Chester Ralph Hovey (January 21, 1872 – November 9, 1953) was a justice of the

Washington Supreme Court The Washington Supreme Court is the highest court in the judiciary of the U.S. state of Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the ...

from 1921 to 1923.

Early life, education, and career

Born in

Holyoke, Massachusetts Holyoke is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States, that lies between the western bank of the Connecticut River and the Mount Tom Range. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 38,238. Located north of Springfield ...

, Hovey attended public high school in

Durand, Wisconsin Durand is a city in and the county seat of Pepin County, Wisconsin, United States. Situated on the banks of the Chippewa River approximately from its confluence with the Mississippi River, the city borders the Town of Durand. The population wa ...

, graduating in 1888, and thereafter moving to

Ellensburg, Washington Ellensburg is a city in and the county seat of Kittitas County, Washington, United States. It is located just east of the Cascade Range near the junction of Interstate 90 and Interstate 82 Interstate 82 (I-82) is an Interstate Highway in th ...

.Charles H. Sheldon, ''The Washington High Bench: A Biographical History of the State Supreme Court, 1889–1991'' (1992), p. 218-19.H. James Boswell, ''American Blue Book: Western Washington, Seattle'' (Lowman and Hanford Co., 1922), p. 41. He "worked odd jobs and in a grocery store, studying law at night with Judge Ralph Kauffman", in

Kittitas County, Washington Kittitas County () is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 44,337. Its county seat and largest city is Ellensburg, Washing ...

. In 1893, Hovey was admitted to the bar, and "at once entered the practice of his profession in Ellensburg". Hovey was elected prosecuting attorney of Kittitas County from 1899 to 1901 and from 1910 to 1912. When he was not holding this office, he served as Ellensburg City Attorney, developing expertise in

water rights Water right in water law refers to the right of a user to use water from a water source, e.g., a river, stream, pond or source of groundwater. In areas with plentiful water and few users, such systems are generally not complicated or contentious ...

and

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow Crop, crops, Landscape plant, landscape plants, and Lawn, lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,00 ...

law.

Judicial career

Hovey was elected President of the

Washington State Bar Association The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) operates under the delegated authority of the Washington Supreme Court to license the state's nearly 41,000 active and inactive lawyers and other legal professionals. In furtherance of its obligation to ...

in July 1921, but resigned on September 7, 1921, the date that he was appointed to the Washington Supreme Court by Governor Louis Hart.''Report of Proceedings of the Annual Convention – Washington State Bar Association'' (1921), p. 5, 8. Hovey was unsuccessful in attempting to retain his seat in an election in 1923. Hovey then moved to

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, and established a new law practice, eventually being elected president of the Seattle Bar Association in 1929.

Personal life

Hovey married Grace J. Painter in 1895, with whom he had two children, a son named Joseph and a daughter named Ann. He was a member of the Elks' club and Chamber of Commerce, of Ellensburg.

References

Justices of the Washington Supreme Court 1872 births 1953 deaths U.S. state supreme court judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law People from Holyoke, Massachusetts People from Ellensburg, Washington {{Washington-state-judge-stub