Joseph Rucker Lamar | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Lamar, 1905–1916 | |
| Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States | |
| In office January 3, 1911 – January 2, 1916[1] | |
| Nominated by | William Howard Taft |
| Preceded by | William Moody |
| Succeeded by | Louis Brandeis |
| Justice of theGeorgia Supreme Court | |
| In office 1901–1905 | |
| Member of theGeorgia House of Representatives | |
| In office 1886–1889 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1857-10-14)October 14, 1857 Ruckersville, Georgia, U.S. |
| Died | January 2, 1916(1916-01-02) (aged 58) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | University of Georgia Bethany College, West Virginia (BA) Washington and Lee University School of Law (no degree) |
| Signature |  |
Joseph Rucker Lamar (October 14, 1857 – January 2, 1916) was anAssociate Justice of theUnited States Supreme Court appointed byPresidentWilliam Howard Taft. A cousin of former associate justiceLucius Lamar, he served from 1911 until his death in 1916.
Born inRuckersville,Elbert County, Georgia, Lamar was the son of a minister and attended theAcademy of Richmond County inAugusta, Georgia and theMartin Institute inJefferson, Georgia. During his time in Augusta, he lived next door to and was the "closest friend"[2] of future presidentWoodrow Wilson, whose father was the local Presbyterian minister. They both also attended Joseph T. Derry's school for boys in a local warehouse, a school whose other students would also become a future Congressman, major newspaper owner/ambassador and the dean ofColumbia Law School.[2] After Lamar graduated from the Penn Lucy School nearBaltimore, Maryland, he attended theUniversity of Georgia where he was a member of thePhi Kappa Literary Society. After his family moved he completed his degree atBethany College in 1877, where he was a member ofBeta Theta Pi. After attending law school atWashington and Lee University School of Law, he left and completed his legal education by reading law with a prominent Augusta attorney, then returned to Bethany College to teach Latin for a year, afterward practicing law in Augusta.[3]
From 1886 to 1889, he served in theGeorgia House of Representatives, and then was appointed by theSupreme Court of Georgia in 1893 as a member of the Commission to Recodify the Laws of Georgia, which prepared a code of laws for the state. Two years later, that code was adopted by the stateGeneral Assembly.
On January 1, 1901, Lamar was appointed to fill an unexpired term of JusticeWilliam A. Little in theSupreme Court of Georgia, then was re-elected in 1903. He wrote more than 200 opinions before resigning in 1905 to again practice law, defending railroads and many other large corporations.
On December 12, 1910, Lamar wasnominated by PresidentWilliam Howard Taft as anassociate justice of the United States Supreme Court, to a seat vacated byWilliam H. Moody.[4] Lamar was confirmed by theUnited States Senate on December 15, 1910,[5] and wassworn into office on January 3, 1911.[1]
At a reception after Woodrow Wilson's inauguration in 1913, the two friends were able to meet again and swapped stories of their Georgia youth. They remained in contact while they were in Washington.[6] In 1915, Lamar wrote two short individual opinions in the famedLeo Frank case. He declined to grant a petition forhabeas corpus brought by Frank to challenge the fairness of his trial, but subsequently granted awrit of error allowing Frank to bring his claims before the court. The full Court went on to reject Frank's claim inFrank v. Mangum; Lamar voted with the majority but did not write a separate opinion.
Lamar, together withFrederick W. Lehmann, was selected in 1914 to represent theUnited States at theABC Powers Conference convened to avert a war over theVeracruz Incident. In the fall of 1915, Lamar suffered a paralytic stroke. Legislation was proposed to allow Lamar to retire with full pay, but his death just months later made the issue a moot point.
He died in Washington, D.C., on January 2, 1916.[7]
Lamar's professional papers, including correspondence concerning his years as a Justice, are archived at theUniversity of Georgia inAthens, Georgia, and available for research. TheJoseph Rucker Lamar Boyhood Home inAugusta, Georgia is listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.
DuringWorld War II theLiberty shipSS Joseph R. Lamar was built inBrunswick, Georgia, and named in his honor.[8]
| Legal offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States 1911–1916 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
