William P. Foster (swindler)

William P. Foster (fl. 1810s) was an American swindler from Virginia who obtained an appointment to the Illinois Supreme Court, but never served.

Foster was appointed to the Illinois Supreme Court on October 9, 1818, by the Illinois State Legislature, having charmed the legislators with his charisma, and having no previous experience as a lawyer.^[1] Foster never met with the Supreme Court, and never presided over his assigned circuit court. He resigned on July 7, 1819, before the Supreme Court's first December session.

After leaving Illinois, Foster made a living "moving from city to city and living by swindling strangers and prostituting his daughters, who were very beautiful".^[1]

• Scott, John M (1896). Supreme Court of Illinois, 1818. Bloomington, IL. pp. 14–35.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)

• Justices of the Supreme Court of Illinois
• Illinois politician stubs

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from March 2025
• CS1 maint: location missing publisher
• Year of birth missing
• Year of death missing
• Year of birth unknown
• All stub articles