# Alfred Moore *American jurist and associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States (1755–1810)* Alfred Moore (May 21, 1755 – October 15, 1810) was a North Carolina lawyer, planter, military officer and judge. He sat as an associate justice of the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] from April 1800 until his resignation in January 1804.[^1] Moore County, North Carolina, and Moore Square, a park in the Moore Square Historic District of Raleigh, bear his name. He helped found the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and served as one of its trustees.[^1] By 1790 he held 48 people in slavery on his plantation.[^3] Moore was on the Court for nearly four years and authored a single opinion, in *Bas v. Tingy*, a maritime case. Illness kept him away from much of the Court's work, and he took no part in *Marbury v. Madison*, which was decided during his tenure.[^1] The Wikipedia account ranks him among the least effective justices in the Court's history and quotes the assessment that his career "made scarcely a ripple in American judicial history."[^1] ## Family and education Moore's parents were Maurice Moore and Anne (Grange) Moore. He was born in New Hanover County, North Carolina, on May 21, 1755, into a family long established in the area. His great-grandfather, James Moore, was [[governor]] of Carolina from 1700 to 1703. His father, Maurice, sat as a colonial judge in North Carolina and wrote a published essay against the Stamp Act.[^2] His mother died and his father married again. Around 1764 Moore was sent to Boston to finish his schooling. He then returned to North Carolina, studied law as an apprentice to his father, and was admitted to the bar in April 1775.[^2] ## Military service and political career The Revolutionary War had just begun when Moore was commissioned a captain in the Continental Army's 1st North Carolina Regiment on September 1, 1775. The regiment's colonel was his uncle, James Moore. Moore was present at the Battle of Moore's Creek Bridge. He also served in the Siege of Charleston, South Carolina, which followed a British attempt to take Sullivan's Island.[^3] Moore's father, brother and uncle died, and on March 8, 1777, he gave up his commission to manage the family plantation. He kept up irregular operations against British and Loyalist forces and held a colonelcy in the North Carolina militia from 1777 to 1782.[^3] After the Battle of Guilford Court House, troops under Lord Cornwallis plundered Patriot slave plantations across southeastern North Carolina. A force commanded by Major James Craig burned Moore's plantation and "carried off the stock and slaves".[^3] After the war Moore won election to the North Carolina General Assembly. The Assembly later chose him as the state's Attorney General, an office he held from 1782 to 1791.[^3] In 1787 he represented the State in *Bayard v. Singleton*, 1 N.C. (Mart) 5, before the North Carolina Court of Conference, the forerunner of the North Carolina Supreme Court. The decision is an early example of judicial review.[^3] Moore was a Federalist who favored a strong national government. North Carolina had rejected the United States Constitution in 1788, and Moore was prominent in the effort that brought the state to ratify it. He also took part in founding the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.[^3] ## Supreme Court justice President John Adams nominated Moore on December 4, 1799, to serve as an associate justice and succeed [[James Iredell]]. The U.S. Senate confirmed the nomination on December 10, 1799, and Moore took the oath of office on April 21, 1800.[^4] Ill health limited his work on the Court, and he resigned on January 26, 1804. His one opinion, in *Bas v. Tingy*, upheld a conclusion that France was an enemy in the undeclared Quasi-War of 1798–1799. Because his output was so limited, Court observers have listed him among the worst justices the Court has had.[^4] ## Personal life Moore married Susanne Elizabeth Eagles in 1777. Among their children were Alfred, Augusta, and Sara Louisa.[^5] After the Revolutionary War he built a summer home, Moorefields, near Hillsborough in Orange County, North Carolina. The house survives and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[^5] Moore died in Bladen County, North Carolina, on October 15, 1810. He was buried at St. Philip's Church in Brunswick County.[^5] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Alfred Moore* (revision 1359727052, retrieved 2026-10-26), lead section — dates of life, Court service, namesakes, university role, single opinion, absence from *Marbury v. Madison*, quoted assessment. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Moore [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Alfred Moore* (revision 1359727052, retrieved 2026-10-26), "Family and education" — birth, parents, family offices, Boston schooling, admission to the bar. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Moore [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *Alfred Moore* (revision 1359727052, retrieved 2026-10-26), "Military service and political career" — Continental and militia service, plantation burning, 48 people enslaved by 1790, Attorney General tenure, *Bayard v. Singleton*, ratification role. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Moore [^4]: Wikipedia contributors, *Alfred Moore* (revision 1359727052, retrieved 2026-10-26), "Supreme Court justice" — nomination, confirmation, swearing-in and resignation dates, *Bas v. Tingy*, placement on worst-justice lists. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Moore [^5]: Wikipedia contributors, *Alfred Moore* (revision 1359727052, retrieved 2026-10-26), "Personal life" — marriage, children, Moorefields, death and burial. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Moore