William Rossell

William Rossell

Title: District Court
Appointed by: John Quincy Adams
Judicial Tenure: 1826 - 1840
Born: October 25, 1760
Birth Place: Mount Holly, NJ
Died: June 20, 1840
Place of Death: Mount Holly, NJ

Born in Mount Holly, New Jersey, Rossell was a Sergeant in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and thereafter was a farmer in Mount Holly, New Jersey. He was a Justice of the Peace in Burlington County, New Jersey from 1795 to 1796, and a judge of common pleas beginning in 1796. In 1801, he returned to farmer and working as a millwright in Monmouth County, New Jersey. He was a Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1804 to 1826.

On November 10, 1826, Rossell received a recess appointment from President John Quincy Adams to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey vacated by William Pennington. Formally nominated on December 13, 1826, Rossell was confirmed by the United States Senate on December 19, 1826, and received his commission the same day. He served thereafter until his death, in Mount Holly, New Jersey.

Professional Career

  • Continental Army sergeant
  • Farmer, Mount Holly, New Jersey, ca. 1783-1801
  • Justice of the peace, Burlington County, New Jersey, 1795-1796
  • Judge, Burlington County [New Jersey] Court of Common Pleas, 1796-
  • Farmer and millwright, Monmouth County, New Jersey, 1801-
  • Justice, Supreme Court of New Jersey, 1804-1826

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