Harold Edward Achor (November 16, 1907 – February 5, 1967) was an American lawyer,

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

, and judge who served as a justice of the Indiana Supreme Court from January 3, 1955 to December 12, 1966.Minde C. Browning, Richard Humphrey, and Bruce Kleinschmidt,
Biographical Sketches of Indiana Supreme Court Justices
, ''

Indiana Law Review 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 200 ...

'', Vol. 30, No. 1 (1997), section reproduced i
Indiana Courts Justice Biographies page

Biography

Early life, education, and career

Achor was born in Coffeyville,

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

. When Achor was an infant, his family moved to

Kosciusko County Kosciusko County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. At the 2020 United States Census, its population was 80,240. The county seat (and only incorporated city) is Warsaw. The county was organized in 1836. It was named for the Polish ge ...

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 ...

. Achor attended public school in Atwood. Achor attended the

University of Indianapolis The University of Indianapolis (UIndy) is a private United Methodist Church-affiliated university in Indianapolis, Indiana. It offers Associate, Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctoral degrees. It was founded in 1902 as Indiana Central University and ...

(then known as Indiana Central College), graduating in 1928. He received his legal education at Indiana University Maurer School of Law (in Bloomington), graduating in 1931, and moved to

Anderson Anderson or Andersson may refer to: Companies * Anderson (Carriage), a company that manufactured automobiles from 1907 to 1910 * Anderson Electric, an early 20th-century electric car * Anderson Greenwood, an industrial manufacturer * Anderson ...

that year to begin practicing law, founding the firm of Achor & Peck with his former classmate at IU, William L. Peck. From 1932 to 1937, Achor taught public speaking and

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

at Anderson University (then known as Anderson College). He was also a member of the Anderson College Board of Trustees and the Board of Governors of the Associated Colleges of Indiana. He was also appointed to the Committee of One Hundred of the International Council of Religious Education and helped to organize a branch of Alcoholics Anonymous in

Muncie Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the seat of Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs/lenape-villages.pdf It is located in ...

. He additionally served in many other local civic and religious organizations in Anderson. Achor was involved with the Anderson Church of God and helped to organize the Anderson Area Inter-Faith Fellowship, "an annual gathering of pacifists concerned about eliminating racial prejudice and discrimination" which included Protestants, Catholics, and

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Judicial service

In 1942, Achor, a

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 ...

, was elected judge of the Madison County Superior Court. During this time, he also worked as a

marriage counselor Family therapy (also referred to as family counseling, family systems therapy, marriage and family therapy, couple and family therapy) is a branch of psychology and clinical social work that works with families and couples in intimate relationsh ...

. In 1950, he was elected judge of the

Indiana Appellate Court 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 st ...

, serving in the position for a single four-year term. In 1955, Achor became a justice of the Indiana Supreme Court, succeeding Justice Dan Flanagan. He resigned from the bench in 1966 due to his failing health. He was succeeded to the court by Justice Donald Hunter.

Personal life and death

In 1935, Achor married Helen Shoemaker in Anderson. Shoemaker was originally from Tomball,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. Achor died in 1967, in Anderson.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Achor, Harold 1907 births 1967 deaths People from Coffeyville, Kansas University of Indianapolis alumni Indiana University Maurer School of Law alumni Justices of the Indiana Supreme Court American judges Indiana Republicans