William Butler Hornblower

William Butler Hornblower (May 13, 1851 – June 16, 1914) was a New York jurist who served on the New York Court of Appeals. He was unsuccessfully nominated to the United States Supreme Court by President Grover Cleveland in 1893.

Early life and education William Butler Hornblower was born in Paterson, New Jersey, in 1851. He was the son of William Henry Hornblower, a Presbyterian minister, and his wife, Mathilda Butler. In 1882 he married Sandra C. Sanford, with whom he had three children. A lifelong member of the Democratic Party, in 1890 he was appointed by New York governor David B. Hill to a commission on state constitutional amendments.

On September 19, 1893, President Grover Cleveland nominated Hornblower as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, following the death of Samuel Blatchford. The United States Senate Judiciary Committee considered the nomination, but took no recorded action. The president again nominated Hornblower on December 5, 1893, and this time, the committee reported the nomination to the full Senate with a recommendation against confirmation on January 8, 1894. Both of New York's senators, one of whom was Hill, opposed the nomination, as did several pro-silver Democratic senators. In 1907 he formed a new law firm, Hornblower, Miller and Potter, a predecessor to the modern firm of Willkie Farr & Gallagher. In 1913, he was appointed president of the New York City Bar Association. Shortly before his death, Hornblower was appointed to a seat on the New York Court of Appeals, but served for just ten weeks.