Ulysses Sigel Webb (September 29, 1864 – July 31, 1947) was an American
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 ...
and
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, a ...
affiliated with the
Republican Party. He served as the 19th
Attorney General of California
The attorney general of California is the state attorney general of the Government of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" (Constitution of California, Article V, Section ...
for the lengthy span of 37 years.
Webb's parents were Cyrus Webb, a Civil War captain, and Eliza Cather Webb. He was born in
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...
and educated in
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 the ...
, and later moved to
Quincy, California
Quincy (formerly, Quinsy) is a census-designated place and the county seat of Plumas County, California. The population was 1,630 during the 2020 Census, down from 1,728 during the 2010 Census, and 1,879 during the 2000 Census.
History
Quincy ...
.
There, he gained admittance to the
State Bar of California
The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate disciplin ...
and was elected
Plumas County
Plumas County () is a county in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,790. The county seat is Quincy, and the only incorporated city is Portola. The largest community in the county is ...
District Attorney, in which position he served for 12 years (1890–1902).
He was appointed Attorney General of California by
Governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Henry Gage
Henry Tifft Gage (December 25, 1852 – August 28, 1924) was an American lawyer, politician and diplomat. A Republican, Gage was elected to a single term as the 20th governor of California from 1899 to 1903. Gage was also the U.S. Minister ...
in 1902, and elected to a full term later that year. Webb served as attorney general for 37 years, from 1902 to 1939 (9 terms), and is one of the longest-serving statewide officials in American history. He began a lengthy series of lawsuits to prove the state held title, in trust for the people of California, to tide and submerged lands, for public access and use for navigation, shipping and commerce.
His administration served to clarify new legislation involving elections, motor vehicles, and criminal trial procedures. (The Criminal Law Division has since exploded its workload—Webb reported in his 1914–16 Biennial Report a criminal case load of 307 appeals in two years, whereas today more than 6,000 appeals are received annually).
Webb also vigorously prosecuted land transfers made to avoid enforcement of the
California Alien Land Law of 1913
The California Alien Land Law of 1913 (also known as the Webb–Haney Act) prohibited "aliens ineligible for citizenship" from owning agricultural land or possessing long-term leases over it, but permitted leases lasting up to three years. It affe ...
that prohibited ownership of land in California by Chinese, Japanese, and other Asians who were ineligible for naturalized citizenship. In the 1930s, Webb's office pressured Fish and Game authorities to go after aliens with commercial fishermen's licenses and prevent offloading of fish at the port of San Diego.
On September 18, 1934, Judge C.N. Andrews ruled that residence requirements were a violation of the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Webb appealed to the Court of Appeals and the state Supreme Court, both of which also ruled that residence requirements violated the Fourteenth Amendment.
California governor
Gray Davis
Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 to 2003. In 2003, only a few months into his second term, Davis was recalled and remov ...
apologized in 2003 for Webb's zealous progressive-promoted sterilization program under the state's eugenics policy.
Governor Davis Makes Statement On Eugenics
/ref>
Personal life
Webb married Grace Goodwin, the daughter of Judge J. D. and Martha Goodwin of Quincy. The Webbs had three children, Hester, Sigel Goodwin and Grace. Webb belonged to the Masonic
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...
and Knights of Pythias
The Knights of Pythias is a fraternal organization and secret society founded in Washington, D.C., on . The Knights of Pythias is the first fraternal organization to receive a charter under an act of the United States Congress. It was founded ...
fraternities and to the Union League Club
The Union League Club is a private social club in New York City that was founded in 1863 in affiliation with the Union League. Its fourth and current clubhouse is located at 38 East 37th Street on the corner of Park Avenue, in the Murray Hill ...
. He died in San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
on July 31, 1947.
References
External links
Ulysses S. Webb, 19th Attorney General - 1850 to Present - California Dept. of Justice - Office of the Attorney General
at caag.state.ca.us
JoinCalifornia - U. S. Webb
at www.joincalifornia.com
Keith Aoki, ''No Right to Own? The Early Twentieth-Century "Alien Land Laws" as a Prelude to Internment'', 19 Boston College Third World Law Journal 37 (1998)
Rose Cuison Villazor, ''Rediscovering'' Oyama v. California: ''At the Intersection of Property, Race and Citizenship,'' 87 Washington University Law Review 979 (2010)
Dudley O. McGovney, ''The Anti-Japanese Land Laws of California and Ten Other States'', 35 California Law Review 7 (1947).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Webb, Ulysses S.
1864 births
1947 deaths
California Attorneys General
California Republicans
People from Quincy, California
People from Taylor County, West Virginia