Benjamin Drake Magruder (September 27, 1838 – April 21, 1910) was an American judge in Illinois. Graduating from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

before he turned eighteen, Magruder studied law at the University of Louisiana at New Orleans Law School. He briefly worked a law office in

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

before establishing a series of practices in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. He served on the

Superior Court of Cook County The Superior Court of Cook County was a court in Cook County, Illinois. It was preceded by earlier courts. 1845 saw the creation of the County Court of Cook County. In 1849, this was renamed The Cook County Court of Common Pleas. In 1859, this was ...

for seventeen years starting in 1868. In 1885, he was elected to the

Supreme Court of Illinois The Supreme Court of Illinois is the state supreme court, the highest court of the State of Illinois. The court's authority is granted in Article VI of the current Illinois Constitution, which provides for seven justices elected from the five ap ...

, where he wrote the decision denying the appeal of the Haymarket affair anarchists. He served in this court until 1906, then resumed a law practice.

Biography

Benjamin Drake Magruder was born in

Jefferson County, Mississippi Jefferson County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi; its western border is formed by the Mississippi River. As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census, the population was 7,726, making it the third ...

on September 27, 1838. He entered

at the age of fourteen, graduating fourth in his class four years later. He moved to

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of counties i ...

to teach at a school. In his free time, he studied law under

Joseph Barton Elam Joseph Barton Elam, Sr. (June 12, 1821 – July 4, 1885), was a two-term Democratic Party (US), Democratic U.S. representative for Louisiana's 4th congressional district, whose service corresponded with the administration of U.S. President Ru ...

. Magruder then attended the University of Louisiana at New Orleans Law School and graduated as valedictorian in 1858. Magruder opened a law office in

in September 1859. He moved to

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in 1861 to escape the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. George F. Bailey admitted him as a junior partner, forming the Bailey & Magruder law practice. He later formed his own law practice as Magruder & Norton. The firm later became Magruder & Kerr before Magruder joined in the formation of the Hervey, Galt & Magruder firm. Joseph Gary, a former partner of Bailey, appointed Magruder Master in Chancery for the

in 1868. He served this court until 1885. Upon the death of

Theophilus Lyle Dickey Theophilus Lyle Dickey (October 12, 1811 – July 22, 1885) was an Illinois jurist and military leader. Pre-war life Born in Paris, Kentucky, Colonel Dickey moved to Macomb, Illinois in 1834 to study law under Cyrus Walker and was admitted to t ...

in 1885, Magruder was elected to fill his position in the

. After finishing the rest of Dickey's term, Magruder was elected to two more nine year terms. He served as chief justice in 1891, 1896, and 1902. His tenure on the court is best known for his decision in ''Illinois vs. August Spies et al.'' in 1887 to uphold the convictions against the Haymarket anarchists. Magruder also wrote the decision denying the creation of the Chicago Gas Trust Company, which would have monopolized the local illuminating gas trade. He was not nominated for re-election to the court in 1906. The

Yale Law School Yale Law School (Yale Law or YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824 and has been ranked as the best law school in the United States by ''U ...

conferred upon him an honorary Doctor of Laws degree later that year. Magruder then resumed practicing law. Magruder married Julia Maria Latham, the daughter of Philip Clayton Latham, on June 15, 1864; they had a son and a daughter. He attended Fourth Presbyterian Church. He died in Chicago from Bright's disease on April 21, 1910. He was buried there in Rosehill Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magruder, Benjamin D. 1838 births 1910 deaths Chief Justices of the Illinois Supreme Court Illinois Republicans Lawyers from Chicago People from Jefferson County, Mississippi Tulane University Law School alumni Yale University alumni Deaths from kidney disease 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers Justices of the Illinois Supreme Court