Representative Freeborn Garrettson Jewett

Freeborn Garrettson Jewett (August 4, 1791 – January 27, 1858) was an American lawyer, jurist, and politician who served as a U.S. Representative from New York and became the first chief judge of the New York Court of Appeals. He was born in Sharon, Connecticut, on August 4, 1791, the son of Alpheus Jewett and Abigail Sears Jewett. Little is recorded about his early childhood, but his New England upbringing and family background provided the foundation for a career that would span local, state, and federal public service during a formative period in American political and legal history.

Jewett pursued legal studies in New York, reading law in the offices of established practitioners rather than attending a formal law school, as was customary at the time. He first studied under Henry Swift of Dutchess County and later under Samuel Young of Ballston Spa, a prominent lawyer and political figure in New York. In 1815 he moved to Skaneateles, in Onondaga County, New York, which would remain his principal home for the rest of his life. He was appointed a justice of the peace there in 1817, an early indication of the trust placed in his judgment and legal ability by the local community. In 1818 he was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Skaneateles as the law partner of James Porter, establishing himself as a respected attorney in central New York.

Jewett’s public career began at the county level. From 1824 to 1831 he served as Surrogate of Onondaga County, overseeing probate matters and the administration of estates, a position that required both legal expertise and careful attention to the rights of heirs and creditors. His growing prominence led to election to the New York State Assembly from Onondaga County, where he served in 1826. He also participated in national politics as a presidential elector in 1828, reflecting his alignment with the emerging Jacksonian movement that coalesced around Andrew Jackson and advocated for broader democratic participation and opposition to entrenched elites.

As a member of the Jackson Party representing New York, Jewett advanced to federal office when he was elected as a Jacksonian to the Twenty-second United States Congress. He served a single term in the U.S. House of Representatives from March 4, 1831, to March 3, 1833. His service in Congress occurred during a significant period in American history marked by debates over federal power, economic policy, and the role of the national bank. In this context, Jewett contributed to the legislative process and represented the interests of his New York constituents within the broader Jacksonian Democratic agenda, participating in the democratic process at a time of expanding suffrage and intense partisan realignment.

After leaving Congress, Jewett returned to New York and continued to hold important public offices. In 1838 and 1839 he served as Inspector of Auburn Prison, one of the most prominent penal institutions in the United States, which was then at the center of national discussions about prison reform and the Auburn system of discipline and labor. In 1839 he also held the office of District Attorney of Onondaga County, prosecuting criminal cases on behalf of the state and further solidifying his reputation as a capable and principled lawyer. His experience in both criminal justice administration and prosecution helped prepare him for higher judicial responsibilities.

Jewett’s judicial career reached its first major milestone when he was appointed an associate justice of the New York Supreme Court on March 5, 1845. At that time, the Supreme Court was one of the state’s principal courts of general jurisdiction, and his appointment signaled recognition of his legal acumen and public service record. The reorganization of New York’s judiciary under the state constitution of 1846 created the New York Court of Appeals as the state’s highest court, and Jewett played a central role in this new structure. On June 7, 1847, he was elected one of the first judges of the New York Court of Appeals. When the initial judges drew lots on June 22 to determine the length of their respective terms, Jewett drew the shortest term of two and a half years. When the court officially commenced its work on July 5, 1847, he assumed the position of the first Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals, thereby becoming the inaugural head of the state’s highest tribunal.

Jewett’s performance as chief judge led to his re-election in 1849 to a full eight-year term on the Court of Appeals, underscoring the confidence of the electorate and the legal community in his leadership and jurisprudence. However, his judicial career was curtailed by declining health. In June 1853 he resigned from the bench on account of ill health, ending his active public service after more than three decades in various legal and political roles. His departure from the court closed a significant chapter in the early history of New York’s highest judiciary, in which he had helped to establish precedents and institutional practices that would shape the court’s development.

Freeborn Garrettson Jewett died on January 27, 1858. He was buried at Lake View Cemetery in Skaneateles, New York, the community that had been his home since his early adulthood and the base of his legal and political career. His legacy endures in part through the town of Jewett, New York, which bears his name, reflecting the esteem in which he was held in the state. As a lawyer, legislator, and judge, he participated in and helped to shape the legal and political institutions of New York and the United States during a period of rapid growth and change in the early nineteenth century.