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Manuscript Group 331, William Pennington (1796-1862), Lawyer, Governor of New Jersey, U.S. Congressman
Papers, 1795-1915 (Bulk dates: 1820-1865), 0.25 linear feet / 16 folders
Call Number: MG 331 + folder number
Pennington was a lawyer from Newark who served as governor of New Jersey, 1837-1843, and as a Whig and Republican representative to the 36th U.S. Congress, 1859-1861. Many of his letters and legal papers relate to his duties as a trustee for the New Jersey Protection and Lombard Bank. Included is correspondence of Alfred P. Condit, John Cox, Israel Crane, Andrew Gray, John C. Hamilton, Phebe Pennington, James Robertson, and John Wilson.
The Pennington Family of New Jersey is descended from Ephraim Pennington, one of the first settlers of Newark, New Jersey, whose father, also Ephraim Pennington, immigrated to New Haven, Connecticut around 1643.
William Pennington, the son of Phoebe Wheeler (d.1804) and William S. Pennington (1757-1826), was born in Newark, New Jersey on May 4, 1796. He graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), studied law with Theodore Frelinghuysen, and was licensed as an attorney in 1817, as a counselor in 1820, and as a sergeant-at-law in 1834. From 1817-1826, he was a clerk in the district and circuit courts of New Jersey, where his father was a judge. In politics he was a Whig/Republican and was elected as a member of the 1828 New Jersey State Assembly and as the governor and chancellor of New Jersey from 1837-1843. During his time as governor, he was involved in a New Jersey congressional election scandal referred to as the Broad Seal War, where the Whig commissions he signed were overturned by Congress and given to Democrats.
When Pennington left office, he returned to his law practice and the hope that he would be appointed a chancellor or ambassador. He turned down President Millard Fillmore’s nominations as territorial governor of Minnesota and as a claims judge under the treaty that ended the Mexican War, and did not return to public office until his election as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives in 1858. He served as a representative until 1861 and was the speaker of the House in 1859. After he left office, he returned to his law practice in Newark, New Jersey.
William Pennington married Caroline Burnet (1797-1872), the daughter of Joanna Alling and Dr. William Burnet, Jr. (1754-1799), on May 23, 1820. The couple had four children together: William S. Pennington, Henrietta Pennington, Mary Pennington, and Edward R. Pennington. William Pennington died in Newark on February 16, 1862.
Sources:
American National Biography.
Dictionary of American Biography.
Pennington Family File, The New Jersey Historical Society.
The source of this collection is unknown. It was possibly the gift of William Pennington (1869-1922), a member of The New Jersey Historical Society.
The papers largely consist of the correspondence, court documents, contracts, and financial documents of William Pennington (1796-1862), dating from 1795-1915, with bulk dates of 1820-1865. The documents have been arranged by the above record types.
Most of the correspondence in the collection is written to William Pennington (1796-1862), with a lesser number of letters to Caroline Burnet Pennington, William Pennington (1869-1922), and Albert P. Condit. Correspondents of William Pennington (1796-1862) include Alexander M. Cumming, Israel Crane, Robert Campbell, John Cox, Joseph C. Hornblower, James Robertson, and Anthony Rutgers, and the letters mostly pertain to legal matters and court cases. There is one letter from the firm Anderson & Raymond dealing with a well-known inheritance case that Pennington argued, Gifford v. Thorn. The collection also contains a series of letters written to Albert P. Condit, a Newark lawyer, from William Pennington (1796-1862) during his time in Washington, D.C. as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. In these letters Pennington discusses the politics of the times, referring to the presidential nominations of 1860 and then to President Abraham Lincoln’s cabinet appointments. Pennington also informs Condit that he will not run for reelection, saying, "the House of Representatives is a place for a younger man."
Pennington’s legal career is also documented in the court records contained in these papers. There are briefs, arguments, notes, opinions, pleas, notices, depositions, warrants, summons, subpoenas, and powers of attorney for various cases Pennington was involved in, one of which was a case against the New Jersey Protection and Lombard Bank, of which Pennington was a trustee. This series also contains the charges in a case brought by Samuel Pennington (1765-1835) and Stephen Gould against Robert Hays regarding a breach of contract to sell and deliver the Newark newspaper, The Sentinel of Freedom. William Pennington’s father, William S. Pennington (1757-1826) was the attorney for this case.
Lastly, the papers contain contracts and financial documents of William Pennington (1796-1862) and his business acquaintances, friends, and family. These items include land deeds for Newark and Pequannock, New Jersey; bonds; a petition for a peddler’s license; an inheritance agreement; receipts; promissory notes; checks; accounts; and court bills. There is also a small collection of signatures, including the autograph of William F. Cody ("Buffalo Bill"), and an 1863 muster roll for Company K of the 21st Regiment of South Carolina Volunteers of the Confederate Army.
Manuscript Group 234, William S. Pennington (1757-1826) Papers
Manuscript Group 675, Pennington-Satterthwaite Family Papers
| Folder | Title | Dates |
| Correspondence: | ||
| 1 | To Albert P. Condit from William Pennington (1796-1862) (13 letters) | 1860-1861 |
| 2 | To Caroline Burnet Pennington from: | |
| - Pennington (Whitehead), Phebe | 1814 | |
| - Pennington, William (1796-1862) | 1860 | |
| - Robins, Eliza H. | 1822 | |
| To William Pennington (1869-1922) from: | ||
| - Adams, W.I. Lincoln | 1911 | |
| - Henrick, James Frederic (2 letters) | 1915 | |
| 3 | To William Pennington (1796-1862) from: | |
| - Anderson, R.J. | 1854 | |
| - Anderson, William J. | 1827 | |
| - Anderson & Raymond | 1835 | |
| - Campbell, Robert | 1835 | |
| - Cox, John | 1841 | |
| - Crane, Israel | 1822 | |
| - Cumming, Alexander M. | 1854 | |
| - Disborough, W. | 1838 | |
| - Edwards & (McC?) | 1837 | |
| - Griffin & Wheaton | 1836 | |
| - Griswold, Samuel H. (2 letters) | 1827, 1829 | |
| - Hamilton, John C. | 1822 | |
| - Masters, M( ), & Co. | 1837 | |
| - Robertson, James | 1824 | |
| - Rutgers, Anthony | 1834 | |
| - A. Valentine & Sons | 1832 | |
| - Van den Heusel, J.C. | 1823 | |
| - Ward, J.W. | 1844 | |
| - ( ), A. | 1838 | |
| 4 | To Miscellaneous: | |
| - To Ancell, Jeremiah from G. Gray (2 copies) | 1830 | |
| - To Bryce, William from J.E. Crane | 1825 | |
| - To Duxbury, Caleb from Andrew Gray | 1830 | |
| - To Green, C.S. from William Pennington (1796-1862) | 1853 | |
| - To Gummere, Samuel R. from Richard Howell | 1843 | |
| - To Hornblower, Joseph C. from Benjamin W. Rogers | 1832 | |
| - To Ludlow, John R. from William Pennington (1796-1862) (copy) | 1825 | |
| - To McLaren, D. from Cornel G. Lake | 1820 | |
| - To Mallory, Garrick from F.C.F. Randolph (copy) | 1825 | |
| - To Priest, Edward C. from John Wilson (7 letters) | 1828-1829 | |
| - To Pur(?), Rev. (M?) from William Pennington (1796-1862) | 1857 | |
| - To Riggs, Caleb S. from William Kent | 1826 | |
| - To Riker, J.C. from T. Little | 1852 | |
| - To Rogers, Benjamin W. from Gould Phinney | 1822 | |
| - To Ru(ggles?), S.B. from William Pennington (1796-1862) | 1858 | |
| - To Tomlinson, W.A. from Sturges Bradley | 1825 | |
| - To ( ) from William Pennington (1796-1862) | 1859 | |
| Court Documents: | ||
| 5 | Briefs, Arguments, Notes, Opinions, Pleas, Notices, and Affadavits: | |
| - Collins, John vs. the estate of Robert Taylor and others: Opinion | 1842 | |
| - Cummings, A.M. vs. Joseph L. Josephs, et al.: Notes on trial |
1832 | |
| - Dod, Stephen & Robert Baldwin vs. Jacob Alyea: Pleas and notices | 1831 | |
| - Eden, Rachel vs. John Rathbones: Exceptions to report | n.d. | |
| - Hull, Amos G. vs. Christian Stockman: Brief | n.d. | |
| - Lawrence, Samuel A. vs. Henry Morris: Notes on appeals trial | 1823 | |
| 6 | - New Barbadoes Toll Bridge Co. vs. John A. Berry and Abraham J. Berry: Notice | 1827 |
| - New York Lombard Association vs. New Jersey Manufacturing and Banking Company: Notice and Bill | 1828 | |
| - Peek, Aaron v. Thomas Buick and Ann Roome, administrators of B. Roome: Notes on trial | ca. 1828 | |
| - Pennington, Samuel (1765-1835) vs. John Wallis: Libel case - Draft of argument, William S. Pennington (1757-1826), attorney | n.d. | |
| - Pennington, Samuel (1765-1835) and Stephen Gould vs. Robert Hays - Breach of contract regarding the Sentinel of Freedom: Charges, William S. Pennington (1757-1826), attorney | 1803 | |
| - Pierson, Jabez, Joseph Pierson, and others vs. Nathan Squire and others: Affadavit | 1823 | |
| - Rogers, B.W. vs. Gould Phinney: Notes | n.d. | |
| - Spinning, Benjamin vs. William H. Gomersall: Notice of trial date | 1860 | |
| - Starbuck, Charles and Nathaniel vs. Abraham and Isaac Tice: Brief | n.d. | |
| 7 | Depositions, Warrants, Summons, Subpoenas, Power of Attorneys, and Clerk’s certificates: | |
| - Birch, Tho.: Power of Attorney, to Aaron S. Pennington | 1828 | |
| - Condit, Joel W.: Deposition in case concerning the officer elections for The Proprietors of the Bridges over the Rivers Passaic an Hackensack | 1833 | |
| - Fish, Randal: Warrant, wanted in NY | 1837 | |
| - Meloney, Nathaniel: Power of attorney to Amzi Dodd | 1826 | |
| - Pennington, Jabez P., Samuel H. Pennington, et al.: Subpoena in case against Calvin Ferrman, Samuel Smith, et al. | 1841 | |
| - Poillon, Peter: Warrant | 1842 | |
| - Richardson, J.W.: Power of Attorney to Charles S. Ferris | n.d. | |
| - Smith, Josiah S., John H. Smith, Sarah Eckerson, Moses Van Nostrand, Jacob Van Nostrand, and Henry Van Nostrand: Summons to appear in the Bergen County Orphan’s Court | 1870 | |
| - Vandevender, Dean: Warrant, wanted in NY | 1840 | |
| - Young, William C. and Henry P. Cropsey: Power of Attorney | 1825 | |
| - Juror summons | 1828 | |
| - Clerk's certificates (3) | 1829, 1834, 1837 | |
| 8 | Papers regarding the New Jersey Protection and Lombard Bank | 1824-1828 |
| Contracts: | ||
| 9 | Land Deeds: | |
| - Cory, Jonathan and Frances to James Turnbull | 1833 | |
| - Crane, Samuel M. & Jane Maria and Daniel B. Crane to George Carter and Amos K. Carter | 1831 | |
| - Goble, Luther to Zephaniah Drake | 1833 | |
| - Keene, James to David Smith | 1836 | |
| - Poinier, John & Elizabeth to Peter Hill | 1807 | |
| - Reeve, William, executor of Isaac Reeve, to William Reeve, Jr. | 1797 | |
| - Sayrs, Caleb and Uzal Sayrs, executors of Jonathan Sayrs to David Nichols, Jedidiah Johnson Nichols, and Isaac Nichols | 1815 | |
| 10 | Bonds: | |
| - Russell, Caleb bound to Richard Prosser | 1827 | |
| - Wheeler, Caleb bound to John R. Crane | 1823 | |
| - Woodruff, Archibald, David D. Crane, and Josiah Johnson bound to Newark Mutual Fire Insurance Company | 1833 | |
| 11 | Other Contracts: | |
| - Agreement between Moses Ogden and Elizabeth Jamison regarding Lucy (Jamison) Robertson | 1795 | |
| - Petition for a Peddler’s license: Michael Quinn | 1838 | |
| Financial Documents: | ||
| 12 | Receipts, Promissory Notes, Checks, Accounts | 1798-1834 |
| 13 | Receipts, Promissory Notes, Checks, Accounts | 1835-1886, n.d. |
| 14 | Court Bills and Accounts | 1823-1835 |
| Miscellaneous | ||
| 15 | Muster Roll of Company K of the 21st Regiment of South Carolina Volunteers, Confederate Army | April 30-June30, 1863 |
| 16 | Signatures and Empty envelopes | n.d. |
Processed by Kim Charlton, March 2000 as part of the "Farm to City" project funded by a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission.
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