Joseph Church Helm (June 30, 1848 – May 13, 1915) was a jurist from

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

. He served as a Colorado state representative, a Colorado state senator, and as an associate justice and chief justice of the Colorado Supreme Court. He ran for governor in 1892 and was defeated by

Davis Hanson Waite Davis Hanson Waite (April 9, 1825 – November 27, 1901) was an American politician. He was a member of the Populist Party, and he served as the eighth Governor of Colorado from 1893 to 1895. Biography Early years Davis Hanson Waite was bor ...

. At the age of 13, he enlisted as a drummer boy in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

. Over four years, he saw numerous battles and then was a captured and held at the Belle Isle Prisoner Camp, when he was released in 1863, he became private. He stayed in the war until its end, when he was 17 years of age. He saved his pay from his service to pay for his college education.

Early life

Helm was born in Chicago on June 30, 1848, to Sarah (Bass) from Canada and Ruggles Helm from New York. The family moved to Prescott, Ontario, soon after Helm was born. In 1854, they moved to Iowa. Both his mother and father's families served during the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

Civil War

Unidentified young drummer boy in Union uniform LOC 9158142401

At the age of 13, he signed up as a drummer boy during the

(1861–1865). He was first with the 13th Infantry Regiment on the

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

side in the Civil War. He next served with the

6th Infantry Regiment The 6th Infantry Regiment ("Regulars") was formed 11 January 1812. Zachary Taylor, later the twelfth President of the United States, was a commander of the unit. The motto, "Regulars, By God!" derives from the Battle of Chippawa, in which Briti ...

. Led by General Winfield Scott Hancock, it was also called Hancock's Corps. He also served in the Armies of the Tennessee and the Potomac. Some of the battles he served in were

Chickasaw Bayou Chickasaw Bayou is a stream in the U.S. state of Mississippi. It is a tributary to the Yazoo River. Chickasaw Bayou derives its name from the Chickasaw tribe. The Battle of Chickasaw Bayou The Battle of Chickasaw Bayou, also called the Battle ...

, Champion Hill,

Vicksburg Vicksburg most commonly refers to: * Vicksburg, Mississippi, a city in western Mississippi, United States * The Vicksburg Campaign, an American Civil War campaign * The Siege of Vicksburg, an American Civil War battle Vicksburg is also the name of ...

, and Collierville. He was held at the Belle Isle Prisoner Camp for three months when he was a prisoner of war. He was released in 1863 and was made a private. He served for four years until the end of the war, when he was 17. He saved his pay during the war to pay for his education.

Career and education

He attended

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

and was a member of Phi Kappa Psi in the class of 1871. He then taught and became a superintendent in the Arkansas schools of

Van Buren Martin Van Buren ( ; nl, Maarten van Buren; ; December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862) was an American lawyer and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party, he ...

and

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

until 1873. While he was an educator, he also studied for the bar. He returned to the University of Iowa in 1873 and earned an LL B. degree in 1874. He was the second in a class of 74 students. He moved to

Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

, where he was admitted to the bar in 1875. In 1890, he received an honorary Doctor of Law (LLD) from the University of Iowa. CO State Capitol Old Supreme Court

Helm began working as a lawyer in

, in 1875. He was elected to the

Colorado House of Representatives The Colorado House of Representatives is the lower house of the Colorado General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Colorado. The House is composed of 65 members from an equal number of constituent districts, with each distr ...

in 1877 and to the State Senate in 1879, representing El Paso County in both offices. He became a district judge in 1880. He was elected to the Colorado Supreme Court in 1882 and re-elected in 1891. He served as chief justice from 1889 to 1892. Helm resigned from the supreme court in 1892 to run for Governor of Colorado as a Republican. He was his party's nominee but was defeated by Populist Party politician

. Helm practiced law until his death, except for a period from 1907 to 1909 when he was appointed by Governor Henry Augustus Buchtel to fill a vacancy on the Supreme Court. As an attorney, he represented the interests of the Moffat Tunnel, Moffat estate and Moffat railway. Another client, beginning in 1904, was the

Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad (CRI&P RW, sometimes called ''Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railway'') was an American Class I railroad. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock. At the end ...

. He had an office in the Equitable Building.

Personal life

He married on September 27, 1881, to Marcia Stewart of Wisconsin. Her family moved to Colorado Springs in 1874 for her father George H. Stewart's health. They did not have any children. Her sister was Alice Stewart Hill, the wife of Francis B. Hill, was an artist and art instructor of Colorado Springs. Helm was a member of a number of organizations. He died May 13, 1915, at his home in Denver and is buried in there in the Fairmount Cemetery in a large mausoleum, where he was interred following public funeral services in Denver. After Joseph died, Marcia lived part of the time with her sister Hattie in Colorado Springs. Marcia died in 1932 and is also buried in the mausoleum at Fairmount Cemetery.

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Helm, Joseph C. 1848 births 1915 deaths Republican Party members of the Colorado House of Representatives Republican Party Colorado state senators Justices of the Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justices of the Colorado Supreme Court University of Iowa College of Law alumni Colorado lawyers People from Colorado Springs, Colorado 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers