Fenner Ferguson was a Delegate from the Territory of Nebraska

Nebraska

Nebraska is a state on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States. The state's capital is Lincoln and its largest city is Omaha, on the Missouri River....

, US. He was born in Nassau, New York

Nassau (town), New York

Nassau is a town in Rensselaer County, New York, USA. The population was 4,818 at the 2000 census.The Town of Nassau is at the southern border of the county.- History :The region was first settled around 1760....

, on April 25, 1814, attended the common schools; studied law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

, was admitted to the bar

Bar association

A bar association is a professional body of lawyers. Some bar associations are responsible for the regulation of the legal profession in their jurisdiction; others are professional organizations dedicated to serving their members; in many cases, they are both...

 in 1840, and commenced practice in Albany, New York

Albany, New York

Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...

. He moved to Albion, Michigan

Albion, Michigan

Albion is a city in Calhoun County in the south central region of the Lower Peninsula of the US state of Michigan. The population was 9,144 at the 2000 census and is part of the Battle Creek Metropolitan Statistical Area...

, in 1844 and continued the practice of law;

He later served successively as master in chancery, district attorney, and member of the Michigan House of Representatives in 1849. He was appointed by President Pierce

Franklin Pierce

Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States and is the only President from New Hampshire. Pierce was a Democrat and a "doughface" who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. Pierce took part in the Mexican-American War and became a brigadier general in the Army...

 as chief justice of the Territory of Nebraska

Nebraska Territory

The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Nebraska. The Nebraska Territory was created by the Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854...

 in 1854, and moved to Bellevue, Nebraska

Bellevue, Nebraska

Bellevue is a city in Sarpy County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 50,137 at the 2010 census. Eight miles south of Omaha, Bellevue is part of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. Originally settled in the 1830s, It was the first state capitol. Bellevue was incorporated in...

, in October 1854. There, he organized the first district and supreme courts of Nebraska, assisted the first Territorial legislature in drafting the first code of laws enacted for the government of the Territory. He resigned as chief justice, having been elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-fifth Congress (March 4, 1857 to March 3, 1859), and was not a candidate for renomination in 1858.

Ferguson died in Bellevue, Nebraska

Bellevue, Nebraska

Bellevue is a city in Sarpy County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 50,137 at the 2010 census. Eight miles south of Omaha, Bellevue is part of the Omaha-Council Bluffs metropolitan area. Originally settled in the 1830s, It was the first state capitol. Bellevue was incorporated in...

, on October 11, 1859, and his body is interred in Bellevue Cemetery.