Joseph Hopper Nicholson was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 lawyer, jurist, and politician from Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

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Born in Chestertown

Chestertown, Maryland

Chestertown is a town in Kent County, Maryland, United States. The population was 4,746 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Kent County. The ZIP code is 21620 and the area codes are 410 and 443...

, Kent County, Maryland

Kent County, Maryland

Kent County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, on its Eastern Shore. It was named for the county of Kent in England. Its county seat is Chestertown. In 2010, the county population was 20,197...

, Nicholson graduated from Washington College

Washington College

Washington College is a private, independent liberal arts college located on a campus in Chestertown, Maryland, on the Eastern Shore. Maryland granted Washington College its charter in 1782...

 in 1787 and studied law. He was admitted to the bar and practiced, and also served as a member of the Maryland House of Delegates

Maryland House of Delegates

The Maryland House of Delegates is the lower house of the General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Maryland, and is composed of 141 Delegates elected from 47 districts. The House chamber is located in the state capitol building on State Circle in Annapolis...

 from 1796 to 1798. He was elected as a Democratic-Republican

Democratic-Republican Party (United States)

The Democratic-Republican Party or Republican Party was an American political party founded in the early 1790s by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Political scientists use the former name, while historians prefer the latter one; contemporaries generally called the party the "Republicans", along...

 to the Sixth and to the three succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1799 until his resignation on March 1, 1806. In Congress, Nicholson was one of the managers appointed by the House of Representatives in January 1804 to conduct the impeachment proceedings against John Pickering

John Pickering (judge)

John Pickering served as Chief Justice of the New Hampshire Superior Court of Judicature and as Judge for the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire...

, judge of the United States District Court for New Hampshire, and in December of the same year against Samuel Chase

Samuel Chase

Samuel Chase was an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court and earlier was a signatory to the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Maryland. Early in life, Chase was a "firebrand" states-righter and revolutionary...

, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States

Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States...

During the War of 1812

War of 1812

The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...

, Nicholson participated in the defense of Fort McHenry

Fort McHenry

Fort McHenry, in Baltimore, Maryland, is a star-shaped fort best known for its role in the War of 1812, when it successfully defended Baltimore Harbor from an attack by the British navy in Chesapeake Bay...

. He later served as chief justice of the sixth judicial district of Maryland and was associate justice of the Maryland Court of Appeals

Maryland Court of Appeals

The Court of Appeals of Maryland is the supreme court of the U.S. state of Maryland. The court, which is composed of one chief judge and six associate judges, meets in the Robert C. Murphy Courts of Appeal Building in the state capital, Annapolis...

 from March 26, 1806 until his death at his home in Baltimore County, Maryland

Baltimore County, Maryland

Baltimore County is a county located in the northern part of the US state of Maryland. In 2010, its population was 805,029. It is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Towson. The name of the county was derived from the barony of the Proprietor of the Maryland...

. He is interred in the family cemetery on the Lloyd estate of "Wye House

Wye House

Wye House is a large Southern frame plantation house located in Talbot County, Maryland, seven miles northwest of Easton. It was listed for preservation on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970.-History:...

" near Easton

Easton, Maryland

Easton, founded 1710, is a town within the Easton District of Talbot County, Maryland, United States. The population was 11,708 at the 2000 census, and 14,677 according to current July 2008 census estimates. It is the county seat of Talbot County. The primary ZIP Code is 21601, and the...

, Talbot County, Maryland

Talbot County, Maryland

-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*81.4% White*12.8% Black*0.2% Native American*1.2% Asian*0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.6% Two or more races*2.7% Other races*5.5% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...

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