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James Morris (c. 1764 – September 7, 1827) was an American lawyer who served as Sheriff of New York County.

Early life

Morris born at Morrisania, New York in c. 1764. He was the fourth son of Mary (née Walton) Morris and Founding Father Lewis Morris, third lord of the manor of Morrisania.[1] His father was a prominent landowner who was a signer of the U.S. Declaration of Independence as a delegate to the Continental Congress from New York.[2]

Following the British conquest of New York in 1776, the family was driven from Morrisania, first to Philadelphia then to Rocky Hill near Princeton, New Jersey. He likely completed preparatory studies in Nassau Hall's grammar school before attending Princeton from which he graduated in 1784. While at Princeton, he was a member of the American Whig Society.[3]

Career

After Princeton, he began to study law and was admitted to the bar in the fall of 1787.[3]

In 1797, he was one of three justices appointed for trial of cases and in December 1798, he was appointed to the post of Sheriff of New York County and City, which he was reappointed in each of the two succeeding years.[3]

Personal life

On February 1, 1796, Morris was married to Helen Van Cortlandt (1768–1812), a daughter of Augustus Van Cortlandt and Catherine (née Barclay) Van Cortlandt. Her paternal grandparents were Frederick Van Cortlandt and Frances (née Jay) Van Cortlandt.[4] Her maternal grandparents were Andrew Barclay and Helena (née Roosevelt) Barclay.[5] Together, they were the parents of twelve children.[3]

Morris died in 1827.[3]

References

  1. ^ Nichols, Joseph Howard (1996). The Colonial Ancestors and Twentieth Century Descendants of Samuel A. Nichols (1787-1866) of Howard County, Maryland: Who was a Founding Father, Patriot, Civic Leader, Legislator, and Friend to the People of Clarksville, Maryland ... Heritage Books. pp. 132–1333. ISBN 978-0-7884-0559-4. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  2. ^ "MORRIS, Lewis - Biographical Information". bioguide.congress.gov. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d e Woodward, Ruth L.; Craven, Wesley Frank (14 July 2014). Princetonians, 1784-1790: A Biographical Dictionary. Princeton University Press. pp. 42–44. ISBN 978-1-4008-6126-2.
  4. ^ Reynolds, Cuyler (1911). Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs: A Record of Achievements of the People of the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys in New York State, Included Within the Present Counties of Albany, Rensselaer, Washington, Saratoga, Montgomery, Fulton, Schenectady, Columbia and Greene. Lewis Historical Publishing Company. p. 32. Retrieved 8 September 2017.
  5. ^ Moffat, R. Burnham (1904). The Barclays of New York: who They are and who They are Not,-and Some Other Barclays. R. G. Cooke. p. 103. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
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