LeBaron Bradford Colt (June 25, 1846 – August 18, 1924) was a

United States senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

and a

United States circuit judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (in case citations, 1st Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Maine * District of Massachusetts * ...

and of the United States Circuit Courts for the First Circuit and previously was a United States District Judge of the

United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island The United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island (in case citations, D.R.I.) is the federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Rhode Island. The District Court was created in 1790 when Rhode Island ratified the ...

Education and career

Born on June 25, 1846, in Dedham,

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, Colt attended the public schools and Williston Seminary. He received an

Artium Baccalaureus Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree in 1868 from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

and a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

in 1870 from Columbia Law School. At Yale, Colt was a member of

Skull and Bones Skull and Bones, also known as The Order, Order 322 or The Brotherhood of Death, is an undergraduate senior secret student society at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut. The oldest senior class society at the university, Skull and Bone ...

. Following graduation, he devoted a year to European travel. He entered private practice in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

from 1871 to 1875. He continued private practice in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

from 1875 to 1879. He was a member of the

Rhode Island House of Representatives The Rhode Island House of Representatives is the lower house of the Rhode Island General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Rhode Island, the upper house being the Rhode Island Senate. It is composed of 75 members, elected t ...

from 1879 to 1881.

Federal judicial service

Colt was nominated by President

James A. Garfield James Abram Garfield (November 19, 1831 – September 19, 1881) was the 20th president of the United States, serving from March 4, 1881 until his death six months latertwo months after he was shot by an assassin. A lawyer and Civil War gene ...

on March 9, 1881, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge John Power Knowles. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on March 21, 1881, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on July 23, 1884, due to his elevation to the First Circuit. Colt was nominated by President

Chester A. Arthur Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 21st president of the United States from 1881 to 1885. He previously served as the 20th vice president under President James A ...

on July 2, 1884, to a seat on the United States Circuit Courts for the First Circuit vacated by Judge

John Lowell John Lowell (June 17, 1743 – May 6, 1802) was a delegate to the Congress of the Confederation, a Judge of the Court of Appeals in Cases of Capture under the Articles of Confederation, a United States district judge of the United States Distri ...

. He was confirmed by the Senate on July 5, 1884, and received his commission the same day. Colt was assigned by

operation of law The phrase "by operation of law" is a legal term that indicates that a right or liability has been created for a party, irrespective of the intent of that party, because it is dictated by existing legal principles. For example, if a person dies wi ...

to additional and concurrent service on the

on June 16, 1891, to a new seat authorized by 26 Stat. 826 (

Evarts Act The Judiciary Act of 1891 ({{USStat, 26, 826), also known as the Evarts Act after its primary sponsor, Senator William M. Evarts, created the United States courts of appeals and reassigned the jurisdiction of most routine appeals from the district ...

). On December 31, 1911, the Circuit Courts were abolished and he thereafter served only on the Court of Appeals. His service terminated on February 7, 1913, due to his resignation.

Congressional service

Colt was elected in 1913 as 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 ...

to the

. He was reelected in 1919 and served from March 4, 1913, until his death in Bristol on August 18, 1924. He was Chairman of the Committee on Conservation of Natural Resources for the

65th United States Congress The 65th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1917, to ...

and Chairman of the Committee on Immigration for the 66th through

68th United States Congress The 68th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1923 ...

es. He voted against the

Immigration Act of 1924 The Immigration Act of 1924, or Johnson–Reed Act, including the Asian Exclusion Act and National Origins Act (), was a United States federal law that prevented immigration from Asia and set quotas on the number of immigrants from the Eastern ...

and supported women's suffrage. He was interred in

Juniper Hill Cemetery Juniper Hill Cemetery is a historic cemetery at 24 Sherry Avenue in Bristol, Rhode Island founded by George R.Usher, James D'Wolf Perry, Byron Diman, Ambrose E. Burnside, James H. West, Charles H. R. Doringle, and Lemanuel W. Briggs. The origina ...

in Bristol.

Family

Colt was the son of Christopher Colt (the brother of arms maker

Samuel Colt Samuel Colt (; July 19, 1814 – January 10, 1862) was an American inventor, industrialist, and businessman who established Colt's Patent Fire-Arms Manufacturing Company (now Colt's Manufacturing Company) and made the mass production of r ...

) and Theodora Goujand DeWolf Colt; his younger brother,

Samuel P. Colt Samuel Pomeroy Colt (January 10, 1852 – August 13, 1921) was an industrialist and politician from Rhode Island. He formed the United States Rubber Company, later called Uniroyal and the largest rubber company in the nation. Early life and ed ...

, was a prominent Rhode Island businessman and politician.

References

External links