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Emmett Seawell

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Emmett Seawell
Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court
In office
January 8, 1923 – July 7, 1939
Appointed byElected
Preceded byTerry W. Ward
Succeeded byJesse W. Carter
Personal details
Born(1862-04-05)April 5, 1862
Yountville, California, U.S.
DiedJuly 7, 1939(1939-07-07) (aged 77)
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Spouse
Ida S Graiter
​
(m. 1892)​
Alma materPacific Methodist University

Emmett Seawell (April 5, 1862 – July 7, 1939) was an associate justice of the Supreme Court of California from January 8, 1923, to July 7, 1939.

Biography

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Born in Yountville, California, Seawell was one of 11 children of California pioneers, William Neely Seawell and Sarah A. Rickman.[1][2] His father later served as Deputy Sheriff and then justice of the peace in Santa Rosa.[3] Emmett was educated in the public schools, and for three years after high school worked in the printing trade and for newspapers.[2] In 1887, he graduated from the Pacific Methodist College of Santa Rosa,[4][5] read law in the office of J.W. Oates, and was admitted to the California bar in 1890.[2]

Next, Seawell entered private practice with W. F. Cowan in Santa Rosa and held a series of public posts.[2] In 1892, he was elected District Attorney for Sonoma County, California.[6][7] In October 1898, he was nominated by the Democratic Party in the First District and ran unsuccessfully for United States Congress.[8][9][10] In 1902, he was elected to the position of Judge of the Superior Court for Sonoma County, a position he held until 1922.[11][12][13][14] In June 1911, he lent his courtroom to the Santa Rosa Equal Suffrage Association to hold its meeting for the right of women to vote.[15] In 1914 he was appointed pro-tem Judge of the Superior Court for Stanislaus County, a position he held until 1919.

In November 1922, Seawell was elected as a member of the Supreme Court of California, defeating Charles A. Shurtleff, whose term ended December 18, 1922.[16] Until Seawell was sworn in, Terry W. Ward filled the gap period as justice.[17] Seawell sat on the high court for nearly 17 years until his heart attack in the courtroom of the Supreme Court and death on July 7, 1939.[18][19][20] In August 1939, Governor Culbert L. Olson appointed Jesse W. Carter to fill Seawell's seat.[21]

Personal life

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On March 20, 1892, Seawell married Ida S. Graiter in Santa Rosa.[22]

References

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  1. ^ "Death of Mrs. Seawell". Los Angeles Herald. No. 230. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 18 May 1899. p. 3. Retrieved August 23, 2017. She was the mother of... former District Attorney Emmett Seawell.
  2. ^ a b c d Gregory, Tom (1911). History of Sonoma County, California: With Biographical Sketches of the Leading Men and Women of the County, who Have Been Identified with Its Growth and Development from the Early Days to the Present Time. Historic Record Company. p. 481. Retrieved August 23, 2017. emmett seawell.
  3. ^ "Judge Seawell of Santa Rosa Passes Away". Sacramento Daily Union. Vol. 91, no. 123. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 29 June 1896. p. 8. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  4. ^ "Commencement Week". Sonoma Democrat. No. 31. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 19 May 1883. p. 3. Retrieved August 23, 2017. Marshalls...Emmett Seawell
  5. ^ "Pacific Methodist College, Commencement Day Exercises, Award Of Prizes to Graduates". Daily Alta California. California Digital Newspaper Collection. May 20, 1887. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
  6. ^ "County Notes". Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar. No. 2. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 29 March 1894. p. 2. Retrieved August 23, 2017. District Attorney Emmett Seawell conducting the prosecution
  7. ^ "Illegal Methods of Fishing". San Francisco Call. Vol. 80, no. 89. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 28 August 1896. p. 4. Retrieved August 23, 2017. Emmett Seawell, District Attorney of this county
  8. ^ "The Candidate for Congress". Press Democrat. No. 107. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 24 September 1898. p. 2. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  9. ^ "Our Next Congressman". Red Bluff News. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 7 October 1898. p. 3. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  10. ^ "Seawell and Barham". Red Bluff News. No. 48. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 9 December 1898. p. 4. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  11. ^ "Death Makes a Sudden Call for Former Mendocino Senator". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 86. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 25 August 1902. p. 5. Retrieved August 23, 2017. Emmett Seawell, is a candidate for Superior Judge
  12. ^ "Doings in the Superior Court". Healdsburg Enterprise. No. 30. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 10 January 1903. p. 3. Retrieved August 22, 2017. Judge Emmett Seawell called his first calendar in department one of the superior court
  13. ^ "Brief Items of Local Interest". Sausalito News. Vol. 24, no. 45. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 7 November 1908. p. 3. Retrieved July 22, 2017. Emmett Seawell of Sonoma County...reelected
  14. ^ "County Candidates". Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar. No. 8. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 30 April 1914. p. 1. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  15. ^ "A Centennial Celebration: California Women and the Vote". Bancroft Library, University of California. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  16. ^ "Vote Tabulation". Sacramento Union. No. 26171. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 11 November 1922. p. 2. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
  17. ^ Johnson, J. Edward (1966). History of Supreme Court, Vol 2, Justices, 1900-1950 (PDF). San Francisco, CA: Bancroft-Whitney Co. p. 71. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 25, 2017. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
  18. ^ "Emmett Seawell Succumbs in Court Chamber". Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar. No. 90. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 10 July 1939. p. 1. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  19. ^ "Death Takes Seawell, 77, Noted Justice". San Bernardino Sun. No. 45. Associated Press. 8 July 1939. p. 1. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  20. ^ Thompson, Rolfe L. "In Memoriam" (PDF). California Supreme Court Historical Society. Retrieved 2017-05-23.
  21. ^ "Gibson Chosen Landon Place, Court Upheld Appointment of Senator Carter to Supreme Court". Madera Tribune. No. 91. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 16 August 1939. p. 1. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  22. ^ "Seawell-Grater Nuptials". Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar. No. 1. California Digital Newspaper Collection. 24 March 1892. p. 2. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
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See also

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Legal offices
Preceded by Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court
1923–1939 		Succeeded by
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