David Aiken Hall

David Aiken Hall
David Aiken Hall
Secretary of the Whig National Committee
	In office; 1851–1852
Personal details
Born	October 16, 1795; Grafton, Vermont, U.S.
Died	December 24, 1870 (aged 75); Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting place	Congressional Cemetery
Political party	Whig
Children	6, including Maria M. C. Hall
Alma mater	Middlebury College
Occupation	Lawyer, politician, author

David Aiken Hall (October 16, 1795 – December 24, 1870) was an American attorney, author, and politician, most well known as a lawyer to enslaved African Americans, including the crew and slaves of The Pearl.

Early life and family

David Aiken Hall was born on October 16, 1795, in Grafton, Vermont.^[1] After graduating from Middlebury College, he moved to Washington, D.C., to study law with Elias B. Caldwell.^[2]^[3]

Marriages and children

Hall was married three times: to Susan Apthorp Bulfinch (1790–1829) in 1821, Martha Maria Condict (1807–1836) in 1834, and Abigail Wolcott Ellsworth (1814–1874) in 1838.^[4]^[5]

He had 6 children who lived into adulthood, including:^[6]^[7]

Maria M. C. Hall^[8] (1836–1912), American Civil War nurse^[9]
Ellen Ellsworth Hall Curtis (1840–1900)
Alice Lindsley Hall Wyckoff (1842–1920)
William Frederick Hall (1844–1900)
Martin Ellsworth Hall (1847–1904), Commander, U.S. Navy
Martha Wolcott Hall Hitchcock (1856–1903)

Career

Hall was admitted to the Bar in 1820 and was a prominent attorney in the Washington, D.C. area. He was an acquaintance of former presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe upon his arrival to the region. In 1824, Hall was a lieutenant of a company organized to welcome General Lafayette on the occasion of his visit to Washington.^[2]

He served for several years as executor of the James Greenleaf estate.^[4] Among his close associates and friends were Daniel Webster and Stephen A. Douglas. Hall became known for representing a large number of enslaved African Americans and saving them from being sold and separated from their families. In 1828, Bushrod Washington wrote Hall regarding a legal matter.^[4] Hall was a close friend of Daniel Webster, with whom he often partnered on legal cases.^[2]^[10] He was also a neighbor and associate of abolitionist editor Gamaliel Bailey.^[11]

In 1832, Hall co-wrote Legislative and Documentary History of the Bank of the United States with Matthew St. Clair Clarke (Clerk of the United States House of Representatives), a work which was praised by James Madison.^[12]

In the late 1840s, he provided legal representation as one of the lead attorneys for the crew and enslaved persons of The Pearl.^[13]^[14]^[15] Hall was an active member of the Whig party, and served as secretary of the Whig National Committee during the 1852 presidential election. He was a strong opponent of slavery.^[2]^[16]

Works

A Digested Index of the Laws of the Corporation of the City of Washington, 1829^[17]
Legislative and Documentary History of the Bank of the United States, 1832 (co-authored with Matthew St. Clair Clarke)^[18]
Cases of Contested Elections in Congress 1789 to 1834, 1834 (co-authored with Matthew St. Clair Clarke)^[19]

Death and legacy

Hall died in 1870 aged 75.^[13] He is interred at the Congressional Cemetery.^[1]^[5] Hall's grave is recognized with a historical marker as part of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom.^[20]

References

^ ^a ^b "Hall, David Aiken () | Seward Family Digital Archive". sewardproject.org. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C. The Society. 1902.
^ Catalogue of Officers and Students of Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont: And of Others who Have Received Degrees, 1800-1915. The College. 1917.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Hall, David Aiken | Bushrod Papers". bushrod.washingtonpapers.org. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
^ ^a ^b "David Aiken Hall & Martha Maria Condict". www.condit-family.com. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
^ Zevely, Douglass (1902). "Old Houses on C Street and Those Who Lived There". Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C. 5: 151–175. ISSN 0897-9049. JSTOR 40066800.
^ "Person Information | Seward Family Digital Archive". sewardproject.org. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
^ Condit, Jotham Halsey (1885). Genealogical record of the Condit family. University of Wisconsin - Madison. Newark, N.J., Ward & Tichenor. p. 209.
^ Moore, Frank (1867). Women of the War: Their Heroism and Self-sacrifice.
^ Moser, Harold D. (2005-03-30). Daniel Webster: A Bibliography. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 978-0-313-06867-6.
^ Ripley, C. Peter; Finkenbine, Roy E. (2000-11-09). The Black Abolitionist Papers: Vol. III: The United States, 1830-1846. UNC Press Books. ISBN 979-8-89086-648-6.
^ "Founders Online: James Madison to David A. Hall, 8 August 1834". founders.archives.gov. Retrieved 2024-10-07.
^ ^a ^b "Funeral of Mr. David A. Hall". The Evening Star. December 28, 1870.
^ Pacheco, Josephine F. (2010-03-15). The Pearl: A Failed Slave Escape on the Potomac. Univ of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0-8078-8892-6.
^ Thomas, William G. (2020-11-24). A Question of Freedom: The Families Who Challenged Slavery from the Nation's Founding to the Civil War. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-25627-7.
^ Harrold, Stanley (2021-11-21). The Abolitionists and the South, 1831-1861. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0-8131-8734-1.
^ Hall, David A. (1829). A Digested Index of the Laws of the Corporation of the City of Washington: To the Twenty-sixth Council, Inclusive. Way & Gideon, printers.
^ Clarke, Matthew St Clair (1832). Legislative and documentary History of the Bank of the United States. Gales and Seaton. ISBN 978-1-57588-944-3.
^ Cases of Contested Elections in Congress: From the Year 1789 to 1834, Inclusive. Gales and Seaton. 1834.
^ "David A. Hall - Congressional Cemetery". Google Arts & Culture. Retrieved 2024-10-08.

[sewardproject.org-1] "Hall, David Aiken () | Seward Family Digital Archive". sewardproject.org. Retrieved 2024-10-07.

[:0-2] Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C. The Society. 1902.

[3] Catalogue of Officers and Students of Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont: And of Others who Have Received Degrees, 1800-1915. The College. 1917.

[:1-4] "Hall, David Aiken | Bushrod Papers". bushrod.washingtonpapers.org. Retrieved 2024-10-07.

[:3-5] "David Aiken Hall & Martha Maria Condict". www.condit-family.com. Retrieved 2024-10-07.

[6] Zevely, Douglass (1902). "Old Houses on C Street and Those Who Lived There". Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C. 5: 151–175. ISSN 0897-9049. JSTOR 40066800.

[7] "Person Information | Seward Family Digital Archive". sewardproject.org. Retrieved 2024-10-07.

[8] Condit, Jotham Halsey (1885). Genealogical record of the Condit family. University of Wisconsin - Madison. Newark, N.J., Ward & Tichenor. p. 209.

[:2-9] Moore, Frank (1867). Women of the War: Their Heroism and Self-sacrifice.

[10] Moser, Harold D. (2005-03-30). Daniel Webster: A Bibliography. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 978-0-313-06867-6.

[11] Ripley, C. Peter; Finkenbine, Roy E. (2000-11-09). The Black Abolitionist Papers: Vol. III: The United States, 1830-1846. UNC Press Books. ISBN 979-8-89086-648-6.

[12] "Founders Online: James Madison to David A. Hall, 8 August 1834". founders.archives.gov. Retrieved 2024-10-07.

[:4-13] "Funeral of Mr. David A. Hall". The Evening Star. December 28, 1870.

[14] Pacheco, Josephine F. (2010-03-15). The Pearl: A Failed Slave Escape on the Potomac. Univ of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0-8078-8892-6.

[15] Thomas, William G. (2020-11-24). A Question of Freedom: The Families Who Challenged Slavery from the Nation's Founding to the Civil War. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-25627-7.

[16] Harrold, Stanley (2021-11-21). The Abolitionists and the South, 1831-1861. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 978-0-8131-8734-1.

[17] Hall, David A. (1829). A Digested Index of the Laws of the Corporation of the City of Washington: To the Twenty-sixth Council, Inclusive. Way & Gideon, printers.

[18] Clarke, Matthew St Clair (1832). Legislative and documentary History of the Bank of the United States. Gales and Seaton. ISBN 978-1-57588-944-3.

[19] Cases of Contested Elections in Congress: From the Year 1789 to 1834, Inclusive. Gales and Seaton. 1834.

[20] "David A. Hall - Congressional Cemetery". Google Arts & Culture. Retrieved 2024-10-08.

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