THE SUPREME COURT HISTORICAL SOCIETY

VOLUME VII NUMBER1

Membership Committee Appoints T\venty-Eight Additional State Chairmen

According to its Chairman, Justin A. Stanley, the Member California Burnham Enersen, Esq. ship Committee has appointed twenty-eight new state (San Francisco) McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enersen membership chairmen to assist in this year's membership 40 Arguello Boulevard drive. This brings the total number of state chairmen to San Francisco, CA 94118 forty-eight, including those listed in the last issue of the Connecticut James R. Greenfield, Esq. Quarterly. Greenfield, Krick & Jacobs Mr. Stanley, and fellow committee members Griffin B. 205 Church Street Bell and J. Roderick Heller, III, are recruiting volunteers to P.O. Box 1952 serve as state membership chairmen as part of the most New Haven, CT 06509 significant membership drive undertaken since the Soci —continued on page two ety's inception. The goal of this campaign is to increase the Society's membership from its current 2,500 to approxi Annual Meeting Notice mately 4,000 members. Additional announcements con cerning the state chairmen will be published in the Quar Invitations to the Society's tenth annual meeting, on terly as they are appointed. The most recent appointees are May 13,1985, vdll bemailed tomembers in the firstweek of as follows: April. Theinvitations will include a schedule ofevents and a reservation card for the evening's annual reception and Alabama N. Lee Cooper, Esq. dinner. Members who wish to attend those two events Maynard, Cooper, Frierson & Gale should return their reservation cards and payment Watts Building, 12th Floor promptly to assure acceptance. Third Avenue & IVentieth Street No reservation or advance notice is required for events Birmingham, AL 35203 other than the annual reception and dinner. However, due Arizona Thomas Chandler, Esq. to the limitedseating capacity in the Capitol's Restored Su (Thcson) Chandler, Tiller, Udall & Redhair preme Court Chamber, members who wish to attend the 1700 Arizona Bank Plaza annual lecture held in that room at 2:30 p.m. are urged to 33 North Stone Avenue arrive early to assure seating. Tiscon, AZ 85701 This year's annual lecture will be delivered by Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the B.C. Arizona Calvin H. Udall, Esq. Circuit. Judge Scalia is a graduate of the Harvard Law (Phoenix) Fennemore, Craig, VonAmmon, School and a former Assistant Attorney General. Prior to Udall & Powers his judicial appointment he served on the faculties of sev Suite 1700 eral of the nation's prominent law schools, including the 100 West Washington Street UniversityofVirginia, the UniversityofChicago, Harvard, Phoenix, AZ 85003 and Stanford. ICalifornia Stuart L. Kadison, Esq. Following the annual lecture, members are invited to (Los Angeles) Kadison, Pfaelzer, Woodard, visit the Society's headquarters buildingat 3:30 p.m. where Quinn & Rossi refreshments will be served.The membershipmeeting will 707 Wilshire Boulevard be held in the courtroom ofthe Supreme Court building at Los Angeles, CA 90017 6:30 p.m. following the meeting of the Board ofTrustees. State Chairmen (continued from page one) Oklahoma William G. Paul, Esq. : The Yankee Who Stepped Down from Olympus Phillips Petroleum Company 18 Phillips Building When Justice of New Hampshire died in '' ji Delaware Charles F. Richards, Jr. Esq. Bartlesville, OK 74004 1851, President determined to replace him with someone of the Whig party to counteract the prepon- ' jT Richards, Layton & Finger Oregon John L. Schwabe, Esq. One Rodney Square derance of southern Democrats on thehigh bench. He wrote f Schwabe, Williamson, to , his Secretary of State, setting out the r-., X-1 P.O. Box 551 l\^att, Moore & Roberts qualifications he was seeking; HjUna. i Wilmington, DE 19899 1600 Pacwest Center Kentucky Joseph E. Stopher, Esq. 1211 Southwest Fifth Street [I am] desirous of obtaining as long a lease and as much • Boehl, Stopher, Graves & Deindoerfer Portland, OR 97204 moral and judicial power as possible from this appoint- ment. I would therefore like to combine a vigorous con- j One Riverfront Plaza Pennsylvania Robert M. Landis, Esq. stitution with high moral and intellectual qualifications, a ^ Suite 2300 (Philadelphia) Deckert, Price, Rhoads Louisville, KY 40202 good judicial mind, and such age as gives a prospect of ^ 34 Centre Square West long service. Maine Ralph I. Lancaster, Jr., Esq. 1500 Market Street Pierce, Atwood, Scribner, Allen, Smith Philadelphia, PA 19102 After setting forth these requirements President Fillmore and Lancaster asked Webster for his opinion of "Mr. B.R. Curtis. What do ^ Pennsylvania Alexander Unkovic, Esq. you say of him? What is his age? Constitution? Legal One Monument Square (Pittsburgh) Meyer, Unkovic & Scott Portland, ME 04111 attainments? Does he fill the measure of my wishes?" 1300 Oliver Building Benjamin RobbinsCurtis filled the measure ofFillmore's f Massachusetts Robert W. Meserve, Esq. Pittsburgh, PA 15222 requirements in every way. Born in 1809 in Watertown, 109 Worcester Lane Puerto Rico Hector Reichard De-Cardona, Esq. Massachusetts, Curtis, in 1851, was 42 years old and the . Waltham, MA 02154 Lasa, Escalera & Reichard epitome of a successful lawyer. Like many prom- Missouri Robert L. Hawkins, Jr., Esq. G.P.0.4148 inent NewEnglanders, Curtis was something ofa self-made Hawkins, Brydon & Swearingen San Juan, PR 00936 man. His father, Benjamin Curtis, III, a ship's captain, was P.O. Box 456 South Carolina Wesley M. Walker, Esq. voyage to Chile when Curtis was only five years 312 East Capital Avenue Leatherwood, Walker, Todd & Mann old, leaving Benjamin's mother, Lois Curtis, to care for him Jefferson City, MO 65101 217 East Coffee Street and his brother. She accomplished this by starting a dry Nebraska James W. Hewitt, Esq. Greenville, SC 29602 goods business and a circulating library. While the dry Nebco, Inc. goods store probably supplied the majority of the family's South Dakota Charles M. Thompson, Esq. income,it was from the library that Benjamin derived most P.O. Box 80268 May, Day, Gerdes & Thompson ofhis intellectual sustenance, devouring books as rapidly as , • ^ t, • • r. Lincoln, NE 68501 503 South Pierre Street Associate Justice Benjamin R. Curtis they became available. Not surprisingly^ Curtis proved to be '"''tlSl(1851-1857)ST'"' New Mexico Seth Montgomery, Esq. Pierre, SD 57501 an apt and dedicated student. He studied with several out Montgomery & Andrews Texas E. lYilliam Barnett, Esq. standing teachers, includingJohn Appleton, who later be 325 Paseo De Peralta Baker & Botts camethe chiefjustice ofMaine,and qualifiedfor admission CharlesPelham Curtis,and proceeded to earn himself a P.O. Box 2307 3000 One Shell Plaza toHarvard.HeenteredHarvardin 1825, his tuitionpaidby placeof respect and standinginstanding in thebar £and in Boston soci Sante Fe, NM 87504 Houston, TX 77002 his faithful mother who ran a boarding house for under- ety.He soon became famous for his fpowerful, well re graduate students in Cambridge. Graduatingin 1829 with searched legal arguments, and, as early New York Leon Silverman, Esq. VrginiaVirginia R. Harvey Chappell, Jr., Esq. searched legal arguments, and, as early as 1836, Story re Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Christian, Barton, Epps, Brent & highest honors, Curtis decided to continue hisstudies. Per- marked ontheiron their "learning, research andability" and stated Jacobson haps due to the influence ofhis uncle. Harvard Professor they were as "thorough and exact" asany he had everheard. Chappell , Curtis enrolled in Indeed, it was said that his careful, exhi One New York Plaza 1200 Mutual Building Indeed, it was said that his careful, exhaustive, logical ar New York, NY 10004 which was under thedirection ofJoseph Story. Inaddition to guments seemed togettothevery heart Ninth and Main Streets guments seemed to get to the very heart of a case, arguing his judicial responsibility, Justice Story was also serving as only the pertinent laws and issues, and coveringci them com North Carolina l\llliam F. Womble, Esq. Richmond, VA 23219 the Dane Professor of Law at Harvard Law School. Under prehensively. One ofhis contemporaries (commented that: Womble, Carlyle, Sandridge & Rice Washington J. David Andrews, Esq. hissupervision the Law School became an effective, profes P. O. Drawer 84 Perkins, Coie, Stone, Olsen & Williams sional school. The students held moot courts, charged juries his clearness of thought and precisior Winston-Salem, NC 27102 his clearness of thought and precision of statement were 1900 Washington Building and approached allaspects of legal education from a practi- the delight not only of the bench and bar, but even of the North Dakota Richard H. McGee, Esq. Seattle, WA 98101 cal and realistic viewpoint. Professor Story even had the educated laity who would be drawn intinto the courtroom for McGee, Hankla, Backers Wisconsin Steven E. Keane, Esq. students render decisions on cases that were currently the mere pleasure oflistening to him as he unfolded an & Wheeler Foley & Lardner pendingbefore the Supreme Court. argument. First National Bank Bldg. 777 East Wisconsin Avenue Curtis took a break from law school to prepare himself P.O. Box 998 Milwaukee, WI 53202 financially for marriagebytaking over the lawpractice ofa MuchMuchofofCurtis'Curtis' powerpowerlaylayin in his ability to determine what Minot, ND 58701 lawyer in Northfield, Massachusetts. There, he later re- was germane and to coveritcover it fully, whileiwhile refusing to address John C. Elam, Esq. ported, he was "obliged to rely upon my owninvestigations any issue which was not directly essentessential to the case. By Vorys, Slater, Seymour & Pease The Society greatly appreciates the willingness ofthese —oftenmy owninventions—to help methrough difficulties narrowing his focushe was able not only to cover his mate 52 East Gay Street individuals to volunteer their time and energy, and urges and novelties." Returning to Harvard briefly, Curtis fin- rial exhaustively, but also to resist the itemptation to give Columbus, OH 43215 members to lend them their full support and cooperation. ished his studies and was admitted to the local bar in Au- the opposition any point which could ;accidentally prove gust 1832. useful to them. Curtis spelled out his successs formula as In 1834 Curtis joined the law firm of a distant cousin, follows.follows: -continued-mnt on next page