David Sherman Boardman
Encyclopedia
David Sherman Boardman was an American lawyer, judge, and state assemblyman in the early United States.
The youngest child of Deacon Sherman and Sarah (Bostwick) Boardman, he lived for nearly his entire life in New Milford
. He was born at a farm near Housatonic
, and suffered severe illness. For a time this illness Attendance at school in his father's house for a few months, and in the village for four months at the age of fourteen, gave him all the common-school education he received.
For a time, failure in his eyesight seemed to bar him from further education; however in 1791, after stints in local boarding schools, he matriculated at Yale University
. Near the end of his first semester, he was elected member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society. He graduated in 1793.
In 1796 Yale President Dwight
proposed to nominate him as a tutor, But he had already been admitted to the Bar, and declined the offer. He opened an office in his native town. He practiced in Litchfield
and Fairfield
counties. After thirty-six years, he was appointed for five successive years Chief Judge of the County Court for Litchfield County, before he was displaced for political reasons. He was made Judge of Probate for the district of New Milford in 1805, and held the place by successive annual appointments for sixteen years. He was Justice of the Peace for thirty-two years. He was elected Representative to the General Assembly eight times. In 1808, he was elected a member of the Connecticut Society of Arts and Sciences, and was Vice-President of the Connecticut Historical Society
from its first establishment.
He married May 18, 1806, Charlotte Taylor, the daughter of Nathaniel Taylor, Esq., and there were born to them seven children. John Taylor, April 17, 1807; Catharine Ann, 12 December 1808, died 9 October 1811; George William, 26 February 1811, died 23 September 1815; Charles Sherman, 4 December 1812, died 26 October 1815; Augustus, April 19, 1814, died 31 October 1815; Frederick, July 20, 1817, died July 17, 1876 and Mary Cornelia, May 29, 1819.
In March, 1838, he was admitted with his wife to the fellowship of the Congregational Church.
He was from the first to the last a Washingtonian Federalist. At ten years, he had seen Washington in an encampment some twenty miles off. A local party of Jeffersonians was early organized in New Milford and supported by two of his brothers, but this circumstance did not abate the form of his allegiance to federalist principles, nor on the other hand did it weaken the tenderness of his fraternal love.
Henry Clay
and Daniel Webster
were the objects of his profoundest admiration. He rarely wrote for publication. He contributed however a few papers of great value for the newspapers, and for the New Englander of November, 1858, a review of Mr. J. C. Hamilton's History of the United States, as traced in the writings of Alexander Hamilton
, also for the American Quarterly Church Review for January, 1859, a review of Parton's Life and Times of Aaron Burr
, and in 1860 a pamphlet entitled Early Lights of the Litchfield Bar.
The youngest child of Deacon Sherman and Sarah (Bostwick) Boardman, he lived for nearly his entire life in New Milford
New Milford, Connecticut
New Milford is a town in southern Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States north of Danbury, on the Housatonic River. It is the largest town in the state in terms of land area at nearly . The population was 28,671 according to the Census Bureau's 2006 estimates...
. He was born at a farm near Housatonic
Housatonic
-Place names:In the United States:*The Housatonic River, a river in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut, and the source for other uses of the word*Housatonic, Massachusetts, a census-designated place in the town of Great Barrington...
, and suffered severe illness. For a time this illness Attendance at school in his father's house for a few months, and in the village for four months at the age of fourteen, gave him all the common-school education he received.
For a time, failure in his eyesight seemed to bar him from further education; however in 1791, after stints in local boarding schools, he matriculated at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
. Near the end of his first semester, he was elected member of the Phi Beta Kappa Society. He graduated in 1793.
In 1796 Yale President Dwight
Timothy Dwight IV
Timothy Dwight was an American academic and educator, a Congregationalist minister, theologian, and author...
proposed to nominate him as a tutor, But he had already been admitted to the Bar, and declined the offer. He opened an office in his native town. He practiced in Litchfield
Litchfield County, Connecticut
Litchfield County is a county located in the northwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. Litchfield County has the lowest population density of any county in Connecticut but is geographically the state's largest county. As of 2010 the population was 189,927...
and Fairfield
Fairfield County, Connecticut
Fairfield County is a county located in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The county population is 916,829 according to the 2010 Census. There are currently 1,465 people per square mile in the county. It is the most populous county in the State of Connecticut and contains...
counties. After thirty-six years, he was appointed for five successive years Chief Judge of the County Court for Litchfield County, before he was displaced for political reasons. He was made Judge of Probate for the district of New Milford in 1805, and held the place by successive annual appointments for sixteen years. He was Justice of the Peace for thirty-two years. He was elected Representative to the General Assembly eight times. In 1808, he was elected a member of the Connecticut Society of Arts and Sciences, and was Vice-President of the Connecticut Historical Society
Connecticut Historical Society
The Connecticut Historical Society is the official state historical society of Connecticut. Established in Hartford in 1825, the CHS is one of the oldest historical societies in the nation....
from its first establishment.
He married May 18, 1806, Charlotte Taylor, the daughter of Nathaniel Taylor, Esq., and there were born to them seven children. John Taylor, April 17, 1807; Catharine Ann, 12 December 1808, died 9 October 1811; George William, 26 February 1811, died 23 September 1815; Charles Sherman, 4 December 1812, died 26 October 1815; Augustus, April 19, 1814, died 31 October 1815; Frederick, July 20, 1817, died July 17, 1876 and Mary Cornelia, May 29, 1819.
In March, 1838, he was admitted with his wife to the fellowship of the Congregational Church.
He was from the first to the last a Washingtonian Federalist. At ten years, he had seen Washington in an encampment some twenty miles off. A local party of Jeffersonians was early organized in New Milford and supported by two of his brothers, but this circumstance did not abate the form of his allegiance to federalist principles, nor on the other hand did it weaken the tenderness of his fraternal love.
Henry Clay
Henry Clay
Henry Clay, Sr. , was a lawyer, politician and skilled orator who represented Kentucky separately in both the Senate and in the House of Representatives...
and Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster was a leading American statesman and senator from Massachusetts during the period leading up to the Civil War. He first rose to regional prominence through his defense of New England shipping interests...
were the objects of his profoundest admiration. He rarely wrote for publication. He contributed however a few papers of great value for the newspapers, and for the New Englander of November, 1858, a review of Mr. J. C. Hamilton's History of the United States, as traced in the writings of Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury...
, also for the American Quarterly Church Review for January, 1859, a review of Parton's Life and Times of Aaron Burr
Aaron Burr
Aaron Burr, Jr. was an important political figure in the early history of the United States of America. After serving as a Continental Army officer in the Revolutionary War, Burr became a successful lawyer and politician...
, and in 1860 a pamphlet entitled Early Lights of the Litchfield Bar.