Adams signs judicial commissions until midnight on his last night as president, appointing 42 Federalist justices of the peace

On his final day in office, President John Adams signed 42 commissions appointing Federalist loyalists as justices of the peace for the District of Columbia — positions created by the Judiciary Act of 1801. Secretary of State John Marshall, who had been simultaneously confirmed as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, was still signing and sealing the commissions when Adams left office. Several commissions were not yet delivered when Jefferson's Secretary of State, James Madison, arrived the next morning.