Justice John McKinley
Today’s Justice of the Day is: JOHN McKINLEY. Justice McKinley was born on this day, May 1, in 1780.
Justice McKinley was born in Culpeper County, Virginia, though he would spend almost all of his professional life prior to joining the SCUS in Alabama, the state from which he would be appointed to the Supreme Court of the United States. He received no formal university education, which was not uncommon at the time.
Justice McKinley enjoyed a long career in private practice that would last until his appointment to the SCUS, which included time in Frankfort and Louisville, Kentucky (from 1800 to 1819) and in Huntsville, Alabama (from 1819 to 1836). He also served as a Member of the Alabama House of Representatives (from 1820 to 1822, as well as in 1831 and 1836) and a Member of the United States House of Representatives from his home state (from 1833 to 1835); he had been elected to the United States Senate from his adopted home state, but was appointed to the SCUS before he could assume that office.
Justice McKinley received a recess appointment from President Martin Van Buren on April 22, 1837, to a seat that had just been created by Congress. He was nominated to the same position by President Van Buren on September 18, and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate one week later. Justice McKinley took the Judicial Oath to officially join the SCUS on or around January 8, 1838. He served out his entire tenure on the Taney Court, and his service was terminated on July 19, 1852, due to his death.
Justice McKinley is not a particularly well-known figure today (he is typically overshadowed among Justices from Alabama by the Civil Rights-era hero, Justice Hugo Black). Justice McKinley faced some significant difficulties while on the bench, like his being allocated the then-9th circuit for almost a decade. It included the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi at the time, and was a notoriously difficult responsibility because it meant having to go farther from the District of Columbia when riding circuit (one of the primary responsibilities of Justices in that period) than any other member of the SCUS at the time.