Philip C. Pendleton
Encyclopedia
Philip Clayton Pendleton (November 24, 1779 – April 3, 1863) was briefly a United States federal judge
in Virginia.
A native of Berkeley County, Virginia
(now West Virginia), Pendleton attended Princeton University
, graduating in 1796, and Dickinson College
. He read law to enter the bar around 1800, and had a private practice while also engaged in farming.
Pendleton was a member of the Board of Commissioners who met at the tavern at Rockfish Gap
in 1818 and decided to locate the University of Virginia
at Charlottesville
- a group that included Thomas Jefferson
, James Madison
, James Monroe
, John Marshall
and among others, John G. Jackson
, another future judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
. (Pendleton's vote was for Lexington
).
Pendleton received a recess appointment
from John Quincy Adams
on May 6, 1825, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
vacated by John G. Jackson
. He was never formally nominated for the position - his service terminated on July 29, 1825, due to his resignation. He was succeeded by Alexander Caldwell
. Pendleton then returned to his private practice. In 1829, he participated in the convention to revise the state constitution. He served for many years as chief judge of the County Court for Beckley County,. until his death there, in 1863.
United States federal judge
In the United States, the title of federal judge usually means a judge appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate in accordance with Article II of the United States Constitution....
in Virginia.
A native of Berkeley County, Virginia
Berkeley County, West Virginia
Berkeley County is a county located in the Eastern Panhandle region of the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population is 104,169, making it the second-most populous county in West Virginia, behind Kanawha...
(now West Virginia), Pendleton attended Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, graduating in 1796, and Dickinson College
Dickinson College
Dickinson College is a private, residential liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Originally established as a Grammar School in 1773, Dickinson was chartered September 9, 1783, five days after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, making it the first college to be founded in the newly...
. He read law to enter the bar around 1800, and had a private practice while also engaged in farming.
Pendleton was a member of the Board of Commissioners who met at the tavern at Rockfish Gap
Rockfish Gap
Rockfish Gap is a wind gap located in the Blue Ridge Mountains between Charlottesville and Waynesboro, Virginia, United States, through Afton Mountain, which is frequently used to refer to the gap....
in 1818 and decided to locate the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
at Charlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville is an independent city geographically surrounded by but separate from Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and named after Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the queen consort of King George III of the United Kingdom.The official population estimate for...
- a group that included Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson was the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom , the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia...
, James Madison
James Madison
James Madison, Jr. was an American statesman and political theorist. He was the fourth President of the United States and is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for being the primary author of the United States Constitution and at first an opponent of, and then a key author of the United...
, James Monroe
James Monroe
James Monroe was the fifth President of the United States . Monroe was the last president who was a Founding Father of the United States, and the last president from the Virginia dynasty and the Republican Generation...
, John Marshall
John Marshall
John Marshall was the Chief Justice of the United States whose court opinions helped lay the basis for American constitutional law and made the Supreme Court of the United States a coequal branch of government along with the legislative and executive branches...
and among others, John G. Jackson
John G. Jackson (politician)
John George Jackson was a U.S. Representative and federal judge from Virginia, the son of George Jackson, brother of Edward B...
, another future judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
The United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia is a United States district court.Appeals from the Western District of Virginia are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit The United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia (in...
. (Pendleton's vote was for Lexington
Lexington, Virginia
Lexington is an independent city within the confines of Rockbridge County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 7,042 in 2010. Lexington is about 55 minutes east of the West Virginia border and is about 50 miles north of Roanoke, Virginia. It was first settled in 1777.It is home to...
).
Pendleton received a recess appointment
Recess appointment
A recess appointment is the appointment, by the President of the United States, of a senior federal official while the U.S. Senate is in recess. The U.S. Constitution requires that the most senior federal officers must be confirmed by the Senate before assuming office, but while the Senate is in...
from John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams
John Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United States . He served as an American diplomat, Senator, and Congressional representative. He was a member of the Federalist, Democratic-Republican, National Republican, and later Anti-Masonic and Whig parties. Adams was the son of former...
on May 6, 1825, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia
The United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia is a United States district court.Appeals from the Western District of Virginia are taken to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit The United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia (in...
vacated by John G. Jackson
John G. Jackson (politician)
John George Jackson was a U.S. Representative and federal judge from Virginia, the son of George Jackson, brother of Edward B...
. He was never formally nominated for the position - his service terminated on July 29, 1825, due to his resignation. He was succeeded by Alexander Caldwell
Alexander Caldwell (Virginia)
Alexander Caldwell was a federal judge from Virginia.Caldwell read law to enter the bar in 1816. He was in private practice in Westville, Pennsylvania from 1816 to 1818, and in Missouri from 1818 to 1820, before settling in Wheeling, Virginia in 1820.On October 28, 1825, Caldwell received a...
. Pendleton then returned to his private practice. In 1829, he participated in the convention to revise the state constitution. He served for many years as chief judge of the County Court for Beckley County,. until his death there, in 1863.