Everett Riley York (June 25, 1860 – December 14, 1940) was an American lawyer who was one of the first

law clerk A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person, generally someone who provides direct counsel and assistance to a lawyer or judge by researching issues and drafting legal opinions for cases before the court. Judicial clerks often play significant ...

s to the justices of 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 ...

, serving associate justice Stanly Matthews from 1886 to 1888.

Biography

York was educated in the public schools and at

Cazenovia Seminary Cazenovia College is a private college in Cazenovia, New York. Founded as the Genesee Seminary in 1824 and sponsored by the Methodist Church, in 1894 the college adopted the name of Cazenovia Seminary. It was reorganized in 1942 after church spon ...

in New York. Then, he was an assistant reporter in the Senate at

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

. Later he was stenographer in the courts in

Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania Schuylkill County (, ; Pennsylvania Dutch: Schulkill Kaundi) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is located in the heart of Pennsylvania's Coal Region and is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the popula ...

. In 1880, he was secretary of the land commissioner of the Boston & Maine Rail Road at

Lincoln, Nebraska Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...

. After moving to

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, from 1883 to 1885, he was a private secretary to the assistant United States Postmaster General. In June 1884, York graduated with a LL.B. from

National University School of Law National University School of Law was an American law school founded in Washington, D.C. in 1869. Originally intended as part of a larger design for a national university in the United States, the school was the principal component of National Unive ...

in Washington, D.C. In June 1885, he was awarded a

LL.M. A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

The year following he began serving as law clerk to Justice Matthews. In June 1889, York moved to

Tacoma, Washington Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, Washington, Olympia, and northwest of Mount ...

, and engaged in private practice with the

Northern Pacific Railway The Northern Pacific Railway was a transcontinental railroad that operated across the northern tier of the western United States, from Minnesota to the Pacific Northwest. It was approved by Congress in 1864 and given nearly of land grants, whic ...

and the firm of Mitchell, Ashton & Chapman. He also worked for the Tacoma Land and Import Company, and the Narrows Land Company. In 1901, he was nominated by the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

and elected to the Washington State House of Representatives from the 34th district, and in 1903 from the 36th district.

Death

York died on December 14, 1940, in Tacoma.

Personal life

On June 15, 1887, York married Currence Bostwick Fitch in Washington, D.C. They had four children: a son, Arthur York; and three daughters, Florence York (Fawcett), Helen Denison York (McLaughlin) and Anne Moffat York (King).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:York, Everett Riley 1860 births 1940 deaths 19th-century American lawyers 20th-century American lawyers Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States Lawyers from Washington, D.C. People from Cazenovia, New York Republican Party members of the Washington House of Representatives Politicians from Tacoma, Washington National University School of Law alumni

Biography

Death

Personal life

See also

References