Follow Progress For Westhampton Beach

By:  Progress for Westhampton Beach

Continued from CVS, Part I of V

Thomas Gibbons would not be so easily deterred by an injunction from a New York Court.  He retained the services of Daniel Webster who took an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court from the New York Chancery Court’s injunction.  In the U.S Supreme Court Webster argued on behalf of his client, Thomas Gibbons, that New York State had violated the Interstate Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution.¹⁾United States Constitution Article 1 section 8 gives,  among other enumerated powers,  Congress the power to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with Indian Tribes.

To get into the nitty gritty, the New York Court had held that the monopoly license that had been granted by the State of New York to Aaron Ogden took precedence over a federal coastal license issued to Thomas Gibbons.  The Supreme Court in a 6-0²⁾Congress increased the number to seven in 1807, to nine in 1837, then to 10 in 1863.  Then, in order to prevent President Andrew Johnson, who was soon to be impeached, from naming any new Supreme Court justices, Congress passed the Judicial Circuits Act of 1866. This Act reduced the number from 10 to seven.  The Judiciary Act of 1869 then returned the number back to nine.  This and the story of FDR and a Switch in Time Saves Nine probably belongs in another post.  This brief excursion explains why it was a 6-0 opinion.decision held in favor of Thomas Gibbons and his federal coastal license.  The Commerce Clause to the United States Constitution prevailed.

Lest you think we have gone down the rabbit hole because CVS does not come to Westhampton Beach with any kind of federal license or Congressional mandate, we have not. This is just the first variation on the old story that played out again and again.

Tomorrow – a ride on the Sally up the Blackbird Creek… in Part III of V