# List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 77

This is a list of cases reported in volume 77 (10 Wall.) of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States from 1869 to 1871.

## Nominative reports

In 1874, the U.S. government created the United States Reports, and retroactively numbered older privately-published case reports as part of the new series. As a result, cases appearing in volumes 1–90 of U.S. Reports have dual citation forms; one for the volume number of U.S. Reports, and one for the volume number of the reports named for the relevant reporter of decisions (these are called "nominative reports").

### John William Wallace

Starting with the 66th volume of U.S. Reports, the Reporter of Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States was John William Wallace. Wallace was Reporter of Decisions from 1863 to 1874, covering volumes 68 through 90 of United States Reports which correspond to volumes 1 through 23 of his Wallace's Reports. As such, the dual form of citation to, for example, is 77 U.S. (10 Wall.) 544 (1870).
Wallace's Reports were the final nominative reports for the US Supreme Court; starting with volume 91, cases were identified simply as "(volume #) U.S. (page #) (year)".

## Justices of the Supreme Court at the time of 77 U.S. (10 Wall.)

The Supreme Court is established by Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States, which says: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court . . .". The size of the Court is not specified; the Constitution leaves it to Congress to set the number of justices. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress originally fixed the number of justices at six (one chief justice and five associate justices). Since 1789 Congress has varied the size of the Court from six to seven, nine, ten, and back to nine justices (always including one chief justice).
To prevent President Andrew Johnson from appointing any justices, a hostile Congress passed the Judicial Circuits Act of 1866, eliminating three of the ten seats from the Supreme Court as they became vacant, and so potentially reducing the size of the court to seven justices. The vacancy caused by the death of Justice John Catron in 1865 had not been filled, so after Justice James Moore Wayne died in July 1867 there were eight justices left on the court at the start of the term when the cases in 77 U.S. (10 Wall.) were decided; however Justice Robert Cooper Grier resigned at the end of January 1870, temporarily reducing the Court to seven justices. Newly confirmed justices William Strong and Joseph P. Bradley joined the Court in March 1870, in the final weeks of the session. This brought the Court back to nine justices, the number set by the Judiciary Act of 1869.

### Fluctuations in Supreme Court membership, 1864-1870

| Justice | Departure from the Court | Arrival on the Court | Number of active justices after his arrival or departure |
| Chase | - | 15 December 1864 | 10 (the then-current statutory number) |
| Catron | 30 May 1865 | - | 9 (one less than the then-current statutory number of 10) |
| Wayne | 5 July 1867 | - | 8 (one more than the then-current statutory number of 7) |
| Grier | 31 January 1870 | - | 7 (two less than the then-current statutory number of 9) |
| Strong | - | 14 March 1870 | 8 (one less than the then-current statutory number of 9) |
| Bradley | - | 23 March 1870 | 9 (the then-current statutory number) |

### Justices during at least part of the Court session reported in 77 U.S. (10 Wall.)

| Justice | Office | Home State | Succeeded | Date confirmed by the Senate (Vote) | Tenure on Supreme Court |
| Salmon P. Chase | Chief Justice | Ohio | Roger B. Taney | December 6, 1864 (Acclamation) | December 15, 1864 – May 7, 1873 (Died) |
| Samuel Nelson | Associate Justice | New York | Smith Thompson | February 14, 1845 (Acclamation) | February 27, 1845 – November 28, 1872 (Retired) |
| Robert Cooper Grier | Associate Justice | Pennsylvania | Henry Baldwin | August 4, 1846 (Acclamation) | August 10, 1846 – January 31, 1870 (Retired) |
| Nathan Clifford | Associate Justice | Maine | Benjamin Robbins Curtis | January 12, 1858 (26–23) | January 21, 1858 – July 25, 1881 (Died) |
| Noah Haynes Swayne | Associate Justice | Ohio | John McLean | January 24, 1862 (38–1) | January 27, 1862 – January 24, 1881 (Retired) |
| Samuel Freeman Miller | Associate Justice | Iowa | Peter Vivian Daniel | July 16, 1862 (Acclamation) | July 21, 1862 – October 13, 1890 (Died) |
| David Davis | Associate Justice | Illinois | John Archibald Campbell | December 8, 1862 (Acclamation) | December 10, 1862 – March 4, 1877 (Resigned) |
| Stephen Johnson Field | Associate Justice | California | newly created seat | March 10, 1863 (Acclamation) | May 10, 1863 – December 1, 1897 (Retired) |
| William Strong | Associate Justice | Pennsylvania | Robert Cooper Grier | February 18, 1870 (No vote recorded) | March 14, 1870 – December 14, 1880 (Retired) |
| Joseph P. Bradley | Associate Justice | New Jersey | newly created seat | March 21, 1870 (46–9) | March 23, 1870 – January 22, 1892 (Died) |

## Notable Cases in 77 U.S. (10 Wall.)
### Slaughter-House Cases

The Slaughter-House Cases, 77 U.S. (10 Wall.) 273 (1870) were consolidated cases pertaining to the scope of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Supreme Court held that the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment only protects legal rights associated with federal U.S. citizenship, but not those that pertain to state citizenship. In effect, the clause was interpreted to convey limited protection pertinent only to a small number of rights, such as the right to seek federal office. The Slaughter-House Cases essentially "gutted" the Privileges or Immunities Clause. In 1953, the American scholar Edward Samuel Corwin remarked: "Unique among constitutional provisions, the privileges and immunities clause of the Fourteenth Amendment enjoys the distinction of having been rendered a practical nullity by a single decision of the Supreme Court rendered within five years after its ratification."

## Citation style

Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate (from the US District Courts) jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction (i.e., in which cases could be filed directly with the Supreme Court without first having been heard by a lower federal or state court). There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region.
Bluebook citation style is used for case names, citations, and jurisdictions.
* "C.C.D." = United States Circuit Court for the District of . . .
** e.g.,"C.C.D.N.J." = United States Circuit Court for the District of New Jersey
* "D." = United States District Court for the District of . . .
** e.g.,"D. Mass." = United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
* "E." = Eastern; "M." = Middle; "N." = Northern; "S." = Southern; "W." = Western
** e.g.,"C.C.S.D.N.Y." = United States Circuit Court for the Southern District of New York
** e.g.,"M.D. Ala." = United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama
* "Ct. Cl." = United States Court of Claims
* The abbreviation of a state's name alone indicates the highest appellate court in that state's judiciary at the time.
** e.g.,"Pa." = Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
** e.g.,"Me." = Supreme Judicial Court of Maine

## List of cases in 77 U.S. (10 Wall.)

| Case Name | Page and year | Opinion of the Court | Concurring opinion(s) | Dissenting opinion(s) | Lower Court | Disposition |
| The Blackwall | 1 (1870) | Clifford | none | none | D. Cal. | reversed |
| The Davis | 15 (1870) | Miller | none | none | C.C.S.D.N.Y. | affirmed |
| McKee v. Rains | 22 (1870) | Chase | none | none | C.C.D. La. | affirmed |
| Little v. Herndon | 26 (1870) | Nelson | none | Miller | C.C.N.D. Ill. | affirmed |
| Bates v. Equitable Insurance Company | 33 (1870) | Miller | none | none | C.C.D.R.I. | affirmed |
| People's Railroad v. Memphis Railroad | 38 (1869) | Clifford | none | Chase | Tenn. | affirmed |
| Reilly v. Golding | 56 (1870) | Nelson | none | none | C.C.D. La. | affirmed |
| Boylan v. United States | 58 (1870) | Chase | none | none | C.C.D.N.Y. | affirmed |
| Mahoney v. United States | 62 (1870) | Field | none | none | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Texas v. Hardenberg | 68 (1869) | Chase | none | none | original | decree for Tex. |
| Schools v. Risley | 91 (1870) | Clifford | none | none | Mo. | affirmed |
| Stimpson v. Woodman | 117 (1870) | Nelson | none | Clifford | C.C.D. Mass. | reversed |
| Texas v. Chiles | 127 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | original | account denied |
| Wiggins v. Burkham | 129 (1870) | Swayne | none | none | C.C.D. Ind. | affirmed |
| Clark v. Bousfield | 133 (1870) | Nelson | none | none | C.C.N.D. Ohio | certification |
| Feild v. Farrington | 141 (1870) | Strong | none | none | C.C.E.D. Ark. | reversed |
| Bank of the Republic v. Millard | 152 (1870) | Davis | none | none | Sup. Ct. D.C. | reversed |
| Dean v. Nelson | 158 (1870) | Bradley | none | none | C.C.W.D. Tenn. | modified |
| Downham v. City of Alexandria | 173 (1870) | Field | none | none | Va. Gen. Dist. Ct. | dismissed |
| Memphis and Charleston Railroad Company v. Reeves | 176 (1870) | Miller | none | none | C.C.W.D. Tenn. | reversed |
| The Lulu | 192 (1870) | Clifford | none | none | C.C.D. Md. | reversed |
| The Kalorama | 204 (1870) | Clifford | none | none | C.C.D. Md. | reversed |
| Braun v. Sauerwein | 218 (1870) | Strong | none | none | C.C.D. Md. | affirmed |
| Hornsby v. United States | 224 (1870) | Field | none | Davis | D. Cal. | reversed |
| The Columbia | 246 (1870) | Strong | none | none | C.C.S.D.N.Y. | affirmed |
| Deming's Appeal | 251 (1870) | Swayne | none | none | Ct. Cl. | reinstatement denied |
| New Orleans, Opelousas and Great Western Railroad v. Morgan | 256 (1870) | Clifford | none | none | C.C.D. La. | dismissal denied |
| Deery v. Cray | 263 (1870) | Miller | none | none | C.C.D. Md. | affirmed |
| Slaughter-House Cases | 273 (1870) | Clifford | none | Bradley; Field; Swayne | La. | 14th Am. limits |
| Washington Railroad Company v. Bradleys | 299 (1870) | Swayne | none | none | Sup. Ct. D.C. | reversed |
| Gunnell v. Bird | 304 (1870) | Bradley | none | none | Sup. Ct. D.C. | reversed |
| Cooper v. Reynolds | 308 (1870) | Miller | none | Field | C.C.E.D. Tenn. | reversed |
| Smith v. Stevens | 321 (1870) | Davis | none | none | Kan. | affirmed |
| Jones v. Andrews | 327 (1870) | Bradley | none | none | C.C.W.D. Tenn. | reversed |
| The Farragut | 334 (1870) | Bradley | none | none | C.C.S.D. Ill. | affirmed |
| Rutland Marble Company v. Ripley | 339 (1870) | Strong | none | none | C.C.D. Vt. | reversed |
| Hanrick v. Neely | 364 (1870) | Davis | none | none | C.C.W.D. Tex. | reversed |
| Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad Company v. Trimble | 367 (1870) | Swayne | none | Bradley | C.C.D. Md. | affirmed |
| Barnard v. Kellogg | 383 (1871) | Davis | none | none | C.C.D. Conn. | reversed |
| United States v. Hodson | 395 (1870) | Swayne | none | none | C.C.D. Wis. | reversed |
| Ducat v. City of Chicago | 410 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | Ill. | affirmed |
| Masterson v. Herndon | 416 (1870) | Miller | none | none | C.C.W.D. Tex. | dismissed |
| The Mabey | 419 (1870) | Nelson | none | none | C.C.D.N.Y. | examination denied |
| Campbell v. Wilcox | 421 (1871) | Field | none | none | C.C.S.D. Ohio | affirmed |
| United States v. Vigil | 423 (1870) | Nelson | none | none | Sup. Ct. Terr. N.M. | dismissal denied |
| Tappan v. Beardsley | 427 (1871) | Miller | none | none | C.C.S.D.N.Y. | reversed |
| Kimball v. Collector | 436 (1870) | Clifford | none | none | C.C.D. Mass. | affirmed |
| The Clinton Bridge | 454 (1870) | Nelson | none | none | C.C.D. Iowa | affirmed |
| Corbett v. Nutt | 464 (1871) | Field | none | none | Va. | affirmed |
| Hannauer v. Woodruff | 482 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | C.C.E.D. Ark. | certification |
| In re Paschal | 483 (1871) | Bradley | none | none | not indicated | multiple |
| Yates v. City of Milwaukee | 497 (1871) | Miller | none | none | C.C.D. Wis. | reversed |
| Messenger v. Mason | 507 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | Iowa | dismissed |
| Ohio and Mississippi Railway Company v. McClure | 511 (1871) | Swayne | none | none | Iowa | dismissed |
| Coddington v. Richardson | 516 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | C.C.S.D. Ill. | affirmed |
| Brobst v. Brock | 519 (1871) | Strong | none | none | C.C.E.D. Pa. | affirmed |
| Bethell v. Demaret | 537 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | La. | dismissed |
| Ex parte Graham | 541 (1871) | Swayne | none | none | D. La. | prohibition denied |
| City of Baltimore v. Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company | 543 (1871) | Davis | none | none | C.C.D. Md. | affirmed |
| Pennsylvania v. Quicksilver Mining Company | 553 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | original | dismissed |
| The Daniel Ball | 557 (1871) | Field | none | none | C.C.W.D. Mich. | affirmed |
| Liverpool Insurance Company v. Massachusetts | 566 (1871) | Miller | Bradley | none | Mass. | affirmed |
| The Cotton Plant | 577 (1871) | Strong | none | none | E.D. Pa. | reversed |
| Miller v. McKenzie | 582 (1871) | Nelson | none | none | N.D. Miss. | dismissed |
| Stovall v. Banks | 583 (1871) | Strong | none | none | N.D. Ga. | reversed |
| Stagg v. Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company | 589 (1871) | Miller | none | none | C.C.D. Mo. | affirmed |
| Ward v. United States | 593 (1871) | Davis | none | Field | Ct. Cl. | affirmed |
| Merchants' National Bank v. State National Bank | 604 (1871) | Swayne | none | Clifford | C.C.D. Mass. | reversed |
| Marsh v. Fulton County | 676 (1871) | Field | none | none | C.C.S.D. Ill. | affirmed |