Silas Woodruff Sanderson (April 16, 1824 – June 24, 1886) was the seventh Chief Justice of California.

In June 1861, during the American Civil War, he spoke against the secessionist sentiment at the Breckenridge Democratic Party convention.

[7] He became a Republican and backed Leland Stanford for Governor of California in the November 1861 election, serving on a committee to organize the inaugural ball.

[8] In November 1862, Sanderson ran on the Union branch of the Democratic Party ticket and was elected to the California State Assembly from El Dorado.

[14][15][16][17] In 1870, he resigned from the court to head the legal department at the Southern Pacific Railroad, a post he held for the next 16 years.