Samuel Chase

Samuel Chase (1741-1811), associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and signer of the Declaration of Independence.

Chase was born on April 17, 1741, in Somerset County, Maryland, and educated privately. He was admitted to the bar in 1761 and became a prominent figure in the American Revolution. As a member of the Maryland General Assembly he opposed the Stamp Act. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress from 1774 to 1778 and in 1784-1785. In 1776 he was a member of the mission that sought unsuccessfully to induce the Canadians to declare war against Britain. That same year he signed the Declaration of Independence. In 1791 he became chief judge of the Maryland General Court, and in 1796 President George Washington appointed him to the U.S. Supreme Court. Although impeached for his conduct in criticizing the administration of President Thomas Jefferson during a charge to a Maryland grand jury, he was strongly defended and was ultimately acquitted by the Senate. Chase continued to serve as a member of the Court until his death, June 19, 1811.