Harlow South Orton (November 23, 1817July 4, 1895) was an American lawyer and judge. He was the 8th Chief Justice of the

Wisconsin Supreme Court The Wisconsin Supreme Court is the highest appellate court in Wisconsin. The Supreme Court has jurisdiction over original actions, appeals from lower courts, and regulation or administration of the practice of law in Wisconsin. Location The Wi ...

, and served on the court from 1878 until his death. He is chiefly remembered as the author of the Wisconsin Supreme Court opinion '' Vosburg v. Putney'' (1890), an important

torts A tort is a civil wrong that causes a claimant to suffer loss or harm, resulting in legal liability for the person who commits the tortious act. Tort law can be contrasted with criminal law, which deals with criminal wrongs that are punishable ...

case in establishing the scope of liability from battery. Earlier in his career, he served three non-consecutive terms in the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

, representing

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States Place names * Madison, Wisconsin, the state capital of Wisconsin and the largest city known by this ...

and central

Dane County Dane County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 561,504, making it the second-most populous county in Wisconsin. The county seat is Madison, which is also the state capital. Dane County is the ...

Background

Orton was born in

Niagara County, New York Niagara County is in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 212,666. The county seat is Lockport. The county name is from the Iroquois word ''Onguiaahra''; meaning ''the strait'' or ''thunder of waters''. Niag ...

, on November 23, 1817, and educated at the

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

Academy and then at Madison University (which later changed its name to

Colgate University Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York. The college was founded in 1819 as the Baptist Education Society of the State of New York and operated under that name until 1823, when it was renamed Hamilton Theologi ...

). In 1837, Orton moved to

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, where he spent a year as a school teacher, before joining his brother Myron, who was a

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

, in

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 ...

. Harlow Orton was

called to the bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

in 1838. Orton practiced law for five years. In 1843,

Indiana Governor The governor of Indiana is the head of government of the State of Indiana. The governor is elected to a four-year term and is responsible for overseeing the day-to-day management of the functions of many agencies of the Indiana state government ...

Samuel Bigger Samuel Bigger (March 20, 1802 – September 9, 1846) was the seventh governor of the U.S. state of Indiana from December 9, 1840 to December 6, 1843. Bigger was nominated to run for governor because he had no connection to the failed public work ...

(a Whig) appointed Orton circuit

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

for

Porter County, Indiana Porter County is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. As of 2020, the population was 173,215, making it the 10th most populous county in Indiana. The county seat is Valparaiso. The county is part of Northwest Indiana, as well as the Chicago m ...

. Orton served as an Indiana judge for four years. In 1847, he moved to

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

, in the

Wisconsin Territory The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin. Belmont was ...

, and again set himself up as a private lawyer. In 1852, Orton moved to

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

to serve as legal counsel and private secretary for Whig

Governor of Wisconsin The governor of Wisconsin is the head of government of Wisconsin and the commander-in-chief of the state's army and air forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Wiscons ...

Leonard J. Farwell.

Assembly service and 1855 election

He was elected as a Whig member of the

from

's 5th Assembly district (the then-

Village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

of Madison, and the

Towns A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

of Town of Madison, Blooming Grove, "Burk" '' ic', Westport,

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, and

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

) in 1853, succeeding

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 ...

Mathew Roche. He was succeeded by Democrat William R. Taylor. In the 1855 Wisconsin gubernatorial election, in the official canvass,

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Coles Bashford Coles Bashford (January 24, 1816April 25, 1878) was an American lawyer and politician who became the fifth governor of Wisconsin, and one of the founders of the U.S. Republican Party. His one term as governor ended in a bribery scandal that end ...

was narrowly defeated by Democrat

William A. Barstow William Augustus Barstow (September 13, 1813December 13, 1865) was an American businessman, politician, and public administrator. He was the third governor and second Secretary of State of Wisconsin, and served as a Union Army officer during the ...

. Bashford sued, however, alleging fraudulent election returns, and was ultimately successful in having the

declare him the winner of the election. Orton was Bashford's lawyer in this proceeding. In 1858, Orton was again elected to the Assembly, succeeding Democrat Frank Gault in a 5th District which now included the Towns of

Dane Dane or Danes may refer to: People Pertaining to Denmark * Dane, somebody from Denmark * Danes, an ethnic group native to Denmark * Danes (Germanic tribe) Other people * Dane (name), a surname and a given name (and a list of people with the nam ...

, Vienna, Westport,

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

, Middleton, and Madison (but only the 1st

Ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

of the City of Madison), and described his profession as "Capt. of the Dane Cavalry"; he was assigned to the

standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

s on the

judiciary The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

and the

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

. In 1859, Orton was appointed judge for the 9th Judicial Circuit to fill the vacancy left by Luther S. Dixon, who became a Wisconsin Supreme Court justice. (Orton was succeeded in the Assembly by

Leonard Farwell Leonard James Farwell (January 5, 1819 – April 11, 1889) was an American politician and public administrator. He was the 2nd Governor of Wisconsin. Early life Farwell was born in Watertown, New York, the son of James and Rebecca (Cady) ...

.) Orton resigned as circuit judge in 1865 and returned to private law practice.

U.W. Law School and elected offices

Orton served as dean of the

University of Wisconsin Law School The University of Wisconsin Law School is the professional graduate law school of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Located in Madison, Wisconsin, the school was founded in 1868. The University of Wisconsin Law School is guided by a "law in ...

from 1869 to 1874. He was elected a final time to the Assembly in 1870, this time unopposed, as one of several "people's" candidates; he described himself as "a conservative democrat, or democratic-whig, or independent, hobelieves in a strong government of the people". (Democratic incumbent

Alden Sanborn Alden Ream "Zeke" Sanborn (May 22, 1899 – December 1, 1991) was an American rower who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. He won a gold medal in men's eight. He also served as a United States Naval Aviator. Biography Sanborn wa ...

was not running for re-election.) He was succeeded in 1871 (the Assembly having been

redistricted Redistricting in the United States is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. For the United States House of Representatives, and state legislatures, redistricting occurs after each decennial census. The U.S. Constitution in Ar ...

in the meantime) by Democrat John D. Gurnee. Orton ran for

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

in 1876 as a Democrat, against Republican incumbent

Lucien B. Caswell Lucien Bonaparte Caswell (November 27, 1827April 26, 1919) was an American lawyer and Republican politician. He served 14 years in the United States House of Representatives between 1875 and 1891, representing parts of southeast Wisconsin. Biog ...

, but lost by 348 votes (0.55% of the vote); and served one term as mayor of

in 1877.

Supreme Court

In 1877, Wisconsin amended its constitution to create two more seats on the Supreme Court and Orton was elected. Orton became the chief justice when Chief Justice William Lyon retired in 1894. Orton was on the Supreme Court until he died July 4, 1895. He and his wife Elizabeth Cheney had four children.

External links

''New York Times'' Obituary
* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Orton, Harlow S. 1817 births 1895 deaths People from Niagara County, New York People from Porter County, Indiana Indiana state court judges Mayors of Madison, Wisconsin Wisconsin state court judges Members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Chief Justices of the Wisconsin Supreme Court Wisconsin Whigs 19th-century American politicians Wisconsin Democrats University of Wisconsin Law School faculty 19th-century American judges