Courtland Craig Gillen (July 3, 1880 – September 1, 1954) was an American lawyer and jurist who served one term as a

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

from 1931 to 1933.

Biography

Courtland Craig Gillen was born on July 3, 1880, in

Roachdale, Indiana Roachdale is a town in Franklin Township, Putnam County, Indiana, Franklin and Jackson Township, Putnam County, Indiana, Jackson townships, Putnam County, Indiana, Putnam County, in the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 926 at the 2010 cens ...

. Gillen attended the rural schools. After graduating from Fincastle High School in 1897. He taught at common schools and a high school from 1897 to 1904. From 1901-1903, he attended De Pauw University at

Greencastle, Indiana Greencastle is a city in Greencastle Township, Putnam County, Indiana, United States, and the county seat of Putnam County. It was founded in 1821 by Ephraim Dukes on a land grant. He named the settlement for his hometown of Greencastle, Pennsylv ...

and later graduated from the law of department of the predecessor of what is now known as the

Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law The Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law (IU McKinney) is located on the campus of Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) in Indianapolis, Indiana, the urban campus of Indiana University. In the summer of 2001 ...

in 1905. In 1904 he was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

Career

Gillen commenced a law practice in

. He later served as county attorney from 1909-1914, and as a prosecuting attorney of the sixty-fourth judicial circuit in 1917 and 1918. He also served as delegate to the Democratic State convention in 1924. He was a member of the Gillen & Lyon law firm.

Congress

Gillen was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the Seventy-second Congress (March 4, 1931 – March 3, 1933). He was an unsuccessful candidate for renomination in 1932.

Later career

Gillen was elected judge of the sixty-fourth judicial circuit (Putnam Circuit Court) in 1934 and served from January 1, 1935, until his resignation on April 15, 1939. After, he resumed the private practice of law.

Personal life

Gillen married and had three children, Mary Elizabeth, Rachel and Wayne. Gillen died on September 1, 1954, in

. He was interred in Forest Hill Cemetery in Greencastle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillen, Courtland Craig 1880 births 1954 deaths Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law alumni DePauw University alumni Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Indiana People from Putnam County, Indiana People from Greencastle, Indiana 20th-century American legislators