Bancroft Davis
Encyclopedia
John Chandler Bancroft Davis (December 22, 1822 – December 27, 1907), commonly known as Bancroft Davis, was an American lawyer, judge, diplomat, and president of Newburgh and New York Railway Company.
, Massachusetts, the son of John Davis
, a Whig governor of Massachusetts, and was the older brother of congressman Horace Davis
. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard University
in 1847. He married Frederika Gore King. She was the daughter of James G. King
, an American businessman and Whig Party
politician and the granddaughter of Rufus King
, who was one of the List of signatories of the United States Constitution.
. He practiced law in New York City and was the correspondent for The Times
in London. Because of ill health, he retired from his law work in 1862, but in 1868 he was elected to the New York State Assembly
.
Under President
Ulysses S. Grant
, he was Assistant Secretary of State in 1869–1871 and again in 1873–1874.
Between times he was a secretary of the commission which concluded the Treaty of Washington
in 1871, to create a tribunal to settle the Alabama claims
. He subsequently represented the United States at the tribunal, the Geneva Court of Arbitration, which met at Geneva
on December 15, 1871. The American case was prepared and presented by him.
In 1874, he was appointed as the U.S. Minister to Germany, serving in that position until 1877. President Rutherford B. Hayes
appointed him to be an associate judge on the United States Court of Claims
on December 14, 1877, replacing retiring Judge Edward G. Loring
.
For another special assignment at the State Department, he resigned from the Court of Claims in 1881 at the request of President Chester A. Arthur
, who reappointed him to the court in 1882. He resigned again in 1883 to become Reporter of Decisions for the Supreme Court, and was replaced on the Court of Claims by Lawrence Weldon
.
case, Davis is a key figure in the corporate personhood debate. Journalists have since cited Davis's prior position as president of Newburgh and New York Railway as evidence of a conflict of interest in the corporate personhood
interpretation of the ruling.
Early life
Davis was born in WorcesterWorcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
, Massachusetts, the son of John Davis
John Davis (Massachusetts Governor)
John Davis was an American lawyer, businessman and politician.-Early life:John Davis was born in Northborough, Massachusetts...
, a Whig governor of Massachusetts, and was the older brother of congressman Horace Davis
Horace Davis
Horace Davis was a United States Representative from California. He was the son of Massachusetts Governor John Davis and the younger brother of diplomat John Chandler Bancroft Davis.-Biography:...
. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1847. He married Frederika Gore King. She was the daughter of James G. King
James G. King
James Gore King was an American businessman and Whig Party politician who represented New Jersey's 5th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1849 to 1851...
, an American businessman and Whig Party
Whig Party (United States)
The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...
politician and the granddaughter of Rufus King
Rufus King
Rufus King was an American lawyer, politician, and diplomat. He was a delegate for Massachusetts to the Continental Congress. He also attended the Constitutional Convention and was one of the signers of the United States Constitution on September 17, 1787, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania...
, who was one of the List of signatories of the United States Constitution.
Career
In 1849, Davis became secretary of the American embassy in London and later its chargé d'affairesChargé d'affaires
In diplomacy, chargé d’affaires , often shortened to simply chargé, is the title of two classes of diplomatic agents who head a diplomatic mission, either on a temporary basis or when no more senior diplomat has been accredited.-Chargés d’affaires:Chargés d’affaires , who were...
. He practiced law in New York City and was the correspondent for The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
in London. Because of ill health, he retired from his law work in 1862, but in 1868 he was elected to the New York State Assembly
New York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...
.
Under President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, he was Assistant Secretary of State in 1869–1871 and again in 1873–1874.
Between times he was a secretary of the commission which concluded the Treaty of Washington
Treaty of Washington (1871)
The Treaty of Washington was a treaty signed and ratified by Great Britain and the United States in 1871 that settled various disputes between the countries, in particular the Alabama Claims.-Background:...
in 1871, to create a tribunal to settle the Alabama claims
Alabama Claims
The Alabama Claims were a series of claims for damages by the United States government against the government of Great Britain for the assistance given to the Confederate cause during the American Civil War. After international arbitration endorsed the American position in 1872, Britain settled...
. He subsequently represented the United States at the tribunal, the Geneva Court of Arbitration, which met at Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
on December 15, 1871. The American case was prepared and presented by him.
In 1874, he was appointed as the U.S. Minister to Germany, serving in that position until 1877. President Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford Birchard Hayes was the 19th President of the United States . As president, he oversaw the end of Reconstruction and the United States' entry into the Second Industrial Revolution...
appointed him to be an associate judge on the United States Court of Claims
United States Court of Claims
The Court of Claims was a federal court that heard claims against the United States government. It was established in 1855 as the Court of Claims, renamed in 1948 to the United States Court of Claims , and abolished in 1982....
on December 14, 1877, replacing retiring Judge Edward G. Loring
Edward G. Loring
Edward Greely Loring was a Massachusetts judge who ignited controversy in Massachusetts and the North by ordering escaped slaves Thomas Sims and Anthony Burns to be returned to slavery under the federal Fugitive Slave Law of 1850...
.
For another special assignment at the State Department, he resigned from the Court of Claims in 1881 at the request of President Chester A. Arthur
Chester A. Arthur
Chester Alan Arthur was the 21st President of the United States . Becoming President after the assassination of President James A. Garfield, Arthur struggled to overcome suspicions of his beginnings as a politician from the New York City Republican machine, succeeding at that task by embracing...
, who reappointed him to the court in 1882. He resigned again in 1883 to become Reporter of Decisions for the Supreme Court, and was replaced on the Court of Claims by Lawrence Weldon
Lawrence Weldon
Lawrence Weldon was an Illinois attorney and politician, and a judge of the United States Court of Claims.Weldon attended public schools in Zanesville, Ohio, where he was born, and subsequently attended Wittenberg College in Springfield, Ohio. He served as Clerk for the Ohio Secretary of State...
.
Role in corporate personhood controversy
Acting as court reporter in the 1886 Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific RailroadSanta Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad
Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad Company, was a United States Supreme Court case dealing with taxation of railroad properties...
case, Davis is a key figure in the corporate personhood debate. Journalists have since cited Davis's prior position as president of Newburgh and New York Railway as evidence of a conflict of interest in the corporate personhood
Corporate personhood
Corporate personhood is the status conferred upon corporations under the law, which allows corporations to have rights and responsibilities similar to those of a natural person. There is a question about which subset of rights that are afforded to natural persons should also be afforded to...
interpretation of the ruling.
Works
- (1847) The Massachusetts Justice
- (1871) The Case of the United States Laid before the Tribunal of Arbitration at Geneva
- (1873) Treaties and Conventions Concluded between the United States of America and Other Powers, Since July 4, 1776 (Revised edition)
- (1893) Mr. Fish and the Alabama Claims: A Chapter in Diplomatic History ,
- (1897) Origin of the Book of Common Prayer of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America