Samuel Chase

Samuel Chase was born in 1741 in Somerset County, Maryland, studied law in Annapolis, and became a fiery patriot in the colonial assembly. He was away from Congress during the early July debates, returned in time to sign the Declaration of Independence, and later helped Maryland accept the Articles of Confederation. President Washington named him to the Supreme Court in 1796. Chase was a blunt, sometimes harsh partisan. In 1804–1805 the Jeffersonian majority in the House impeached him, chiefly for his conduct in politically charged trials; the Senate acquitted him, an important early test of judicial independence. He remained on the Court until his death in 1811. Chase owned enslaved people in Maryland. His life is not a simple hero tale: he risked much for independence, then showed, on the bench, both a real belief in law and a temper that gave his enemies cause.

See also: Signers of the Declaration · William Paca · Thomas Stone · Charles Carroll of Carrollton