Cyrus Madison Hawley (January 15
or 27,
1815 – August 29, 1894) was a justice of the
Utah Territorial Supreme Court from 1869 to 1873.
Early life, education, and career
Born in
Solon,
Cortland County,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
, to Lewis Hawley and Sarah Tanner Hawley, he was educated in
Homer, New York, and
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 ...
under
Joshua A. Spencer
Joshua Austin Spencer (May 13, 1790 in Great Barrington, Berkshire County, Massachusetts – April 25, 1857 in Utica, Oneida County, New York) was an American lawyer and politician from New York.
Life
He was the son of Eliphalet Spencer (1760â ...
, in
Utica, New York.
Hawley moved to
Chicago in 1847, and continued reading law to be admitted to the bar there in 1849.
He thereafter practiced in Chicago for twenty years,
including in that time a period of association with
Lyman Trumbull,
and
George Trumbull.
In 1861, he gained national prominence for publishing a letter advocating for the
United States Department of the Treasury to issue treasury notes.
At the time, the United States had no federal currency, instead relying on states and private banks to issue their own currency. In 1862, Hawley was admitted to practice before the
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
.
Judicial service
On April 15, 1869, Hawley was appointed by President
Ulysses S. Grant to the Territorial Utah Supreme Court,
holding that office for four years.
It was said that "his written decisions and opinions upon the various legal issues which were submitted to his consideration are noted for their soundness, ability and perspicuity".
While serving in this capacity, he ordered the arrest of
John D. Lee for Lee's role in the
Mountain Meadows massacre.
Later life and death
Hawley later moved to
Washington, D.C., where he partnered with
Albert G. Riddle for a time.
He returned to Chicago in his retirement, residing in
Hyde Park, where he died after a year-long illness.
In death, Hawley made one final contribution to the law: he had been sued by one Marie M. Fenton in Illinois on the grounds that workers contracted to Hawley had damaged Fenton's property, but both Fenton and Hawley died while the lawsuit was progressing. The court held that the lawsuit survived both, and that Fenton's estate could collect from Hawley's estate due to Hawley's liability for the damage.
Personal life
In 1862 Hawley married Sophia Fellows, granddaughter of
American Revolution General
John Fellows. Many years after Sophia's death, on January 19, 1893, Hawley married Annie Fulton Loomis of Chicago, who survived him.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hawley, Cyrus M.
Justices of the Utah Supreme Court
1815 births
1894 deaths
Utah Territorial judges
19th-century American judges