Judge John Worth Edmonds was born March 13, 1799 and passed away April 5^th, 1874. He was the son of Samuel Edmonds and Lydia Edmonds. In 1816, he graduated from Union College and three years later, he was admitted to the bar. He first began his practice in Hudson at the law office for Martin Van Buren. His career developed as follows:

• 1827-1833: Recorder for the City of Hudson
• 1832-1835: Member of New York State Senate for 55^th-58^th Legislatures
• Around 1836: U.S. Commissioner
• 1843-1845: A State Prison Inspector
• 1845-1847: Judge of the First Judicial District
• 1847-1853: Justice of the New York Supreme Court.

When Edmonds was appointed prison inspector in 1843, it was for Sing Sing Prison. His appointment stemmed from the financial deficits and lax prison discipline, which was plaguing the prison. His appoint to the position of prison inspector was out of place, however, because he had no previous experience in prison administration. Despite the lack of experience, he was able to develop a sharp and strict prison discipline. As a result of his time as a prison inspector, he became a vigorous advocate for prison reform. Throughout his time as a judge and justice, Edmonds also served an officer of the Prison Association.

During his time as a prison inspector, Edmonds led the founding of the Prison Association of New York State. Alongside sixty-two other figures, he called for the formation of the prison association. The Prison Association aimed at improving the condition of prisoners, as well as, prison discipline, and aid for discharged convicts.

During the time that Hopper was working on his Diary, Edmonds was a judge for the First Judicial District or a justice on the New York Supreme Court. Edmonds played an important role in the Hopper diary, as he provided many of the discharged convicts letters of good recommendation to the Prison Association. Edmonds was also influential in providing discharged convicts with necessary supplies. Furthermore, when Hopper became ill, Edmonds take over as the primary writer of the Diary and records the information at multiple points.

Sources:

"Edmonds, Judge Jon Worth." All About Heaven. Accessed March 04, 2019. https://allaboutheaven.org/sources/edmonds-judge-john-worth/190.

"Ex-Judge Edmonds." New York Times. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1874/04/07/79069152.pdf.

"John W. Edmonds." Communicating with Prisoners. Accessed March 07, 2019. http://www.acrosswalls.org/section/communicative-walls/knowledge/john-w-edmonds/.

"John Worth Edmonds." Historical Society of the New York Courts. Accessed March 04, 2019. http://www.nycourts.gov/history/legal-history-new-york/legal-history-eras-04/history-era-04-edmonds.html.

Rosenblatt, Albert M. The Judges of the New York Court of Appeals: A Biographical History. New York: Fordham University Press, 2007.