USA > Wisconsin > History of the bench and bar of Wisconsin, Vol. II > Part 6
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HORATIO N. WELLS,
who was often named by the earlier members of the Milwaukee bar in the same connection with Jonathan E. Arnold as an advocate. He was born in Vermont in 1808, and studied law there. In 1836 he came to Milwaukee and entered upon the practice of the law with Hans Crocker, the firm name being Wells & Crocker. In 1839 he was ap- pointed attorney general; he served in that office three years; the same year he was elected a member of the popular branch of the territorial legislature; in 1847 he was chosen a member of the territorial council, and served during three sessions, being elected president of each. In September, 1849, he was elected judge of the Milwaukee county court; his service in that office continued four years. His convivial habits car- ried him rapidly into obscurity, and on the 18th of August, 1858, he died. It has been said that in his early career as a lawyer his success was remarkable, especially as an advocate before juries. During the first ten years of his practice there was scarcely a case before a jury in which he was not employed on one side or the other. He attended the courts in Racine, Walworth and Rock counties, where he was exten- sively employed. His success as a jury advocate was owing more to his great intuitive knowledge of human nature, his drollery and wit, his
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
large fund of anecdotes, his native kindness, good nature and popular social qualities, than to a superabundant store of legal attainments.
CHARLES E. JENKINS
succeeded Mr. Wells as county judge in January, 1854. He was one of those who were attracted to Milwaukee as the metropolis of a new- born state, arriving in 1848. His evident talent and fine address quickly gained for him popularity and professional success. He was elected a member of the assembly in 1849 and re-elected in 1850, serving during the sessions of 1850 and 1851. He became the trusted coun- sel of Byron Kilbourn, one of the founders of the city; of the Mil- waukee and Rock River Canal company and other important under- takings in which Mr. Kilbourn was concerned. After a service of nearly three years as county judge, he resigned in the fall of 1856 to engage in a business enterprise, in which he became interested with others. He resided in New York city for some years, and during the later years of his life was a partner of Governor Abbett, of New Jer- sey. The date of his death is not known to the writer.
BYRON PAINE
was appointed by the governor to fill out the term, and was, in 1857, elected for the full term, commencing January 1, 1858. June 1, 1859, not yet having reached the age of thirty-two, he assumed the duties of associate justice of the supreme court, to which he had been elected in the spring of that year. A sketch of Judge Paine's life is given in an- other chapter.
ALBERT SMITH
succeeded him as county judge, by appointment in June, 1859, and continued in the office, being repeatedly elected as his own successor, until his death, August 29, 1870. Judge Smith had been prominent and influential in professional and public life while residing at Batavia, in western New York, for many years prior to his removal to Mil- waukee in 1846. He was a man of large frame and commanding pres- ence, with a Websterian brow and austere bearing. He had repre-
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
sented his district in Congress and came to Milwaukee at the close of his term, being then forty years of age. Engaging in law practice, he failed to gain here the high position, professionally or socially, which he had held in his earlier life. In 1853 he accepted the office of justice of the peace in the seventh ward of the city, which he retained through repeated re-elections until his appointment as county judge in place of Judge Paine.
Judge Smith greatly admired the common law, and vigorously op- posed the adoption of the code in Wisconsin. When it was adopted he entered the following in his justice docket :
"THE COMMON LAW AND THE CODE,
departed this life, in its full maturity and strength. The Common Law, with all its forms; a system of jurisprudence matured by age and experience, and which has done more
TO SECURE SAFETY, LIBERTY AND JUSTICE
to all mankind than all other systems combined.
"Sic Transit Gloria Mundi!
"March, 1837.
"On the same day was born a 'Code,' undigested, ill-arranged, re- pugnant to the general laws of the state and bizarre in all its parts and properties.
"God save the People from Themselves."
ALPHA C. MAY,
born and educated in Vermont and resident in Milwaukee from 1853, was commissioned by Governor Fairchild to serve as county judge for the remainder of Judge Smith's term, which expired January 1, 1874. Judge May had not been prominent in legal circles. He was a modest gentleman of refined and cultivated tastes, well instructed in the law, but rather averse to the conflicts in which the active lawyer is forced more or less to engage. At the close of an honorable service of more than three years as a wise and upright judge he gave place, January I, 1874, to Hon. Henry L. Palmer, who had been elected for the full term beginning at that date.
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
HENRY L. PALMER.
Judge Palmer had for many years held rank as one of the ablest men at the bar of the county or state. He was born at Mount Pleasant, Wayne county, Pennsylvania, October 18, 1819. He received a com- mon school education, studied law, and was admitted to the bar. In 1836, at the age of seventeen, he went to West Troy, New York, to reside, and from thence came to Wisconsin in 1849.
Coming to Wisconsin at the age of thirty, he soon formed a law partnership with Abram D. Smith, a man of distinguished ability in the profession, who came from Ohio, which continued with a large and in- creasing practice until Judge Smith went upon the bench as a member of the separate supreme court of the state, June 1, 1853. He was afterward associated at different times with Erastus Foote, Joshua Stark, John R. Sharpstein and David G. Hooker, and continued in act- ive practice until he became county judge. During all this time he was prominent in Masonic circles, giving much time and energy to the interest of the order, and receiving its highest honors. He was also an influential leader in political life, yielding loyal and unswerving sup- port to the democratic party, to which he gave his allegiance. He represented his district in the assembly in the years 1853, 1860, 1862 and 1873, and in the senate of the state in 1867 and 1868, and presided over the assembly as speaker during the sessions of 1853 and 1873. He also served the city as school commissioner and city attorney. Judge Palmer became identified with the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance company at its establishment in Milwaukee in 1860, was its legal coun- sel for many years and one of its executive officers, and did much to shape the early policy which has made it one of the strongest and soundest institutions of the kind in this country. His judicial career was brief. Though eminently fitted to adorn the bench, the offer of the presidency of the insurance company opened to him a career of use- fulness so much more congenial and attractive that he could not de- cline it. He resigned the judgeship in February, 1874, after a few weeks' service, and entered upon the duties to which he has ever since
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
given his undivided attention. The Northwestern Mutual Life Insur- ance company, of Milwaukee, the pride of the city, is a living witness to his ability, industry and fidelity in the administration of sacred trusts.
JOHN E. MANN.
Again the appointing power was invoked to fill the office of county judge, and in February, 1874, John Enders Mann was named by the governor. Since then there has been no change. By election after election Judge Mann has been retained in the office.
His character as circuit and county judge is remarkable in this: that it is a combination of justice with such mildness as almost to ap- proach the borderland of gentleness. The annals of the bench furnish few such examples of judicial character, especially after it has passed through the ordeals of nearly forty years' arduous service.
The name itself tells the story of German ancestry, though Judge Mann's American forefathers came to this country previous to the revo- lutionary war. His father, George W. Mann, was a farmer and, with- his mother, Elizabeth (Enders) Mann, lived for many years in the Em- pire state, John E. being born in Schoharie, March 4, 1821. He was a sturdy farmer's boy, working and studying with equal zest and in- dustry, and as his father had the old-world appreciation of the value of a thorough education, the boy received the best intellectual training that the country afforded. First, the district schools, and then the academies at Nassau, Jefferson and Schoharie, New York, fitted him to enter the sophomore class of Williams (Massachusetts) college. He was now nineteen years of age and after remaining here for two terms became an advanced student (third term, sophomore) at Union college, Schenectady, graduating in classics during 1843.
Thus firmly grounded in both the common and the classical branches, Judge Mann naturally turned to the law as the field which offered the greatest promise for the exercise of his practical knowledge and his acquired learning. Returning to his native place, he studied under the tutelage of Jacob Houck, Jr., and was admitted to the bar of the supreme court, at Utica, in 1847. For seven years he practiced his profession in Schoharie county (at Schoharie and at Esperance) and
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
then, in May, 1854, removed to Wisconsin. His solid, judicial qualities of mind-his judicial temperament-had already attracted more than local attention and he had served as judge advocate of the state militia.
Judge Mann's first choice of location in Wisconsin was West Bend, where he formed a partnership with Hon. L. F. Frisby, subsequently attorney general of the state and long one of its prominent lawyers and public men. This connection continued for nearly five years, or until Judge Mann's appointment, in 1859, to the judgeship of the third Wis- consin circuit, succeeding Judge Larrabee, who was called to a seat in Congress. At the time of his appointment and subsequent election to the bench, the circuit over which he had jurisdiction included Ozaukee, Washington, Dodge, Green Lake and Marquette counties. He was re-elected in the spring of 1860 for a full term of six years, and at the expiration of this period. December 31, 1867, he removed to Mil- waukee.
Judge Mann's only partner in Milwaukee was F. W. von Cotz- hausen, with whom he remained as long as he was a practitioner, until February, 1874. This date, nearly a quarter of a century ago, marks his appointment by Governor Taylor to the responsible office of judge of Milwaukee county, to succeed Henry L. Palmer, resigned. Al- though a democrat, Judge Mann has never been a party candidate for re-election to the position which he has so acceptably filled these many years. Every four years, however, a fair majority of the voters of the county have returned him to his old place, heartily testifying to his ability, his uprightness, his kindness, his promptness, and his faithful- ness. It is said that during this long period he has not been absent a dozen days. This record is quite remarkable, since for many years the court had jurisdiction in both probate and civil matters (up to $5,000,000); with the organization of the superior court, however, his arduous duties were somewhat lightened by the withdrawal of the civil cases from his jurisdiction.
Judge Mann married into an old and prominent New York family, his wife being Catherine Dietz, of Schoharie, a neighbor, and grand- daughter of William Dietz. The latter was an intimate political friend of Martin Van Buren and a member of Congress. There are four Vol. II .- 4
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
children-Anna D., Elizabeth, Jennie (now Mrs. Paul C. Biersach), and Charles D. Mann, an attorney, whose biography appears in another chapter.
THE SUPERIOR COURT.
Until 1888 the circuit and county courts of Milwaukee county, each having but a single judge, were the only courts of record in the county with jurisdiction of civil actions. The circuit court was, indeed, re- lieved of most of its criminal business from 1859, but the county court was burdened with all the probate business of the county, increasing rapidly.
It must ever be a matter of surprise that for so many years the judicial requirements of a prosperous and growing community, with a population of 122,927 in 1875, increasing to 187,600 in 1885, could be fairly met by these two courts thus constituted. It may be justly taken as conclusive proof of the general integrity and law-abiding spirit of the people who laid its foundations and have built upon them the fair structure of industries and institutions which constitute Milwaukee of to-day.
In 1887 it became apparent that the county judge could no longer discharge properly the duties of probate judge and also those of judge of a court for the trial of civil actions. With the growth of the popula- tion probate business had so much increased as to demand the undi- vided attention of a competent officer. A register in probate had indeed been provided for, but with very limited powers, making him in effect merely a general clerk in the office of the judge. This failed to relieve.
At the legislative session of 1887 an act was passed creating a su- perior court for the county of Milwaukee, with a single judge, to be elected for a term of six years and to receive a salary of five thousand dollars, payable by the county. The act transferred to this court, from January 1, 1888, all actions then pending in the county court and all the powers and duties which that court had exercised in civil actions, saving to the latter only its probate functions.
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
GEORGE H. NOYES.
George H. Noyes was born in McLean, Tompkins county, New York, April 18th, 1849. His ancestors, both lineal and collateral, for many generations, were distinctively American. The family is of Nor- man origin. Rev. James Noyes, the founder of the American branch of the family, was educated at Oxford university, entered the ministry, and on account of his liberal views was an exile in Holland, from whence, in 1634, he came to America, settling at Newbury, Massachu- setts. His son, Rev. James Noyes, a graduate of Harvard college in 1659, settled in Stonington, Connecticut, where he was pastor of the First Congregational church for fifty-four years. He served in King Philip's war as physician and chaplain, and was one of the founders and first trustees of Yale college. Through Colonel Peleg Noyes, who served in the revolutionary war in a Connecticut regiment, George H. Noyes derives his right to membership in the Sons of the American Revolution.
The boyhood days of Judge Noyes were passed in Delafield, Wauke- sha county, Wisconsin, where his parents settled upon their arrival in the state in 1855. There he attended the DeKoven school and after- wards the public schools.
In the spring of 1865 he began teaching in the common schools of Waukesha county, continuing his teaching at intervals during portions of the five succeeding years.
In the fall of 1866 he entered the freshman class of Lawrence uni- versity at Appleton, but subsequently, changing his course from the scientific to the classical, entered the university of Wisconsin in the fall of 1867, from which he was graduated with honors in the classical . course in 1873. During these years he was wholly dependent upon his own resources for his support and college expenses, and in order to secure sufficient means to continue his college education his winters were spent in teaching and his summer vacations in manual labor, in addition to the services which he also rendered from time to time as a private tutor and as assistant librarian at the university.
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
Although reared in a country village and on a farm, his earliest am- bitions were to become a lawyer. He cannot recall the time when he did not intend to adopt and follow that profession. This was his first and last choice, and was made far away from courts, at a time when he was wholly unacquainted with lawyers and their profession, and out of all legal atmosphere. He took the lectures of the law school of the state university, and while thus engaged he was also employed as as- sistant to Prof. O. M. Conover, who was then the state librarian and reporter for the supreme court. A firm will and steadfast purpose over- came the obstacles and discomforts with which he was surrounded, and he has met the success which an indomitable courage is sure to attain.
Graduating from the law school in 1874, he came to Milwaukee with ex-Chief Justice Dixon, who had resigned from the supreme court with the purpose of establishing himself in the practice of his profession, . and entered the office of Dixon, Hooker & Palmer. At the end of a year the firm of Dixon, Hooker, Wegg & Noyes was organized, the members of which were Luther -S. Dixon, D. G. Hooker, David S. Wegg, and the subject of this sketch. This firm was dissolved when Mr. Hooker became counsel for the Northwestern Mutual Life Insur- ance company, but Mr. Noyes continued in partnership with Judge Dixon, first under the name of Dixon & Noyes, and later of Dixon, Noyes & Dixon. . In 1880 Judge Dixon left Milwaukee for Denver, where he hoped to recuperate failing health, and Mr. Noyes then be- came a partner of George C. Markham, under the firm name of Mark- ham & Noyes, and during the continuance of this partnership Mr. Noyes acted as general solicitor and secretary of the Milwaukee & Northern Railroad company.
Mr. Noyes quickly gained recognition as an able practitioner, and this, with a well-deserved reputation for unflinching integrity and un- ceasing energy, soon placed him in the front ranks of his profession. His accurate knowledge of the principles of law, clear power of analysis, combined with the tact and address which he exhibited in his inter- course with business men who sought his counsel, won for him in a short time an established reputation and a lucrative business.
Upon the creation of the superior court of Milwaukee county Mr.
July your L. Gen
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
Noyes was nominated as the citizens' candidate for judge of that court at a joint convention of the republican and democratic parties. He was selected as a republican representative, while Judge D. H. Johnson was selected as a democratic representative, the latter being on the ticket as a candidate for judge of the circuit court; the opposing can- didates were in the field on the peoples' or labor ticket.
Although not previously very well known in public life, his personal popularity as a citizen and the respect in which he was held by men of all political parties secured his nomination. He was elected and en- tered upon his judicial career January Ist, 1888. Although his service upon the bench was of short duration, it was nevertheless sufficient to demonstrate that he was eminently adapted for the position by a strong judicial mind, natural inclination, and diligent study, and he quickly took rank as one of the ablest judges of the state. Finding, however, that the salary of a judge would not permit him to provide as liberally as he desired for the education of his children, he reluctantly retired from the bench in March, 1890, and resumed the practice of the law with the surviving members of the old established firm of Finches, Lynde & Miller, which was reorganized under the name of Miller, Noyes & Miller.
In politics Judge Noyes is a firm and consistent republican, but is not an active politician. He was appointed regent of the state univer- sity of Wisconsin by Governor Hoard in 1890, reappointed by Gov- ernors Peck and Upham, and is now vice president of the board. He is also one of the commissioners having in charge the erection of the building for the library of the State Historical society.
Judge Noyes was married in November, 1876, to Miss Agnes Allis Haskell, of Chicago. Mrs. Noyes is a graduate of the university of Wisconsin, of the class of '76. Their children are Emily, Katherine, Haskell, Margaret and Helen.
FRANKLIN L. GILSON
was appointed to succeed Judge Noyes. The fact, says the History of Milwaukee, that he had been chiefly known as an ardent and active politician led to the expression of fears that he might not possess that
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HISTORY, OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
judicial balance so essential to a career upon the bench. "All such fears were speedily removed. The judge brought to the discharge of his new duties such kindliness and urbanity of manner, such evident can- dor and sincerity and such industry and conscientious effort in the ex- amination of all questions which came before him that he quickly won the regard of the bar."
The late Judge Franklin L. Gilson was born in Middlefield, Geauga county, Ohio, October 22, 1846, and his early life was passed in his native state. He obtained his education at Hiram and Oberlin col- leges, both noble and worthy seats of learning. About 1870 he re- moved to Wisconsin, where he became a law student and clerk in the office of Messrs. Frisby & Weil, at West Bend, Judge Frisby, the senior member, being his uncle. In 1872 young Gilson was admitted to the bar of the state, and, removing to Ellsworth, in Pierce county, began the practice of law. Possessing a naturally keen intellect, sustained powers of thought and legal ability of no mean order, he soon rose by conscientious work to a position of prominence and influence in his community, enjoying an ever-increasing patronage and the growing esteem of his fellow-men. In recognition of his ability and worth of character, he was elected district attorney for Pierce county in 1874, which office he creditably filled by re-election until 1880. He took an active part in political campaigns and excelled as a campaign speaker. He was a delegate to the republican national convention held in Chi- cago in 1880. In 1881 he was chosen a member of the assembly of Wisconsin and in 1882 was elected speaker of that body. This position was one for which his superior attainments eminently fitted him, and. so popular did he become with all parties that, at the close of the session, the members presented him with an elegant gold watch as a testimonial of their esteem.
Seeking a broader field for the exercise of his abilities, he removed, in 1882, to Milwaukee, where he became associated with his uncle, the late Judge Frisby, under the name of Frisby & Gilson. This title was changed, in 1887, to Frisby, Gilson & Elliott, by the admission into the firm of Eugene S. Elliott, which partnership continued for three years. At the end of this time Mr. Gilson, in accordance with a plan
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HISTORY OF THE BENCH AND BAR OF WISCONSIN.
recommended by the citizens of Milwaukee county, in 1887, to elim- inate party politics from their judiciary, was, upon the resignation of Judge George H. Noyes, in 1890, appointed that gentleman's suc- cessor to the bench of the superior court by Governor Hoard. He was, with the exception of Judge Fish, of Racine, the youngest judge on the Wisconsin bench. On assuming his judicial duties, his active participation in politics ceased, and he devoted himself zealously to the work of his high office, bringing to his duties all the power of a clear, vigorous and judicial mind.
Besides his legal attainments, Judge Gilson was a man of rich scholarship. He was an inveterate reader of the best authors, and had a knowledge of English literature which was equaled by but few. He was particularly partial to poetry, and his mind was richly stored with the choicest selections, which at the slightest suggestion were at his command for the illustration of a thought or the entertainment of his friends. He had a genial, social nature and possessed a strong attach- ment to his friends, among whom he was a leading spirit. He never married.
Judge Gilson died at Milwaukee, on the morning of June 7, 1892.
His death was sudden and unexpected. He had risen somewhat earlier than usual and entered his library, where he was soon afterward discovered in his chair, dead. The summons had come without warn- ing, the affection being pronounced neuralgia of the heart. The an- nouncement of the sad event created a profound sensation among his friends. The various courts of Milwaukee adjourned, and meetings of the common council, the Milwaukee bar association and other local organizations were called to honor his memory, and the various bodies passed resolutions of respect.
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