John Blair

Background

John Blair was born in 1732 in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States, the son of John Blair and Mary Monro, daughter of Rev. John and Christian Monro of King William County.

Education

John attended William and Mary College, and later studied law at the Middle Temple in London in 1755.

Career

Blair entered the House of Burgesses in 1766, being elected to represent the College of William and Mary. His service began while his father was president of the Council. He continued to represent the College through the session of 1770. He probably became clerk of the Council after the close of the legislative session, June 28, 1770, for we find Washington in a letter of October 5, 1770, referring to him as clerk. He retained this position as late as June 24, 1775. He signed the association entered into by the gentlemen of the House of Burgesses and the body of merchants, June 22, 1770, in which the signers agreed not to import certain specified goods from Great Britain until the Act of Parliament which imposed a duty on tea, paper, glass, and painters' colors was totally repealed. He was also a signer of the association of May 27, 1774. He probably succeeded his father as deputy auditor.

In the convention of May 6, 1776, which met at Williamsburg for the purpose of drawing up a constitution for the new commonwealth of Virginia, John Blair was a representative, elected by the College of William and Mary. He was a member of the committee of twenty-eight which framed a declaration of rights and a plan of government. On June 30, 1776, he was elected a member of the Privy Council of the new state and was reelected on May 29, 1777. On January 23, 1778, he was elected one of the judges of the general court, by joint ballot of the Assembly. His successor in the Council was not elected till May 29, 1778. He may have served therefore on both Council and court for a time. He later became chief justice of this court. In 1780 upon the death of Robert Carter Nicholas he was elected a judge of the high court of chancery, and by virtue of both positions became judge of the first court of appeals of Virginia. In the important case of Commonwealth of Virginia vs. Caton et al. , in November 1782, which brought up the respective rights of the judicial and legislative branches of the government, Blair with the rest of the judges was of the opinion that the court could declare any act or resolution of the legislature unconstitutional.

On December 4, 1786, he was selected by the General Assembly one of the delegates to the convention in Philadelphia for framing a constitution, and he was one of the three from Virginia who voted for the acceptance of the document. He was returned from the county of York to the convention which met in Richmond in 1788 for the consideration of the proposed constitution. In this convention he was a firm supporter of the new constitution. On September 30, 1789, he was appointed by President Washington an associate justice of the Supreme Court. On January 27, 1796, he resigned. After his resignation he returned to Williamsburg and lived there until his death on August 31, 1800.

Achievements

• John Blair was one of the best-trained jurists of his day. In 1776 he was one of the leader's who helped author Virginia's Constitution and set up the new state's system of government. In 1789 President Washington appointed him Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court. He sat on the Court until 1796. He was a strict constructionist who searched the constitution diligently when faced with tough decisions. During one case he could not find, in the Constitution, an answer to the question of whether a private citizen had the right to sue a state. His concerns helped lead to the establishment of the Eleventh Amendment which declared that states were immune from citizens' lawsuits.

Personality

Blair was blameless of disposition, pious, and possessed of great benevolence and goodness of heart. He was about five feet ten inches in height, of erect and imposing stature, with a noble forehead, blue eyes, a well formed nose, and hair inclining to be red.

Connections

Blair's wife, who was Jean Balfour, died November 22, 1792.

Father:

John Blair

Mother:

Mary (Munro) Blair

Spouse:

Jean (Balfour) Blair

Brother:

Archibald Blair

Sister:

Sarah (Blair) Cary

Sister:

Christian (Blair) Burwell

Sister:

Anne Agan (Blair) Banister

Daughter:

Jane (Blair) Henderson