[bushpilot1]

Who is John Pickering..circa 1826.

[STARWISE]

Pickering, John (?1776–1846) linguist, philologist, attorney; born in Salem, Mass. (son of Timothy Pickering). He graduated from Harvard (1796) and spent several years in Europe with the United States Diplomatic Corps. After returning to Masssachusetts, he practiced law and served in the state senate. He wrote many books and articles on language, including the first collection of American word usages (1816) and a Greek-English dictionary (1st edition, 1826). He was also a leading authority on the languages of North American Indians.

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Pickering%2c+John

[patlin]

In April 1795 Judge John Pickering took over the Federal District Court of New Hampshire. Before his appointment to the federal district court, John Pickering had served as Chief Justice to the New Hampshire Superior Court for three years. In 1793 or 1794 he became sick with a nervous disorder which caused him to neglect his duties in the state Superior Court.

He was the 1st federal judge to be impeached. Was a huge scandal & a political fight ensued between the Republicans & the Federalists. The Federalists believed that Jefferson & the Republicans were up to shenanigans because the Repubs wanted to oust the insane Pickering and replace him with a more competent Republican judge.

[patlin]

what does the circa stand for. Does it relate to a book or something?

[patlin]

Greek-English Lexicon of John Pickering [printed in Boston in 1826]. [source: Kiddle, The Cyclopaedia of Education, Third Edition, p. 224).