Volney Howard | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theU.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's2nd district | |
| In office March 4, 1849 – March 3, 1853 | |
| Preceded by | Timothy Pilsbury |
| Succeeded by | Peter Hansborough Bell |
| Member of theMississippi House of Representatives | |
| In office 1836 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Volney Erskine Howard (1809-10-22)October 22, 1809 Norridgewock, Maine, U.S. |
| Died | May 14, 1889(1889-05-14) (aged 79) Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Children | 2 |
Volney Erskine Howard (October 22, 1809 – May 14, 1889) was an American lawyer,statesman, andjurist.
Volney Erskine Howard was born inNorridgewock, Somerset County, Maine on October 22, 1809,[1] to Richard Howard, a prosperous farmer. He attendedBloomfield Academy, Skowhegan, Maine and Waterford College.[2] At the age of 22, Howard traveled to Mississippi to study law and he commenced law practice inBrandon, Mississippi.[1] He was a member of theMississippi House of Representatives in 1836; reporter of the supreme court of the State of Mississippi; unsuccessfulDemocratic Party candidate for election in 1840 to the Twenty-seventh Congress; and editor of theMississippian,[1] a Democratic newspaper published atVicksburg, Mississippi.[2]
After his unsuccessful run in 1840, he moved toNew Orleans, practicing law there until December 1844, and then moved toSan Antonio to serve in theRepublic of Texas.[2] He was appointed the first Attorney General of the State of Texas in 1846 by GovernorJ. Pinckney Henderson, but he declined the appointment.[2] He represented Texas'sDistrict 2 in theU.S. Congress from 1849 to 1853 but lost a third re-election bid toPeter Hansborough Bell.[2]
Appointed attorney to the Land Commission of California by PresidentFranklin Pierce, Howard left Texas to move to California.[2] He resigned after a few months to practice law inSan Francisco. In 1856, he was appointedAdjutant General of California, following the resignation ofWilliam T. Sherman during the time of theSan Francisco Committee of Vigilance. His attempt to oppose the Committee by force failed.
Afterward, he moved toSacramento in 1858[2] to practice law but decided to leave northern California because he had made too many enemies while battling the vigilantes in San Francisco. In 1861 he moved toLos Angeles, where he served as District Attorney from 1861 to 1870,[2] and served as one of the first judges of theLos Angeles Superior Court beginning in 1879.[1] He was a delegate to theCalifornia constitutional convention in 1878–1879.[2] His law firm included two of his lawyer sons, Charles Howard (killed in a gunfight with Daniel B. Nichols, son of a former mayor of Los Angeles, in 1869 in a saloon) andFrank H. Howard, who served as city attorney of Los Angeles. He served only one term on the bench, due to the ill health. He was nominated to a seat on theUnited States Supreme Court but declined because of failing health.[2]
Howard died inSanta Monica, California on May 14, 1889 and was buried at Fort Hill Cemetery in Los Angeles, California.[1][3]Howard County, Texas was named in his honor.[2][4]
| Legal offices | ||
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| Preceded by New Position | Texas Attorney General 1846 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. House of Representatives | ||
| Preceded by | Member of the U.S. House of Representatives fromTexas's 2nd congressional district 1849–1853 | Succeeded by |
  | Republic of Texas (1836–45) | |
|---|---|---|
| State of Texas (1846–present) |
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| International | |
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| National | |
| People | |
| Other | |
