Allen R. Sturtevant (August 27, 1879 – September 15, 1966) was a Vermont attorney and judge. His most notable work was as an associate justice of the

Vermont Supreme Court The Vermont Supreme Court is the highest judicial authority of the U.S. state of Vermont. Unlike most other states, the Vermont Supreme Court hears appeals directly from the trial courts, as Vermont has no intermediate appeals court. The Court ...

from 1938 to 1948.

Early life

Allen Robert Sturtevant was born in Granville, New York on August 27, 1879, the son of Royal W. and Susan V. (Oakes) Sturtevant. He was raised and educated in Granville and

New Haven, Vermont New Haven is a town in Addison County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,683 at the 2020 census. In addition to the town center, New Haven contains the communities of Belden (sometimes called Belden Falls), Brooksville, New Haven Juncti ...

, and was an 1897 graduate of Beeman Academy in New Haven. He received his

Ph.B. Bachelor of Philosophy (BPhil, BPh, or PhB; la, Baccalaureus Philosophiae or ) is the title of an academic degree that usually involves considerable research, either through a thesis or supervised research projects. Unlike many other bachelor's ...

from the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...

in 1901. Sturtevant worked as a school teacher in locations including

Manlius, New York Manlius is a town in Onondaga County, east of the city of Syracuse, New York, United States. The population was 33,712 at the 2020 census, making it the third largest suburb in metropolitan Syracuse. In 2005, the town was ranked 98th on CNN's ...

and Lima, Indiana, and moved to

Middlebury, Vermont Middlebury is the shire town (county seat) of Addison County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 9,152. Middlebury is home to Middlebury College and the Henry Sheldon Museum of Vermont History. History One of ...

in 1908.

Career as an attorney

He studied law in Middlebury with Judge Charles I. Button and attorney Ira H. LaFleur, and worked as deputy clerk of the

Addison County Addison County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 37,363. Its shire town (county seat) is the town of Middlebury (town), Vermont, Middle ...

Court. In 1911, he received his LL.B. degree from Lincoln-Jefferson College of Law in

Hammond, Indiana Hammond ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana. It is part of the Chicago metropolitan area, and the only city in Indiana to border Chicago. First settled in the mid-19th century, it is one of the oldest cities of northern Lake County. As of the ...

. Sturtevant was admitted to the bar later that year and began a practice in Middlebury. Sturtevant entered politics as a Republican, and served as Addison County

State's Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a loc ...

from 1915 to 1921. From 1912 to 1929, Sturtevant was Middlebury's village attorney. He also became involved in banking, and was vice president of the Addison County Trust Company from 1926 to 1929. During the governorship of John E. Weeks, Sturtevant served as his executive clerk from 1927 to 1929.

Judicial career

In 1929, Governor Weeks appointed Sturtevant a judge of the Vermont Superior Court. He served until 1938, and advanced through seniority to become the chief judge. Sturtevant had been chief judge of the Superior Court for only a few months when Leighton P. Slack died. In April 1938, Sturtevant was appointed as an associate justice of the

, filling the vacancy caused by Slack's death. He served until retiring on October 1, 1948, and was succeeded by

Walter H. Cleary Walter Henry Cleary (November 17, 1887 – April 12, 1974) was a Vermont attorney and judge. His career was most notable for his service as an associate justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1948 to 1958, and chief justice from 1958 to 1959. ...

Awards

In 1940, Sturtevant received the

honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

of LL.D. from

Middlebury College Middlebury College is a private liberal arts college in Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1800 by Congregationalists, Middlebury was the first operating college or university in Vermont. The college currently enrolls 2,858 undergraduates from all ...

Retirement and death

In retirement, Sturtevant was a resident of Fort Pierce, Florida. He died there on September 15, 1966, and was buried at Riverview Memorial Park in Fort Pierce.

Family

On June 8, 1904 Sturtevant married Anna Bonner in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. They were the parents of three daughters: Viola, Margaret, and Anna.

References

Sources

Books

Magazines

Newspapers

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Internet

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sturtevant, Allen R. 1879 births 1966 deaths People from Granville, New York People from Middlebury, Vermont People from Fort Pierce, Florida University of Vermont alumni Vermont lawyers Vermont Republicans State's attorneys in Vermont Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court Burials in Florida