John Jay

John Jay
Portrait by Gilbert Stuart, 1794
1st Chief Justice of the United States
In office
October 19, 1789 – June 29, 1795
Nominated byGeorge Washington
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byJohn Rutledge
2nd Governor of New York
In office
July 1, 1795 – June 30, 1801
LieutenantStephen Van Rensselaer
Preceded byGeorge Clinton
Succeeded byGeorge Clinton
United States Secretary of State
Acting
September 15, 1789 – March 22, 1790
PresidentGeorge Washington
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byThomas Jefferson
United States Secretary of Foreign Affairs
Acting
July 27, 1789 – September 15, 1789
PresidentGeorge Washington
Preceded byHimself
Succeeded byOffice abolished
In office
December 21, 1784 – March 3, 1789
Appointed byCongress of the Confederation
Preceded byRobert R. Livingston
Succeeded byHimself
United States Minister to Spain
In office
September 27, 1779 – May 20, 1782
Appointed bySecond Continental Congress
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byWilliam Short
6th President of the Continental Congress
In office
December 10, 1778 – September 28, 1779
Preceded byHenry Laurens
Succeeded bySamuel Huntington
Delegate from New York to the Second Continental Congress
In office
December 7, 1778 – September 28, 1779
Preceded byPhilip Livingston
Succeeded byRobert R. Livingston
In office
May 10, 1775 – May 22, 1776
Preceded bySeat established
Succeeded bySeat abolished
Delegate from New York to the First Continental Congress
In office
September 5, 1774 – October 26, 1774
Preceded bySeat established
Succeeded bySeat abolished
Personal details
Born(1745-12-23)December 23, 1745
New York City, Province of New York
DiedMay 17, 1829(1829-05-17) (aged 83)
Bedford, New York, U.S.
Political partyFederalist
Spouse
(m. 1774; died 1802)
Children6, including Peter and William
RelativesJay family
Van Cortlandt family
EducationKing's College (BA, MA)
Signature

John Jay (December 23 [O.S. December 12], 1745 – May 17, 1829) was an American statesman, diplomat, abolitionist, signatory of the Treaty of Paris, and a Founding Father of the United States. He served from 1789 to 1795 as the first chief justice of the United States and from 1795 to 1801 as the second governor of New York. Jay directed U.S. foreign policy for much of the 1780s and was an important leader of the Federalist Party after the ratification of the United States Constitution in 1788.

Jay was born into a wealthy family of merchants and New York City government officials of French Huguenot and Dutch descent. He became a lawyer and joined the New York Committee of Correspondence, organizing American opposition to British policies such as the Intolerable Acts in the leadup to the American Revolution. Jay was elected to the First Continental Congress, where he signed the Continental Association, and to the Second Continental Congress, where he served as its president. From 1779 to 1782, Jay served as the ambassador to Spain; he persuaded Spain to provide financial aid to the fledgling United States. He also served as a negotiator of the Treaty of Paris, in which Britain recognized American independence. Following the end of the war, Jay served as Secretary of Foreign Affairs, directing United States foreign policy under the Articles of Confederation government. He also served as the first Secretary of State on an interim basis.

A proponent of strong, centralized government, Jay worked to ratify the United States Constitution in New York in 1788. He was a co-author of The Federalist Papers along with Alexander Hamilton and James Madison, and wrote five of the eighty-five essays. After the establishment of the new federal government, Jay was appointed by President George Washington the first Chief Justice of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1795. The Jay Court experienced a light workload, deciding just four cases over six years. In 1794, while serving as chief justice, Jay negotiated the highly controversial Jay Treaty with Britain. Jay received a handful of electoral votes in three of the first four presidential elections but never undertook a serious bid for the presidency.

Jay served as the governor of New York from 1795 to 1801. Although he successfully passed gradual emancipation legislation as governor of the state, he owned five slaves as late as 1800. In the waning days of President John Adams' administration, Jay was confirmed by the Senate for another term as chief justice, but he declined the position and retired to his farm in Westchester County, New York.