Talk:John Rutledge

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 John Rutledge was a Social sciences and society good article nominee, but did not meet the good article criteria at the time. There are suggestions on the review page for improving the article. Once these are addressed, the article can be renominated. Editors may also seek a reassessment of the decision if they believe there was a mistake.

Reviewed version: June 5, 2008
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This text originally from http://www.archives.gov/exhibit_hall/charters_of_freedom/constitution/south_carolina.html

and should be in the public domain in the US.

Contents

[edit] Did he resign?

In Thomas Johnson, it says Rutledge resigned. On this page, it sounds like he was rejected over the chief justice nomination but remained as an associate justice (later resigned or retired). What's the whole story? -- Toytoy July 2, 2005 04:06 (UTC)

List of Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States says he resigned March 5, 1791. Later, of course, he was reappointed as Chief Justice, but it was a recess appointment and his term ended as soon as the Senate refused to confirm the appointment. — Phil Welch 3 July 2005 00:35 (UTC)


John Rutledge, elder brother of Edward Rutledge, signer of the Declaration of Independence, was born into a large family at or near Charleston, SC, in 1739. He received his early education from his father, an Irish immigrant, and physician, and from an Anglican minister and a tutor. After studying law at London's Middle Temple in 1760, he was admitted to English practice. But, almost at once, he sailed back to Charleston to begin a fruitful legal career and to amass a fortune in plantations and slaves. Three years later, he married Elizabeth Grimke, who eventually bore him 10 children, and moved into a townhouse, where he resided most of the remainder of his life. In 1761, Rutledge became politically active. That year, on behalf of Christ Church Parish, he was elected to the provincial assembly and held his seat until the War for Independence. For 10 months in 1764, he temporarily held the post of provincial attorney general. When the troubles with Great Britain intensified about the time of the Stamp Act in 1765, Rutledge, who hoped to ensure continued self-government for the colonies, sought to avoid severance from the British and maintained a restrained stance. He did, however, chair a committee of the Stamp Act Congress that drew up a petition to the House of Lords. In 1774, Rutledge was sent to the First Continental Congress, where he pursued a moderate course. After spending the next year in the Second Continental Congress, he returned to South Carolina and helped reorganize its government. In 1776, he served on the committee of safety and took part in the writing of the state constitution. That year, he also became president of the lower house of the legislature, a post he held until 1778. During this period, the new government met many stern tests. In 1778, the conservative Rutledge, disapproving of democratic revisions in the state constitution, resigned his position. The next year, however, he was elected as governor. It was a difficult time. The British were invading South Carolina, and the military situation was desperate. Early in 1780, by which time the legislature had adjourned, Charleston was besieged. In May it fell, the American army was captured, and the British confiscated Rutledge's property. He ultimately escaped to North Carolina and set about attempting to rally forces to recover South Carolina. In 1781, aided by Gen. Nathanael Greene and a new Continental Army force, he reestablished the government. In January 1782, he resigned the governorship and took a seat in the lower house of the legislature. He never recouped the financial losses he suffered during the war. In 1782-83, Rutledge was a delegate to the Continental Congress. He next sat on the state chancery court (1784) and again in the lower house of the legislature (1784-90). One of the most influential delegates at the Constitutional Convention, where he maintained a moderate nationalist stance and chaired the Committee of Detail, he attended all the sessions, spoke often and effectively, and served on five committees. Like his fellow South Carolina delegates, he vigorously advocated southern interests. The new government under the Constitution soon lured Rutledge. He was a Presidential elector in 1789 and Washington then appointed him as Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, but for some reason he apparently served only a short time. In 1791, he became chief justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court. Four years later, Washington again appointed him to the U.S. Supreme Court, this time as Chief Justice to replace John Jay. But Rutledge's outspoken opposition to Jay'sTreaty (1794) and the intermittent mental illness he had suffered from since the death of his wife in 1792, caused the Federalist-dominated Senate to reject his appointment and end his public career. Meantime, however, he had presided over one term of the Court. Rutledge died in 1800 at the age of 60 and was interred at St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Charleston. this is all factual... I just copied my report and put it on here By unknown

[edit] Is that even worth keeping?

All of the trivia about who is related to who is honestly quite cumbersome, and not encyclopedic at all. I'm going to take it out in a few days unless anyone objects. I'll put it here, so that none of you have any reason to be distressed if you'd like to put it back. Captain Scotch 00:56, 8 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] .....

I am doing a report for social studies on John Rutledge and none of the places I have been going to have his religion. So...what's his religion?

--71.50.213.145 15:47, 3 December 2006 (UTC) Talisha

Anglican. He is buried at St. Michael's Church in downtown Charleston. Gamecock 19:40, 3 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Eating habits

Is there a citation for the bit about him eating gavels? If not, how can this be in the entry?


Response: That was in America the Book by Jon Stewart and was a joke. It has been edited out and whoever wrote that in the article either wasn't aware it was a joke or thought that they were funny. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.198.134.176 (talk) 22:11, 4 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] constitutional convention???

im doing a civics project and i dont know what his role was in the

constitutional convention. dose any one know or know where i can find

the info. if so plese tell--- thanxs!! lol.

[edit] GA Review

This review is transcluded from Talk:John Rutledge/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

GA review (see here for criteria)
  1. It is reasonably well written.
    a (prose): b (MoS):
  2. It is factually accurate and verifiable.
    a (references): b (citations to reliable sources): c (OR):
  3. It is broad in its coverage.
    a (major aspects): b (focused):
  4. It follows the neutral point of view policy.
    Fair representation without bias:
  5. It is stable.
    No edit wars etc.:
  6. It is illustrated by images, where possible and appropriate.
    a (images are tagged and non-free images have fair use rationales): b (appropriate use with suitable captions):
  7. Overall:
    Pass/Fail:

The article is generally well written; I have done a little copy-editing. The lead needs to be expanded; it should be at least two substantial paragraphs for an article of this size and importance.

That's the least of its problems, however, the greatest concern is with WP:RS ("some material may be outdated by more recent research"). The article relies almost entirely on Flanders book from 1874, which surely must represent outdated scholarship by now, especially considering the easy availability (Amazon.com) of Haw's recent biography. The result is that the article reflects the laudatory, heroic style so common in the "great men"-biographies of the time, with phrases like "Rutledge used his dictatorial powers wisely" and "Rutledge was an excellent politician, possessing great wisdom as an administrator". Though I haven't read the book, I'm pretty confident Haw would have a better analyses of Rutledge's mental state than that he was "wearing out, for lack of a better term". This is in fact one of the most interesting parts of the biography, and would benefit from the insight of modern psychology and pathology. I know this represents a major revamping of the article, but before this is rectified I don't see how this article can pass.

(PS: A quick look at Haw's book tells me that financial troubles also contributed to his depression (p. 230). This also explains why he sold off his slaves, and not some anti-slavery sentiment as the article seemed to imply before I removed it. Pp. 257-8 and a note on p. 342 also say something about an illness behind the depression. This needs to be explored.) Lampman Talk to me! 17:11, 27 May 2008 (UTC)

Few changes have been made, and I find it impossible to promote the article in its current state. WP:RS should be as much about current scholarship as anything else. A few suggestions have been made, however, and it should be possible for anyone interested to bring it up to GA-status with a moderate amount of work. Lampman Talk to me! 19:20, 5 June 2008 (UTC)
The article also needs more on what is probably his most lasting national legacy: his successful effort to protect slavery and the slave trade in the US Constitution. This is only briefly mentioned here, and worded in such a way to make him seem almost a reluctant supporter of slavery. Clearly more modern sources are needed! —Kevin Myers 01:26, 10 June 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Mental illness

As Chief Justice, he was insane: John Adams explained that the Senate feared his "accelerated and increased ... Disorder of the Mind."[Laboratory of Justice, The Supreme Court's 200 Year Struggle to Integrate Science and the Law, by David L. Faigman, First edition, 2004, p. 34; Smith, Republic of Letters, 501] due to severe depression of his wife's death. --Florentino floro (talk) 06:08, 9 June 2008 (UTC)