated by Judge Peter Randolph.^[2] He was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 14, 1832, and received his commission the same day.^[2] His service terminated on January 5, 1836, when he resigned.^[2]

Later career and death

Ellis was appointed charge d'affaires to Mexico for the United States Department of State by President Jackson, serving from January 1836 to December 1836 when he closed the legation.^[1] He was appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Mexico for the United States Department of State by President Martin Van Buren,^[2] serving from February 1839 to April 1842.^[3] He resumed private practice in Natchez starting in 1842 and continued private practice in Richmond, Virginia until 1863.^[2] He died on March 18, 1863, in Richmond.^[2] He was interred in Shockoe Hill Cemetery in Richmond.^[1]

Heritage and family

One account in The Green Bag stated that Ellis was a descendant of Pocahontas.^[4] In 1833, he married Eliza Rebecca Winn who died in the spring of 1835. Together, they had two children.^[5]

Legacy

The city of Ellisville, Mississippi is named in Ellis's memory.^[6]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g United States Congress. "Powhatan Ellis (id: E000136)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l Powhatan Ellis at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
^ "Powhatan Ellis". Office of the Historian. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
^ Somerville, Thomas H. (November 1899). Fuller, Horace W. (ed.). "A Sketch of the Supreme Court of Mississippi". The Green Bag. XI (11): 504. ...and said to be a descendant of Pocahontas
^ "Hon. Powahatan Ellis of Mississippi". Southern Literary Messenger. 37 (4): 250. April 1863.
^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. United States Government Publishing Office. pp. 117.

U.S. Senate
Preceded by David Holmes	U.S. senator (Class 1) from Mississippi 1825–1826 Served alongside: Thomas Hill Williams	Succeeded by Thomas Buck Reed
Preceded by Thomas Buck Reed	U.S. senator (Class 1) from Mississippi 1827–1832 Served alongside: Thomas Hill Williams, Thomas Buck Reed, Robert H. Adams, George Poindexter	Succeeded by John Black
Legal offices
Preceded by Peter Randolph	Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Mississippi 1832–1836	Succeeded by George Adams
Preceded by Newly established court	Justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi 1818–1825	Succeeded by Isaac Caldwell