James F. Ailshie

James F. Ailshie (June 19, 1868 – May 27, 1947) was an American attorney and jurist who served as a justice of the Idaho Supreme Court, alternating as chief justice with other members of the court. First elected to the court in 1902, he became the youngest chief justice in the United States at the time. During his 24 years on the court, Ailshie wrote more than 700 opinions. At the time of his death, only one opinion in which he participated had been reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court.[1]

James F. Ailshie
Justice of the Idaho Supreme Court
In office
1935–1947
Preceded byN. D. Wernette
Succeeded byPaul W. Hyatt
In office
1903–1914
Preceded byRalph P. Quarles (1903)
Succeeded byWarren Truitt (1914)
Personal details
Born(1868-06-19)June 19, 1868
Greene County, Tennessee, U.S.
DiedMay 27, 1947(1947-05-27) (aged 78)
Boise, Idaho, U.S.
Resting placeCloverdale Memorial Park,
Boise, Idaho
43.616114°N 116.333311°W / 43.616114; -116.333311
Political partyRepublican
SpouseLucie Bundren
Children4, including Robert
EducationWillamette University (PhB) (LLB)

Early life and education

James Franklin Ailshie was born June 19, 1868, in Greene County, Tennessee, to parents George Washington Ailshie and Martha A. (Knight) Ailshie. He was the eldest of nine children, and he attended public school in Greene County. He later attended Carson College in Jefferson City, leaving in his junior year. He briefly taught school in Hutton Valley, Missouri, and in 1888 he moved to Spokane, Washington, then to Rockford where he was a school principal.[2]

In 1889, Ailshie entered Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, graduating in 1891 with a Ph.B. in philosophy and an LL.B. in law.[2] He was admitted to practice law in Oregon, but he settled in north central Idaho at Grangeville, opening his practice in August 1891.[3]

Career

Ailshie served as a regent of the University of Idaho from 1893 to 1896. He was elected to the Idaho Supreme Court for a six-year term in 1902 and reelected in 1908. When Senator Weldon Brinton Heyburn died in 1912, Ailshie ran unsuccessfully in 1913 for the seat, then filled by Kirtland I. Perky, but he lost the race to James H. Brady. Ailshie resigned his seat on the Idaho Supreme Court in 1914, a few months before his term expired. That year Ailshie moved to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, and resumed his law practice. He served as vice president of the American Bar Association in 1934.[1]

In 1935 Ailshie again was elected to the Idaho Supreme Court,[4] and he was reelected in 1941.[1] Over the course of his career, he served five separate stints as chief justice, from 1903 to 1904, 1907 to 1908, 1913 to 1914, 1939 to 1941, and 1945 to 1946.

Personal life

In 1894 Ailshie married Lucie Bundren of Jefferson City, Tennessee, and the marriage produced four children: Lucille (McHarg), James F. Ailshie Jr., William Ailshie, and Robert Ailshie.[2] James Jr., served as a U.S. District Attorney in Idaho,[5][6] and Robert was state attorney general at the time of his death in 1947.[7]

Ailshie became ill in May 1947,[8] was hospitalized briefly, and died several days later at home in Boise on May 27.[9][10][11]

Six months after his death, wife Lucie Ailshie died in November 1947,[12] as did their son, Robert Ailshie.[7]

See also

Further reading

References
  1. "Supreme Court Justice Ailshie Dies in Boise". Idaho Statesman. Boise, Idaho. May 28, 1947. p. 1.
  2. James H. Hawley (1920). "History of Idaho: The Gem of the Mountains". S.J. Clarke. p. 228. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  3. Hiram T. French (1899). An Illustrated History of the State of Idaho. Lewis Publishing Co. p. 318. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  4. "Ailshie to Become New Chief Justice". Idaho Statesman. Boise, Idaho. December 7, 1938. p. 6.
  5. "James Ailshie, Jr., summoned by death". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. April 11, 1938. p. 2.
  6. "Boise Lawyer Dies Suddenly". Idaho Statesman. (Boise). April 11, 1938. p. 1.
  7. "Idaho Attorney-General Robert Ailshie Succumbs". Idaho Statesman. Boise, Idaho. November 17, 1947. p. 1.
  8. "Judge Ailshie Condition Said Increasingly Grave". Idaho Statesman. Boise, Idaho. May 27, 1947. p. 16.
  9. "Justice Ailshie taken by death". Spokane Daily Chronicle. (Washington). Associated Press. May 27, 1947. p. 1.
  10. "Death summons Justice Ailshie". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. May 28, 1947. p. 18.
  11. "Death takes Justice James F. Ailshie". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. May 28, 1947. p. 1.
  12. "Mrs. Lucie B. Ailshie Dies". Idaho Statesman. Boise, Idaho. November 9, 1947. p. 1.
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