Jeremiah S. Black

Jeremiah S. Black served as Secretary of State during the last months of James Buchanan’s presidency, from December 1860 to March 1861. A Pennsylvania lawyer and former chief justice of the state supreme court, he entered Buchanan’s cabinet as attorney general before replacing Lewis Cass at the State Department. ¹

Black’s service coincided with the secession of the first southern states. He regarded secession as unconstitutional, while the administration struggled over the constitutional means available to resist it. His legal background and support for preserving the Union placed him within the cabinet’s disputes over how the federal government should respond to the unfolding crisis. ¹

Foreign recognition was an immediate concern. On February 28, 1861, Black instructed American representatives abroad to urge foreign governments against recognizing the Confederacy. He argued for continuity in their relations with the United States as the legitimate national government. These instructions preceded the larger campaign to prevent European intervention during the Civil War. Black left office with Buchanan, later served briefly as reporter of Supreme Court decisions, and returned to private legal practice. His short secretaryship was therefore consequential chiefly as an early effort to defend the Union’s international standing during its dissolution at home. ¹