John Pierpoint (January 10, 1805 – January 7, 1882) was a Vermont attorney and judge. He served as a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1857 until his death, and was Chief Justice beginning in 1865.
After a period of ill health in 1834 and 1835, Pierpoint moved to Fayette, Mississippi to recuperate; he lived there for two years before returning to Vergennes.[1] Initially a Democrat opposed to slavery,[2] he was Addison County's Register of Probate from 1836 to 1857.[1] From 1841 to 1842, Pierpoint served in the Vermont House of Representatives.[1] He was a member of the Vermont State Senate from 1855 to 1857, and served as chairman of the Judiciary Committee in 1856 and 1857.[1] He later became a member of the Free Soil Party,[5] and joined the Republican Party when it was founded in the mid-1850s as the main anti-slavery party in the United States.[6]
In 1857, the Vermont General Assembly chose Pierpoint to serve as an associate justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, following an expansion of the court from three justices to six.[7] He served until 1865, when he was elevated to chief justice, succeeding Luke P. Poland.[7] Piepoint served as chief justice until his death, and was succeeded by Homer E. Royce.[7] In 1871 he received the honorary degree of LL.D. from Middlebury College.[4]
Death and burial
Pierpoint died in Vergennes on January 7, 1882.[1] He was buried at Prospect Cemetery in Vergennes.[8]
Family
In 1838, Pierpoint married Sarah Maria Lawrence (1817–1884), the daughter of Vilee Lawrence of Vergennes.[1] They were the parents of seven children.[1] A son and two daughters survived him, all of whom resided in Chicago.[2]