Born on October 27, 1756, in New Kent County, Colony of Virginia, British America,[1] Pendleton read law.
[1] He was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 26, 1789, and received his commission the same day.
[1] Following his resignation from the federal bench, Pendleton resumed private practice in Dutchess County, New York starting in 1796.
[2] Pendleton was a nephew of Edmund Pendleton, the 1st Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia, and cousin of John Penn, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and Articles of Confederation from North Carolina.
[2] He was the father of Nathanael G. Pendleton, a United States representative from Ohio.