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Levi Lincoln, Sr. (May 15, 1749 – April 14, 1820) was an American revolutionary, lawyer, and statesman from Massachusetts. A Democratic-Republican, he most notably served as Thomas Jefferson's first Attorney General, and played a significant role in the events that led to the celebrated ''Marbury v. Madison'' court case. He served two terms as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, acting as Governor for the remainder of Governor James Sullivan's term after his death in December 1808. Lincoln was unsuccessful in his bid to be elected governor in his own right in 1809. Born in Hingham, Massachusetts, Lincoln was educated at Harvard, and studied law with Joseph Hawley before establishing a law practice in Worcester, Massachusetts. He was active in local politics, and participated in the convention that drafted the Massachusetts Constitution in 1779. He supported Quock Walker, a former slave seeking confirmation of his freedom under that constitution in 1783. He entered national politics with his election to the United States House of Representatives in 1800, but was immediately tapped by Jefferson to become Attorney General. Lincoln served Jefferson as a consultant on the politics of New England, and was influential in the distribution of patronage in the region. He served on a commission that resolved claims emanating from the Yazoo land scandal in Georgia, and advised Jefferson on matters related to the Louisiana Purchase. He returned to Massachusetts, where he remained politically active in the state. He established Republican dominance in Worcester, even though the state was dominated by Federalists. He was elected lieutenant governor under James Sullivan in 1807, but failed to win election in his own right in 1809 in a highly partisan election. He retired from politics in 1811, declining nomination to the Supreme Court because of his health. His descendants were a major influence in Worcester for much of the 19th century. ==Early years== Lincoln was born in Hingham, Massachusetts, on May 15, 1749, to Enoch and Rachel (Fearing) Lincoln. His father first apprenticed him to a local blacksmith, but the boy's lack of interest in that business and clear interest in reading led to his eventual enrollment in Harvard College. He graduated in 1772, and studied law under Joseph Hawley in Northampton. When news of the Battles of Lexington and Concord reached Northampton, he volunteered for military service, but only served for a short time, marching with the local militia to Cambridge, where militia were besieging British-occupied Boston.〔Lincoln, p. 157〕 Lincoln did not stay long, and soon returned to Northampton, where he passed the bar. He established a practice in Worcester in 1775, where his business flourished because most of the Worcester lawyers had been Loyalist and had fled to Boston.〔Moynihan, p. 82〕 From 1775 to 1781, he served as clerk of the court and probate judge of Worcester County, and served the town of Worcester in a variety of posts into the 1790s. He was elected in 1779 to the state convention that drafted the state constitution.〔Lincoln, p. 158〕 During these years, Lincoln rose in prominence to become one of the largest landowners in Worcester.〔Moynihan, p. 94〕 He was a charter member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1780.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=https://www.amacad.org/content/about/about.aspx?d=23 )〕 In 1781, Lincoln was one of the lawyers (another was Northampton lawyer and future governor Caleb Strong) who worked on a series of legal cases surrounding Quock Walker, a former slave seeking to claim his freedom. One of the cases, ''Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Nathaniel Jennison'', firmly established that slavery was incompatible with the new state constitution. Although the decision by Justice William Cushing was based on the state constitution's language "all men are born free and equal", Lincoln in his arguments had instead appealed to natural law and God's law.〔Higginbotham, pp. 90–95〕 He was also elected to the Continental Congress in 1781, but declined to serve. Lincoln was elected to the Massachusetts House of Representatives in 1796, and to both the House and State Senate in 1797; he chose to sit in the Senate.〔Lincoln, pp. 158–159〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Levi Lincoln, Sr.」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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