Preview
Identifier
KF 223 .B68 1809
Creation Date
1809
Description
A Report of the Whole Trial of Gen. Michael Bright, and Others. Philadelphia: Printed for P. Byrne, 1809.
In 1778, Americans captured the British sloop Active. The Pennsylvania Court of Admiralty awarded the prize money for the sloop to four claimants. One of these, Capt. Gideon Olmstead, appealed the decision to the Continental Congress and won a judgment granting him the entire amount. Pennsylvania resisted this ruling and the case dragged on for the next 30 years. In 1809, Chief Justice John Marshall ordered the enforcement of the decision in Olmstead’s favor. Republican Governor Snyder called a small militia force under General Bright to encamp at a rival claimant’s house and prevent the U.S. marshal from serving them papers. General Bright and seven other militiamen were indicted for resisting a federal officer and found guilty. John Marshall later pardoned the men.