| Joseph Walker McCorkle | |
| State: | California |
| District: | at-large |
| Term Start: | March 4, 1851 |
| Term End: | March 3, 1853 |
| Predecessor: | James A. McDougall |
| Successor: | Philemon T. Herbert |
| Birth Date: | 24 June 1819 |
| Birth Place: | Piqua, Ohio |
| Death Place: | College Park, Maryland |
| Resting Place: | Forest Hill Cemetery (Piqua, Ohio) |
| Party: | Democratic |
| Education: | Kenyon College |
Joseph Walker McCorkle (June 24, 1819 – March 18, 1884) was an American lawyer and politician who served one term as a California congressman from 1851 to 1853.
McCorkle was born in Piqua, Ohio on June 24, 1819.[1] He attended Kenyon College as a member of the class of 1839, but left before graduating.[2] He studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1842.[1] He moved to Dayton, Ohio, where he established a law practice.[1] From 1845 to 1849, McCorkle also served as Dayton's postmaster.[1]
In 1849, McCorkle moved to San Francisco, California at the start of the gold rush.[1] In 1850, he was an unsuccessful candidate for judge of California's Eighth Judicial District.[1]
Later in 1850, McCorkle obtained the Democratic nomination for the California State Assembly.[1] He won the general election and served one term, 1850 to 1852.[1] In 1850, he was the Democratic nominee for Congress from California's 2nd District.[1] He was elected and served one term, 1851 to 1853.[1] He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1852.[1]
On June 1, 1853, a dispute with he fought a duel with William M. Gwin, a fellow Democrat and one of California's U.S. Senators, over the management of federal patronage.[3] Gwin and McCorkle fired rifles at each other in San Mateo, California and came away unharmed.[3] A donkey in a field several hundred yards away was accidentally struck and died.[4]
After leaving Congress, McCorkle moved from San Francisco to Marysville, California where he returned to practicing law.[1] In 1853, he was appointed judge of the 9th Judicial District, and he served until 1857.[1] In 1855, he was an unsuccessful candidate for U.S. Senator.[1]
In 1857, McCorkle returned to San Francisco where he resumed practicing law.[1] In 1860, just after the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode, he moved to nearby Virginia City, Nevada, where he practiced law until 1870.[1] He left Virginia City to practice law in Washington, D.C., where he specialized in cases before the American-Mexican Claims Commission.[1]
In retirement, McCorkle resided in Branchville, College Park, Maryland.[1] He died in Branchville on March 18, 1884.[1] McCorkle was buried at Forest Hill Cemetery in Piqua, Ohio.[1] He was a lifelong bachelor and had no children.[5]