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Marcus Morton Engraving

Marcus Morton

Gender:
Male
Born:
December 19, 1784
Died:
February 6, 1864
Home Town:
Freetown, MA
Later Residences:
Taunton, MA
Marriage(s):
Charlotte Hodges Morton (December 23, 1807)
Biographical Notes:
Marcus Morton was the son of Nathaniel and Mary (Cary) Morton. When he entered Brown as a sophomore in 1801, he began to show an interest in Jeffersonian ideals. When Morton graduated from Brown, he gave the commencement address in which he argued for principles he maintained throughout his life, such as an "economy of public affairs." After Brown, he attended the Litchfield Law School.

Soon afterwards, Morton became very active in politics. He was the "perennial" candidate for governor on the Democratic ticket between 1824 and 1848 in Massachusetts. Between 1828 and 1843, Morton was the Democratic candidiate for governor every year. In 1839, he defeated Edward Everett by only a single vote of the Senate. In 1842, he was chosen over John Davis by the Senate. In 1848, he ran for vice-president ...
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Education
Years at LLS:
1806
Other Education:
Received his early education at home and at the age of fourteen he was sent to study with the Rev. Calvin Chaddock of Rochester, MA. He then graduated from Brown University in 1804.
Profession / Service
Profession:
Lawyer; Political Office
Admitted To Bar:
Norfolk, MA in 1807
Training with Other Lawyers:
He studied for a year with Seth Padleford in Taunton, MA before attending the Litchfield Law School.
Political Party:
Republican
Federal Posts:
U.S. Representative (MA) 1817-1821
Federal Committees:
Chairman of the Committee on Revisal and Unfinished Business in 1819 and 1820.
State Posts:
Clerk of the State Senate (MA) 1811
Lt. Governor (MA) 1824
Governor (MA) 1825, 1840-1841, 1843-1844
Justice of the Supreme Court (MA) 1825-1840
State Representative (MA) 1858
Local Posts:
Collector of the Port of Boston (Boston, MA) 1845-1849
Related Objects and Documents
In the Ledger:
help The Citation of Attendance provides primary source documentation of the student’s attendance at the Litchfield Female Academy and/or the Litchfield Law School. If a citation is absent, the student is thought to have attended but currently lacks primary source confirmation.

Records for the schools were sporadic, especially in the formative years of both institutions. If instructors kept comprehensive records for the Litchfield Female Academy or the Litchfield Law School, they do not survive. Researchers and staff have identified students through letters, diaries, family histories and genealogies, and town histories as well as catalogues of students printed in various years. Art and needlework have provided further identification of Female Academy Students, and Litchfield County Bar records document a number of Law School students. The history of both schools and the identification of the students who attended them owe credit to the early 20th century research and documentation efforts of Emily Noyes Vanderpoel and Samuel Fisher, and the late 20th century research and documentation efforts of Lynne Templeton Brickley and the Litchfield Historical Society staff.
CITATION OF ATTENDANCE:
Litchfield County Bar Association Records, 1806, Helga J. Ingraham Memorial Library, Litchfield Historical Society.

Catalogue of the Litchfield Law School Hartford, CT: Press of Case, Tiffany, and Company, 1849.
Secondary Sources:
Allen, J.K. George Morton of Plymouth Colony and Some of his Desc. Private Printing: 1908.; Boston Daily Courier 8 Feb 1864.
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If you have family papers, objects, or any other details you would like to share, or if you would like to obtain a copy of an image for publication, please contact us at curator@litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org.