![Lucius Q](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Lucius_Q._C._Lamar_1797-1834.jpg)
Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar (July 15, 1797 – July 4, 1834) was an attorney and jurist in his native
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
. His son
Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II
Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II (September 17, 1825January 23, 1893) was an American politician, diplomat, and jurist. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented Mississippi in both houses of Congress, served as the United States Sec ...
followed him into law and was appointed from Mississippi as a
U.S. Supreme Court
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 ...
Justice.
Early life and education
Lucius was the first son in his family, and born on his father's plantation in
Milledgeville, Georgia
Milledgeville is a city in and the county seat of Baldwin County in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is northeast of Macon and bordered on the east by the Oconee River. The rapid current of the river here made this an attractive location to buil ...
, where he grew up. His parents, John and Rebecca (Lamar) Lamar had allowed his mother's brother to name their sons; he named them after his favorite historical heroes. Lamar was named for the Roman statesman
Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus
Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus ( – ) was a Roman patrician, statesman, and military leader of the early Roman Republic who became a legendary figure of Roman virtue—particularly civic virtue—by the time of the late Republic.
Cincinnatus was ...
. His younger brother was
Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar
Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar (August 16, 1798 – December 25, 1859) was an Lawyer, attorney born in Georgia,
who became a Texas politician, poet, diplomat, and soldier. He was a leading Texas political figure during the Republic of Texas, Texas ...
, who became known for fighting for the independence of the
Republic of Texas
The Republic of Texas ( es, República de Tejas) was a sovereign state in North America that existed from March 2, 1836, to February 19, 1846, that bordered Mexico, the Republic of the Rio Grande in 1840 (another breakaway republic from Mex ...
and was elected as its second president.
Their family was well-connected in Georgia and the South; first cousins
Gazaway Bugg Lamar
Gazaway Bugg Lamar (1798–1874) was an American enslaver and merchant in cotton and shipping in Savannah, Georgia, and a steamboat pioneer. He was the first to use a prefabricated iron steamboat on local rivers, which was a commercial success. In ...
and his brother G. W. became bankers in Augusta, Savannah, and New York City.
![Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II - Brady-Handy](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Lucius_Quintus_Cincinnatus_Lamar_II_-_Brady-Handy.jpg)
Lucius Lamar studied law at
Milledgeville, Georgia
Milledgeville is a city in and the county seat of Baldwin County in the U.S. state of Georgia. It is northeast of Macon and bordered on the east by the Oconee River. The rapid current of the river here made this an attractive location to buil ...
, and at
Litchfield Law School
The Litchfield Law School of Litchfield, Connecticut, was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietary school was unaffiliated with any college or university. (Whi ...
in
Litchfield, Connecticut
Litchfield is a town in and former county seat of Litchfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 8,192 at the 2020 census. The boroughs of Bantam and Litchfield are located within the town. There are also three unincorporat ...
. He was admitted to the Georgia bar in 1819. He set up his practice in his hometown of Milledgeville. After getting established, he married and started a family.
Law career
Lamar revised
Augustin Smith Clayton
Augustin Smith Clayton (November 27, 1783 – June 21, 1839) was a jurist and politician from the American state of Georgia.
Clayton was born in Fredericksburg, Virginia, attended the Richmond Academy in Augusta, Georgia, and graduated wi ...
's ''Georgia Justice'' about 1819. He was commissioned by the legislature to
compile
In computing, a compiler is a computer program that translates computer code written in one programming language (the ''source'' language) into another language (the ''target'' language). The name "compiler" is primarily used for programs that ...
''The Laws of Georgia from 1810 to 1819'' (Augusta, 1821).
He gained respect as an attorney. In 1830, Lamar was elected as judge of the Superior Court, succeeding
Thomas W. Cobb.
In 1834, he committed
suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
by gunshot. He was said to have been despondent after learning that a man he had convicted of murder and sentenced to death was in fact innocent of the crime.
["Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar"](_blank)
The Political Graveyard website But this account has been questioned.
[Harrington, Hugh T. ''Remembering Milledgeville: Historic Tales from Georgia's Antebellum Capital''. The History Press (2005).] He was buried at Memory Hill Cemetery in Milledgeville.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lamar, Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus
1797 births
1834 deaths
Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers
Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges
Litchfield Law School alumni
Burials in Georgia (U.S. state)
19th-century American judges
1830s suicides
19th-century American lawyers