Jasper Yeates

Jasper Yeates (1670 – May 2, 1720) was an English-born colonial American judge who served as chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Lower Counties of Delaware (now known as the Delaware Supreme Court) from 1707 to 1710 and from 1717 until his death in 1720. He also served on the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, was chief burgess of Chester, was on the Pennsylvania Provincial Council, served as a New Castle County representative in the Pennsylvania General Assembly, and was speaker of the Delaware General Assembly.

His grandson, also named Jasper Yeates, also served on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

Biography Yeates was born in 1670 and was a native of Yorkshire. He emigrated to the West Indies and was a merchant. After the death of his wife, he moved to Pennsylvania, where he settled in Upland. In 1690, he remarried to Catharine Sandelands, daughter of James Sandelands, one of the earliest settlers in the area. He had six children with her. After his business prospered, Yeates again accepted the post of chief justice, succeeding Richard Birmingham on August 11, 1717. He served in that position until his death on May 2, 1720. He was buried in New Castle.

Yeates' grandson, also named Jasper Yeates, served on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court as an associate justice from 1791 to 1817.