George Washington Papers

To George Washington from John Blair, 16 December 1796

From John Blair

Wmsburg [Va.] Decr 16th 1796

Worthy Sir,

The inclosed letter will acquaint you with the subject & intention of my present address, & supersedes the necessity of my being particular, if the knowledge I have of the young gentleman, in whose favour the application is made, were extensive enough to justify particularity. Altho that be not the case, yet being requested to express to you my opinion of young Mr Wm Claiborne, I can truly say, that the character, given of him in Mr Ross’s letter, perfectly co-incides with the hopes which I have ever entertained in his favour.1 With more respect & affection than I know how to express, I am Dear Sir, Your most obedient servant,

John Blair

ALS, DLC:GW.

A former associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, John Blair had tendered his resignation from that office in a letter to GW of 25 Oct. 1795. Blair returned to Williamsburg, and in the spring of 1797, he served as the foreman on a grand jury of the U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Virginia in Richmond (see Documentary History of the Supreme Court description begins Maeva Marcus et al., eds. The Documentary History of the Supreme Court of the United States, 1789–1800. 8 vols. New York, 1985-2007. description ends , 3:181). Blair lived out the remainder of his life in Williamsburg.

1. For the enclosure, see David Ross to William Claiborne, 6 Dec., printed below.

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    Washington Papers
    Title
    To George Washington from John Blair, 16 December 1796
    Author
    Blair, John
    Recipient
    Washington, George
    Date
    16 December 1796

    Reference

    Cite as
    “To George Washington from John Blair, 16 December 1796,” Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Washington/05-21-02-0162-0001. [Original source: The Papers of George Washington, Presidential Series, vol. 21, 22 September 1796–3 March 1797, ed. Adrina Garbooshian-Huggins. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2020, pp. 374–375.]

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