Alexander Campbell King (December 7, 1856 – July 25, 1926) was the 16th Solicitor General of the United States and a

United States circuit judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (in case citations, 5th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * Eastern District of Louisiana * M ...

. King was a founding partner of the international

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...

of King & Spalding.

Education and career

Born on December 7, 1856, in

Charleston Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfoundlan ...

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

, to J. Gadsden King and Carolina Clifford (Postell) King, King

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

in 1875, at 19 years of age. He entered private practice in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, Georgia from 1875 to 1918, serving as general legal counsel to various railroad companies. For the Atlanta & West Point Railroad he took the position of assistant general counsel from 1887 to 1893, simultaneously serving as general counsel for the East & West Railroad of Alabama from 1887 to 1889, and again as assistant general counsel to the Richmond and Danville Railroad and Richmond & West Point Terminal Co., from 1890 to 1892. Lastly, King represented the

Chattanooga, Rome and Columbus Railroad The Chattanooga, Rome and Columbus Railroad (CR&C) was a railroad in Georgia. Originally chartered in 1881 as the Rome and Carrollton Railroad, the railroad's name became the Chattanooga, Rome and Columbus Railroad in 1887, before any tracks were c ...

from 1894 to 1901. In 1912, King was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, as a committee member to report on revision in

equity Equity may refer to: Finance, accounting and ownership * Equity (finance), ownership of assets that have liabilities attached to them ** Stock, equity based on original contributions of cash or other value to a business ** Home equity, the dif ...

in United States courts. He also served on the board of directors, and as one term Chairman, of the State Bar Examiners for the State of Georgia from 1913 to 1918. In 1916, King received a civil law degree from Sewanee: The University of the South, in

Sewanee Sewanee may refer to: * Sewanee, Tennessee * Sewanee: The University of the South * ''The Sewanee Review'', an American literary magazine established in 1892 * Sewanee Natural Bridge * Saint Andrews-Sewanee School See also * Suwanee (disambiguati ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

Solicitor General

King was the 16th Solicitor General of the United States from November 21, 1918 to May 24, 1920. With his breadth of knowledge in railroad legislation he was a valuable asset to the administration, contributing his expertise when faced with cases involving the

Southern Pacific Railroad The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

throughout 1919. During this time he also served as a counselor for the

American Red Cross The American Red Cross (ARC), also known as the American National Red Cross, is a non-profit humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. It is the desi ...

Federal judicial service

King was nominated by President

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

on April 29, 1920, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge Don Albert Pardee. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on May 24, 1920, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on December 31, 1924, due to his resignation.

Post judicial service and death

Following his resignation from the federal bench, King returned to private practice in Atlanta from 1925 to 1926, returning as a founding partner of the

of King, Spalding, MacDougal & Sibley (now King & Spalding). He died on July 25, 1926,His Federal Judicial Center Biography gives his death date as July 25, 1926, but his Solicitor General's biography gives his death date at July 26, 1926. in Flat Rock, Henderson County,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. He was interred in Atlanta, where he resided. He was survived by his wife of 45 years, Alice May Fowler and his two sons.

Note

References

Sources

* *

External links

Alexander Campbell King Law Library at the University of Georgia School of Law.
* {{DEFAULTSORT:King, Alexander Campbell 1856 births 1926 deaths Lawyers from Charleston, South Carolina Sewanee: The University of the South alumni United States Solicitors General Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States court of appeals judges appointed by Woodrow Wilson 20th-century American judges United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law