Isaac Newton Blackford (November 6, 1786 – December 31, 1859) was the second Chief Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court, the court's longest serving Justice, and among the longest serving jurists in the history of the United States. He wrote an eight-volume work entitled Blackford's Reports recording all the early decisions of the court. The books became a staple legal source among Indiana's lawyers and received national and international acclaim for their style, accuracy, quality, and concision in dealing with common law. As a jurist, Blackford was the most influential ever to serve on Indiana's courts, according to former Chief Justice of Indiana Randall Shepard. He was nicknamed the "Indiana Blackstone" because of a comment made by Washington Irving regarding the popularity of Blackford's books. During his lifetime he was nationally renowned as one of the most prominent jurists in the United States.
After graduating from Princeton University, Blackford moved to the Indiana Territory to practice law in 1812. After holding several civil service positions, he was appointed a circuit court judge but resigned just before the territorial government was dissolved in 1816. Elected as a representative to the first session of the Indiana General Assembly, he was chosen to serve as the first Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives. Following the death of Indiana Chief Justice John Johnson in 1817, Blackford was appointed as his replacement by Governor of Indiana Jonathan Jennings. Blackford's early important cases included Polly v. Lasselle, the decision in that case freed all slaves in Indiana. Nominated without his knowledge or permission, in 1825 he was the Whig candidate for Governor of Indiana, but was defeated in the election because of his refusal to campaign publicly. Again nominated without his knowledge to become a United States senator, he lost the election in the Indiana General Assembly by only one vote.
Blackford was beset by a number of personal tragedies during the 1820s. Following the death of his wife in childbirth, his young son a few years later, his mother's death, and then narrowly escaping death himself, he became emotionally distraught. He began to live a reclusive lifestyle in a one-room apartment in the Indiana Governor's Mansion, where he remained for over twenty years. There he spent his time with only the companionship of his servant. He left for occasional meals, to attend court sessions, and rarely for business and church, but otherwise remained locked away. It was during his solitude that he began writing the reports for which he became renowned.
He was reappointed to his seat on the Supreme Court four times, serving until the adoption of the 1851 Constitution of Indiana, which made his position subject to election rather than appointment. Defeated for the Whig party nomination to run for his office, he left the court in 1852. He was defeated again in the 1853 election to become Supreme Court Reporter, which led him to seek a position on the federal courts after briefly attempting to practice law. Appointed by President Franklin Pierce, he served as a judge of the newly created Court of Claims dealing with financial claims against the federal government from 1855 until his death. During his lifetime Blackford accumulated a small fortune through the sale of his reports which was left to his only living relative, his half-sister Charlotte Teresa Coons.
Early life
Family and background
Isaac Blackford was born on November 6, 1786, in Bound Brook, Somerset County, New Jersey, the only child of Joseph and Mary Straats Blackford. Joseph was a successful merchant, and had served in the New Jersey militia during the Revolutionary War. Mary was the daughter of a farmer. She had been a nurse during the American Revolutionary War and aided American soldiers during the battles of Trenton and Princeton, and continued to care for them when smallpox broke out among the army during the winter of 1780–1781. She was deeply religious, and known in the community for both her faith and patriotic zeal. Both of Blackford's parents were Presbyterian, and he remained a member of the church his entire life.
Blackford received a basic education, learning to read and write, in local public schools. His father died on May 22, 1800, leaving half his land holdings and savings of $7,220.99 ($ in 2020 chained dollars) to his mother, and directing that the other half of the estate should be given to Blackford for education and as an inheritance, provided he remained obedient unto her until he reached adulthood. Mary remarried in 1801 to Thomas Coon and the couple had a child, Charlotte Teressa, on August 3, 1802. Blackford at first disliked his stepfather, but the two developed a close relationship as he grew older. The family continued to prosper, and when Blackford finally inherited his portion of his father's estate he received $5,550 ($ in 2020 chained dollars). On his stepfather's advice he invested the money by granting a mortgage to earn interest.
Blackford was enrolled in Princeton University at age sixteen and graduated at the top of his class in 1806. On his enrollment forms he entered his middle name as Newton, but never again used the name during his life. Among his fifty-four classmates were John Williams Walker, James Iredell, John James Marshall, Arnold Naudain, and Patrick Noble. Blackford became fluent in Greek, Latin, and French and excelled in history and mathematics. He also spent a considerable amount of time reading legal books on English common law, especially the works of William Blackstone.
After college he studied law for a year in the office of Revolutionary War hero, Colonel George MacDonald in Bound Brook. After a year, he moved to Morristown and continued his studies in the law firm of Gabriel Ford. Ford's home had been used by George Washington as a military headquarters. Blackford boarded at Ford's home in the same room used by Washington during the war, and this was a memory he recalled fondly throughout his life. Blackford's connections brought him into contact with prominent figures during his early life. He met George Washington at age 10, and James Madison and Phillip Freneau while attending Princeton.
He completed his studies in 1810 and was admitted to the bar in New Jersey in November of that year. He took only one case of his own and realized he needed to join a law firm if he was going to be able to earn a living at his profession. He returned to his hometown and began practicing law as a member of MacDonald's firm.
Indiana Territory
In 1811 Blackford moved west. His reasons for leaving New Jersey are unclear. He had a potentially prosperous life in the east, as Ford was considering becoming a federal judge and allowing Blackford to inherit his practice. Indiana, by contrast, had just recently experienced the Battle of Tippecanoe and was still experiencing violence related to the War of 1812, and the prospect of earning a living as a lawyer on the frontier was uncertain. Despite his opportunities in New Jersey, Blackford determined to leave.
Having spent most of his funds on education, Blackford could not to afford to take the stage coach and walked from New Jersey to the Allegany River where he traveled downriver by raft to Cincinnati, Ohio and then continued on foot to Dayton, Ohio. He lived only briefly in Dayton and continued further west, moving into the Indiana Territory and first living in Brookville. He carried with him a letter of introduction to territorial Judge Isaac Dunn, a friend of George MacDonald. The letter helped him to quickly establish himself among the small legal community in the territory. Brookville was the administrative center of the eastern half of the territory, but Blackford had little chance of making a substantial income as a lawyer there, so he sought work in the civil service.
Blackford frequently moved from town to town in Indiana during his first years in the territory. He briefly traveled to Corydon in 1811 or 1812, but found no employment. He next moved to Vevay, Indiana where he took a job as cashier at a branch of the territorial Bank of Vincennes. By early 1813, he moved again to Salem where he was appointed by Governor William Henry Harrison to be clerk and recorder in the newly formed Washington County, a position he held only for a few months. The position proved disappointing to Blackford who reported that his chief responsibility was "to record marks on cattle which strayed at large in the absence of stock enclosures."
Struggling to earn enough income to support himself, Blackford continued seeking more lucrative positions. In 1813, Blackford traveled to the territorial capital, Vincennes. where he was admitted to the bar with the help of his friend John Test; he was only the thirtieth lawyer admitted to the bar in the territory. In December of the same year he was elected principal clerk for the Indiana Territory House of Representatives, which was in session in Corydon. His election to the position was owed largely to the endorsement of Isaac Dunn, who was speaker of the body. He was reelected to the position again in August 1814.
Living in Corydon, he also became a cashier again at the local branch Bank of Vincennes. He became aware of corruption at the bank which later folded in the Panic of 1819; numerous investors lost their money and scandalous abuses were revealed to the public. The experience influenced him to mistrust banks throughout his life, and led him to refuse to put any money in banks.
Governor Thomas Posey reorganized the territorial courts in 1813 creating three districts and appointing judges to preside in them. Judge Benjamin Parke was appointed to the 1st Circuit, but he resigned in 1814. Posey had become familiar with Blackford who as clerk of the House of Representatives was responsible for communications between Posey, who was residing in Jeffersonville, and the General Assembly, which was in Corydon. Posey appointed Blackford to succeed Parke as judge in the 1st Circuit Territorial Court. Blackford resigned his position as clerk and accepted Posey's appointment. The first circuit at that time was the largest in the territory and consisted of the eight western counties of the territory. There were few roads in the region at the time, and Blackford rode cross-country between settlements to hold court. He made six circuit trips during his tenure and tried forty-nine cases, and dismissed a number of others.
Statehood was granted to Indiana on December 11, 1816, and the territorial government was dissolved, including Blackford's position. Blackford renewed his license to practice law in the newly formed state, and became the first lawyer appointed to the bar in the State of Indiana.