Person Page - 646

Graduated from Harvard, A.B., 1798, A.M., 1801; studied law in the office of Samuel Sewall, and later with Judge Putnam of Salem; was admitted to the bar in July, 1801, and established himself in practice in Salem. He declined the appointment of naval officer of the port of Salem in 1803; was a Democratic representative in the state legislature, 1805-07, and was elected a representative in the 10th congress, to fill a vacancy caused by the death of Jacob Crowninshield, serving, 1808-09. He was again chosen a representative in the state legislature in 1810 and became speaker of the house. He argued before the U.S. supreme court the great Georgia claim case in 1810, and on Nov. 18, 1811, was appointed associate-justice of the U.S. supreme court to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Justice Cushing, and held the office until his death. His circuit took in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and owing to the extreme old age of his predecessor, his labors upon the circuit were multiplied by the immense accumulation of business. He denounced the slave trade, and it was owing to his charges to the grand juries in 1819 that the traffic was brought to a close. He opposed the Missouri compromise and spoke in a public meeting held in Salem against the measure. He was a member of the committee appointed to revise the constitution of Massachusetts in 1820, and opposed the motion that the legislature should have the power to diminish the salaries of the judges of the supreme court. He was Dane professor of law at Harvard, 1829-45, and removed to Cambridge, Mass. In 1831 he declined the office of chief justice of Massachusetts. After the death of John Marshall, he acted as chief justice in the U.S. supreme court until the confirmation of Roger B. Taney, and again in 1844, during the illness of Taney. He was an overseer of Harvard college, 1818-25; a fellow, 1825-45; a member of the Massachusetts Historical society; a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and a member of the American Philosophical society. The honorary degree of LL.D. was conferred on him by Brown in 1815, by Harvard in 1821, and by Dartmouth in 1824. His name in "Class J, Judges and Lawyers," received sixty-four votes in the consideration of names for a place in the Hall of Fame, New York University, October, 1900, and was accorded a place with those of James Kent and John Marshall. He is the author of: The Power of Solitude, with Fugitive Poems (1804); Selection of Pleadings in Civil Actiones (1805), and numerous text books on jurisprudence, including: Commentaries on the Law of Bailments (1832); Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States (3 vols., 1833); Commentaries on the Conflict of Laws (1834); Commentaries on Equity Jurisprudence (2 vols., 1835-36); Equity Pleadings (1838); Law of Agency (1839): Law of Partnership (1841); Law of Bills of Exchange (1843), and Law of Promissory Notes (1845). He edited "Chitty on Bills of Exchange and Promissory Notes" (1809); "Abbot on Shipping" (1810), and "Laws on Assumpsit" (1811), and contributed to the North American Review, the American Jurist, and the "Encyclopædia Americana." He left unfinished a Digest of Law, which is in the Harvard Law library; and a collection of Miscellaneous Writings was published in 1835, and an enlarged edition edited by his son, William Wetmore Story, appeared after his death (2 vols., 1851.)⁴

His boyhood was spent in Rome, Italy, where he met many noted artists, who visited his father's studio. He was educated at Eton college and at Oxford university, studied art under Duveneck, Boulanger and Lefebvre in Paris, where he opened an atelier. In 1896 built a beautiful home on the site of his old studio on the Place des États Unis. He received the 3d class medal and honorable mention from the Paris salon, 1889; gold medal, Berlin, 1891, and silver medal at the Paris exposition in 1900. He was elected a member of the Society of American Artists. His portrait of Emma Eames was exhibited at the Chicago exposition in 1893, and among his other portraits is that of the Prince of Wales, painted for William Waldorf Astor, and its replica, painted for the Prince.²

He graduated from Harvard, A.B., 1838, A.M., 1841; studied law under his father, and was admitted to the bar. He prepared "Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Circuit Court of the United States for the First Circuit" (3 vols. 1842-47); "Treatise on the Law of Contracts not under Seal" (1844), and "Treatise on the Law of Sales of Personal Property" (1847). In 1848 he went to Italy, where he studied sculpture, becoming well known for his portrait busts and statues. He was a U.S. commissioner on fine arts to the exposition at Paris in 1879, and held a professorship in the Academy of St. Cecilia, Rome; was a fellow of the American Academy; corresponding member of the Massachusetts Historical society; chevalier of the order of Francis L, and an officer of the Legion of Honor. The honorary degree of LL.B. was conferred on him by Harvard in 1840, and that of DCL. by Oxford university in 1887. Among his most noted portrait works are: statue of Joseph Story in Mount Auburn cemetery, statue of Edward Everett in the Boston public garden, busts of James Russell Lowell, Josiah Quincy and Edward Everett; the bronze statue of George Peabody, erected in London in 1869, and the statue of Francis Scott Key, in Golden Gate park, San Francisco, Cal. His other works include: Sappho (1862); Saul (1863); Cleopatra (1864); Delilah (1866); Helen (1869); Judith (1872); Semiramis (1872); Sardanapalus (1878); and Thetis and Achilles (1887-88). He is the author of: Life and Letters of Joseph Story (2 vols., 1851); Poems (1856); The American Question (1862); Roba di Roma (1862); Proportions of the Human Figure, According to a New Canon for Practical Use (1866); Graffiti d'Italia (1869); The Roman Lawyer in Jerusalem (1870); Tragedy of Nero (1875); Castle St. Angelo (1877); He and She, or a Poet's Portfolio (1883); Fiammetta (1885); Poems (2 vols., 1886); Conversations in a Studio (1890); Excursions on Art and Letters (1891); A Poet's Portfolio: Later Reading (1894). See "Life of William Wetmore Story," by Henry James (London, 1903).³

Former, Bismarck Girl Married.
The Minneapolis Times says: "Mary Adelyn Stoyell and George M. Sewall were quietly married at their future home in the Rappahannock flats on Wednesday afternoon at 4 o'clock. The ceremony was performed by Rev. Charles Bayard Mitchell in the presence of only a few intimate friends and relatives. The bride looked very pretty in a beautiful tailor-made gown. A simple ring service was read, after which light luncheon was served in the dining room. The rooms were tastily decorated with smilax and American Beauty roses. Both bride and groom are well known here and have a large circle of friends. Mrs. Sewall is a post graduate of the Manning college of this city, and has achieved considerable fame as a reader, not only here but also in the east, where she has pursued her studies. Mr. Sewall is claim agent for the London Guaranty and Accident company here, and is also prominently known as a singer, being basso in the Church of the Redeemer quartet, and also a member and manager of the Metropolitan male quartet. They will be at home at 603 Ninth street S. after March 1."³