part by alleging that Calhoun took sides with wealthy natives and Catholic Church officials against American residents. Calhoun died the following year. Houghton also made an enemy of his successor as Chief Justice, Grafton Baker, and was one of many who actively sought Baker's removal. In 1853, Houghton appeared as a litigant in Baker's court, in a case involving a debt charged to the Leitensdorfer partnership. Baker ruled against him. The case was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which affirmed Baker's decision. After leaving the bench, Houghton practiced law in Santa Fe, and helped form the Historical Society of New Mexico. He was appointed Superintendent of Public Buildings on January 15, 1853, and designed the plans for the new capitol building. Its construction halted in 1857 due to lack of funds; it would not be completed until 1889, when it was repurposed as a federal courthouse that is still in use, as the Santiago E. Campos United States Courthouse. In 1861, he was appointed Register of the United States Land Office in Santa Fe; he served in that position until 1868. At the start of the American Civil War, Houghton took the lead in rallying support for the Union and against Texas, which had seceded. He was named the wartime district attorney for New Mexico on September 19, 1861; he zealously got indictments for treason against several prominent citizens who he believed were southern sympathizers, but was unable to obtain any convictions. Justice of the Territorial Supreme Court, 1865–1869 On December 21, 1865, Houghton was nominated by President Andrew Johnson to the Territorial Supreme Court, as an associate justice presiding over the Third District. Houghton maintained a residence in Santa Fe, outside of his district, for which he was accused of ignoring the legal requirements of his position. Houghton was also widely denounced for his handling of numerous lawsuits involving property confiscated during the American Civil War. Among the most criticized aspects of these rulings, often attributed to his poor understanding of the law, were Houghton's assumption of jurisdiction over property in El Paso, Texas, and his insistence that the confiscation proceedings could proceed ex parte and tried without a jury. Houghton's court consequently earned the reputation of being a mere "prize court". In January, 1869, the territorial Legislative Council addressed a memorial to the president requesting that Houghton be replaced. Upon taking office, President Grant replaced the entire