Editing United States Marshals Service (section)

===Origins===
The office of United States Marshal was created by the First Congress. President George Washington signed the [[Judiciary Act of 1789|Judiciary Act]] into law on September 24, 1789.<ref>{{cite web|title=U.S. Marshals Celebrate 225 Years of Service|url=https://www.justice.gov/marshals/news/chron/2014/225/index.html|website=Department Of Justice|access-date=October 30, 2014|archive-date=December 4, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141204101716/http://www.justice.gov/marshals/news/chron/2014/225/index.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Act provided that a United States Marshal's primary function was to execute all lawful warrants issued to him under the authority of the United States. The law defined marshals as officers of the courts charged with assisting federal courts in their law-enforcement functions:

{{Blockquote|And be it further enacted, That a marshal shall be appointed in and for each district for a term of four years, but shall be removable from office at pleasure, whose duty it shall be to attend the district and circuit courts when sitting therein, and also the Supreme Court in the district in which that court shall sit. And to execute throughout the district, all lawful precepts directed to him, and issued under the authority of the United States, and he shall have the power to command all necessary assistance in the execution of his duty, and to appoint as shall be occasion, one or more deputies.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usmarshals.gov/history/oldest.htm |title=U.S. Marshals Service, History, Oldest Federal Law Enforcement Agency |work=Usmarshals.gov |date=2004-06-03 |access-date=2012-06-11 |archive-date=May 13, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170513072004/https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/oldest.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>}}

Six days after signing the act into law, President Washington appointed the first thirteen U.S. Marshals, for each of the then extant federal districts.<ref name=jud1789>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=U.S. Marshals Service: History - The Judiciary Act of 1789: Charter for U.S. Marshals and Deputies: Appointment of the First 13 Marshals |url=https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/judiciary/judiary_act_of_1789_8.htm |access-date=2022-05-13 |website=www.usmarshals.gov |date=June 16, 2020 |language=en-us |archive-date=July 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705073057/https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/judiciary/judiary_act_of_1789_8.htm |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=U.S. Marshals Service: Historical Timeline |url=https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/timeline.html |access-date=2022-05-13 |website=www.usmarshals.gov |language=en-us |quote=President George Washington appointed the first 13 U.S. Marshals following the passage of the first Judiciary Act. |archive-date=May 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220513021319/https://www.usmarshals.gov/history/timeline.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> To each of his appointees for Marshal and District Attorney, the president addressed a form letter:

{{Blockquote|I have the pleasure to inform you that you are appointed (Marshal or Attorney) for the District of _______ and your Commission is enclosed, accompanied with such Laws as have passed relative to the Judicial Department of the United States.

The high importance of the Judicial System in our National Government made it an indispensable duty to select such Characters to fill the several offices in it as would discharge their respective trust with honor to themselves and advantage to their Country.<ref name=jud1789/>}}

The critical Supreme Court decision affirming the legal authority of the federal marshals was made in {{ussc|name=In re Neagle|135|1|1890}}.

[[File:Morgan Earp.jpg|left|180px|thumb|Deputy U.S. Marshal [[Morgan Earp]] in an 1881 photograph]]

For over 100 years marshals were patronage jobs, typically controlled by the district judge. They were paid primarily by fees until a salary system was set up in 1896.<ref>{{cite web |title=United States Marshals and Their Deputies: 1789-1989 |url=https://www.usmarshals.gov/who-we-are/history/historical-reading-room/lawmen-united-states-marshals-and-their-deputies-1789-1989 |website=U.S. Marshals Service |access-date=25 March 2023 |date=15 June 2020 |archive-date=March 25, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230325233229/https://www.usmarshals.gov/who-we-are/history/historical-reading-room/lawmen-united-states-marshals-and-their-deputies-1789-1989 |url-status=live }}</ref> Many of the first U.S. Marshals had already proven themselves in military service during the [[American Revolutionary War]]. Among the first marshals were [[John Adams]]'s son-in-law Congressman [[William Stephens Smith]] for the District of [[New York (state)|New York]], another New York district marshal, Congressman [[Thomas Morris (New York)|Thomas Morris]], and [[Henry Dearborn]] for the [[District of Maine]].

From the nation's earliest days, marshals were permitted to recruit special deputies as local hires, or as temporary transfers to the Marshals Service from other federal law-enforcement agencies. Marshals were also authorized to swear in a [[Posse comitatus|posse]] to assist with manhunts, and other duties, ad hoc. Marshals were given extensive authority to support the federal courts within their judicial districts, and to carry out all lawful orders issued by federal judges, Congress, or the President. Federal marshals were by far the most important government officials in territorial jurisdictions. Local law enforcement officials were often called "marshals" so there is often an ambiguity whether someone was a federal or a local official.

Federal marshals are most famous for their law enforcement work, but that was only a minor part of their workload. The largest part of the business was paper work—serving [[writ]]s (e.g., [[subpoena]]s, [[summons]]es, [[warrant (law)|warrants]]), and other processes issued by the courts, making arrests and handling all federal prisoners. They also disbursed funds as ordered by the courts. Marshals paid the fees and expenses of the [[court clerk]]s, [[United States Attorney|U.S. Attorneys]], jurors, and witnesses. They rented the courtrooms and jail space, and hired the [[bailiff]]s, [[crier]]s, and janitors. They made sure the prisoners were present, the jurors were available, and that the witnesses were on time. The marshals thus provided local representation for the federal government within their districts. They took the national [[census]] every decade through 1870. They distributed [[presidential proclamation]]s, collected a variety of statistical information on commerce and manufacturing, supplied the names of government employees for the national register, and performed other routine tasks needed for the central government to function effectively.