Richard Henry Alvey

Who was Richard Henry Alvey?

Richard Henry Alvey was an American jurist who served as chief judge of the supreme court of the U.S. state of Maryland, the Court of Appeals, and the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Alvey was born in St. Mary's County, Maryland to George and Harriet Wicklin Alvey. He read law and was admitted to the bar in 1849, and began private practice in Hagerstown, Maryland the next year. From 1844 to 1850, Alvey served as a Deputy within the clerk's office of Charles County, Maryland. He was a Presidential Elector from the state of Maryland during the election of 1852. In 1861, At the outbreak of the American Civil War, he authored the Alvey Resolution, which took a strong position in favor of states' rights. As a southern sympathizer, Alvey was arrested by Union soldiers and detained.

After the Civil War, Alvey served as a delegate to the Maryland Constitutional Convention of 1867, where he was chairman of the Committee on Representation.