Mason, Charles, 1804-1882

Variant names

Dates:

Birth 1804

Death 1882-02-27

Biographical notes:

First Chief Justice of the Iowa Territory supreme court, graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and U.S. Commissioner of Patents.

From the description of Diaries and temperance lectures, 1836-1882. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 122519999

Lawyer, "Copperhead" Democrat, and judge. Notable posts held during Mason's professional career include Chief Justice of the Iowa Territorial Supreme Court (1838-1846); Chief Justice of the Iowa Supreme Court (1846-1847); Democratic candidate for governor (1861,1867); member of the Iowa Code Commission (1851); U.S. Commissioner of Patents; and director of the U.S. Naval Observatory. One of Mason's most significant judicial decisions was written for the "Ralph" case. The decision held that a slave (Ralph) who had worked for several years in Iowa with the knowledge of his owner from Missouri could not be forced to return Missouri because he was not a fugitive slave. Mason represented Iowa in the Missouri-Iowa boundary dispute, decided in Iowa's favor by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1851. Mason is credited with establishing the system which would later become the U.S. Weather Bureau.

From the description of Papers, 1829-1882. (State Historical Society of Iowa, Library). WorldCat record id: 51960898