Following is a list of all Article III United States federal judges appointed by President James K. Polk during his presidency.All information on the names, terms of service, and details of appointment of federal judges is derived from the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public-domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center. In total Polk appointed 10 Article III federal judges, including 2 Justices to the Supreme Court of the United States, 1 judge to the United States Circuit Court of the District of Columbia, and 7 judges to the United States district courts.

Polk faced some obstacles in seating Justices on the Supreme Court. After Henry Baldwin's death in April 1844, Polk nominated James Buchanan for the seat, but Buchanan declined the nomination. Polk then nominated George Washington Woodward of Pennsylvania to Baldwin's seat, but the nomination was rejected by the United States Senate by a vote of 20–29. Polk finally succeeded with the nomination of Robert Cooper Grier, filling the vacancy after two years.

United States Supreme Court justices

# Justice Seat State Former justice Nominationdate Confirmationdate Beganactive service Endedactive service New Hampshire Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 23, 1845, confirmed by the United States Senate on January 3, 1846, and received commission on January 3, 1846. Pennsylvania

Circuit courts

# Judge Circuit Nominationdate Confirmationdate Began activeservice Ended activeservice Recess appointment; formally nominated on December 23, 1845, confirmed by the United States Senate on February 3, 1846, and received commission on February 3, 1846. Laterally appointed Chief Judge of the same court on November 27, 1855.

District courts # Judge CourtSee List of United States district and territorial courts Nominationdate Confirmationdate Began activeservice Ended activeservice /E.D. Tex. Reassigned by operation of law to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on February 21, 1857. /N.D. Fla. Reassigned by operation of law to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida on February 23, 1847. /E.D. Wis. Reassigned by operation of law to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin on June 30, 1870.

Notes

References General

Specific

Sources Federal Judicial Center