Meeker, George W.

Born: 1817-XX-XX New Jersey

Died: 1856-04-02 Chicago, Illinois

Flourished: Chicago, Illinois

George W. Meeker was an attorney, court commissioner, and court clerk. Born with a paralyzed limb, Meeker relied upon crutches from a young age. He moved to Chicago in 1837 and began studying law with the firm of Spring and Goodrich. He was admitted to the bar December 16, 1839 and partnered with George Manierre in early 1840. An adherent of the Whig Party, Meeker served on the editorial committee for the Chicago Journal, a Whig organ, in 1844. In 1845, he became commissioner of the Cook County Court. In 1850, he received appointment as the deputy clerk of the U.S. Circuit Court ,Northern District of Illinois, ending his partnership with Manierre. Meeker resigned his position as deputy clerk in 1855, citing an unwillingness to enforce the Fugitive Slave Law. He died of heart failure.

John M. Palmer, ed., The Bench and Bar of Illinois: Historical and Reminiscent (Chicago: Lewis, 1899), 2:628, 644; A. T. Andreas, History of Chicago (Chicago: A. T. Andreas, 1884), 1:377, 443, 448, 454-55; The Chicago City Directory, and Business Advertiser, 4th ed. (Chicago: Robert Fergus, 1855), 198.