William Douglas McHugh (September 10, 1859 – December 26, 1923) was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the United States federal judiciary, U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each United States federal judicial district, federal judicial district, which each cover o ...

of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska.

Education and career

Born in

Galena Galena, also called lead glance, is the natural mineral form of lead(II) sulfide (PbS). It is the most important ore of lead and an important source of silver. Galena is one of the most abundant and widely distributed sulfide minerals. It cryst ...

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 ...

, McHugh

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

in 1883 and was in private practice in Galena from 1883 to 1888, and in

Omaha Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest city ...

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the southwe ...

from 1888 to 1896.

Federal judicial service

McHugh received a recess appointment from President

Grover Cleveland Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837June 24, 1908) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States from 1885 to 1889 and from 1893 to 1897. Cleveland is the only president in American ...

on November 20, 1896, to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska vacated by Judge

Elmer Scipio Dundy Elmer Scipio Dundy (March 5, 1830 – October 28, 1896) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska. He was the namesake of Dundy County, Nebraska. Biography Born on March 5, 1830, in ...

. He was nominated to the same position by President Cleveland on December 8, 1896, who subsequently withdrew the nomination on February 1, 1897. McHugh's service terminated on March 3, 1897, with the sine die adjournment of 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 ...

of the

54th United States Congress The 54th 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, 1895, ...

and the end of Cleveland's Presidency.

Later career and death

Following his departure from the federal bench, McHugh resumed private practice in Omaha from 1897 to 1920. He was general counsel to the International Harvester Corporation 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 from 1920 to 1923. He died on December 26, 1923, in Chicago.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McHugh, William Douglas 1859 births 1923 deaths People from Galena, Illinois Illinois lawyers Lawyers from Omaha, Nebraska Judges of the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska Unsuccessful recess appointments to United States federal courts United States federal judges appointed by Grover Cleveland 19th-century American judges United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law