Oliver Ellsworth (1745-1807) was the second chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He also served as a senator in the newly formed Congress. Ellsworth is primarily remembered for his contribution to the formation of the Constitution and for drafting the Judiciary Act of 1789, which provided for a strong federal judiciary system and created the U.S. Supreme Court.

Born in Windsor, Connecticut, on April 29, 1745, Ellsworth was the second son of Captain David Ellsworth, a prosperous farmer, and Jemima (Levitt) Ellsworth. Little is known of Ellsworth's childhood except that he grew up on a farm in Windsor and that his father wanted him to enter the ministry. When Ellsworth reached his teens, he was sent to a boarding school run by Minister Joseph Bellamy. In 1762, at the age of 17, Ellsworth entered Yale University. However, due to some disciplinary problems, he left Yale at the end of his...