Daniel, Peter Vivian

Born April 24, 1784, in Stafford County, VA
Died May 31, 1860, in Richmond, VA

Federal Judicial Service:
Judge, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
Nominated by Andrew Jackson on April 6, 1836, to a seat vacated by Philip P. Barbour. Confirmed by the Senate on April 19, 1836, and received commission on April 19, 1836. Service terminated on March 3, 1841, due to appointment to another judicial position.

Associate Justice, Supreme Court of the United States
Nominated by Martin Van Buren on February 26, 1841, to a seat vacated by Philip P. Barbour. Confirmed by the Senate on March 2, 1841, and received commission on March 3, 1841. Service terminated on May 31, 1860, due to death.

Supreme Court Oath:
January 10, 1842 (based on questionable authority)

Allotment as Circuit Justice:

Fifth Circuit, March 10, 1841-January 24, 1843
Ninth Circuit, January 25, 1843-May 31, 1860

Education:
Princeton University
Read law, 1808

Professional Career:

Private practice, Richmond, Virginia, 1808
State delegate, Virginia, 1809-1812
Member, Virginia Privy Council, 1812-1835
Lieutenant governor, Virginia, 1818-1835

Bibliography

Brown, H.B. “The Dissenting Opinions of Justice Daniel.” American Law Review, vol. 21, no. 6 (Nov.-Dec. 1887): 869-900.

Frank, John P. Justice Daniel Dissenting: A Biography of Peter V. Daniel, 1784-1860. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1964.

Maltz, Earl M. “Biography is Destiny: The Case of Justice Peter V. Daniel.” Brooklyn Law Review, vol. 72, no. 1 (Fall 2006): 199-210.

Powell, Lewis F. “Supreme Court Justices from Virginia.” The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, vol. 84, no. 2 (Apr. 1976): 131-41.

Manuscript Collections

Gilder Lehrman Collection
Pierpont Morgan Library
New York, N.Y.
Opinion of Justice Peter V. Daniel in Scott v. Sanford, March 7, 1857.
42 pp.; finding aid; printer's copy with compositor's pencil notes and numerous insertions and deletions in Daniel's hand, including slips of paper.

Henry E. Huntington Library
San Marino, Cal.
Daniel family correspondence, 1813-1904.
ca. 150 items; personal correspondence.

Virginia Historical Society
Richmond, Va.
Daniel family papers, 1805-1877, section 3.
79 items; letters from Peter V. Daniel, primarily to his daughter Elizabeth Randolph Daniel.

Daniel family papers, 1805-1877, section 4.
1 item; memoir of Peter V. Daniel dated December 5, 1847, concerning his wife, Lucy Nelson (Randolph) Daniel.

Daniel family papers, 1805-1877, section 5.
1 item; minutes of the Supreme Court, December 4, 1860, concerning the death of Peter V. Daniel.

Daniel family papers, 1805-1877, section 6.
11 items; correspondence of Lucy Nelson (Randolph) Daniel, concerning her husband, Peter V. Daniel, and others.

Daniel family papers, 1805-1877, section 7.
17 items; includes letters written by Peter V. Daniel to his daughter, Elizabeth Randolph Daniel.

Peter Daniel will, June 21, 1860.
7 pp.; photocopy of a copy recorded in Richmond Chancery Court on September 19, 1890.

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Daniel, Peter Vivian