Home County: Lewis
Term of service at the Supreme Court of Missouri: June 1865 - December 1876
Judge David Wagner was born on December 31, 1826, in Luzerne Country, Pennsylvania.[i] Wagner’s family moved to Missouri in 1842,[ii] and made a home for themselves in Lewis county.[iii] While living in Missouri, Wagner was able to complete his education at Masonic College, and shortly after was reading law with Judge Ellison, of Canton.[iv] In 1848 Judge Wagner was admitted to practice law, which he did in his office located in La Grange.[v] In 1862, David Wagner was elected to be part of the Missouri State Senate.[vi] He served in that position until 1864.[vii] In 1864, Judge Wagner resigned from the state Senate, when he became the judge of the Fourth Judicial Circuit.[viii]
In June 1865, Governor Thomas Fletcher had appointed three new judges to serve the Supreme Court, due to the “Ousting Ordinance” which cleared the Supreme Court of Missouri bench.[ix] On June 13, 1865, with Judge Lovelace and Judge Holmes, Judge Wagner was appointed to the Court.[x] During the November general election of 1868,[xi] Judge Wagner was elected to the Court for a two year term,[xii] and re-elected for a six year term, in 1870.[xiii] In 1870, he published revised the state statutes, and added a supplement in 1872, which were known as “Wagner’s Statutes.”[xiv] Judge Wagner served with the Court until the conclusion of his term in December of 1876.[xv] During his term with the Court, Judge Wagner “had been Chief Justice continuously since 1865.”[xvi] After his service with the Court, Judge Wagner practiced law in St. Louis until 1880, when he retired to Canton, Missouri.[xvii]
Judge David Wagner died in Canton, Missouri on August 4, 1902.[xviii]
[i] Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 180.
[ii] Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 180.
[iii] The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Other Missouri Cities, (St. Louis, MO: H.C. Cooper Jr. & Co., 1884), 267. Paper copy of document in permanent file in the law library.
[iv] The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Other Missouri Cities, (St. Louis, MO: H.C. Cooper Jr. & Co., 1884), 267. Paper copy of document in permanent file in the law library.
[v] The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Other Missouri Cities, (St. Louis, MO: H.C. Cooper Jr. & Co., 1884), 267. Paper copy of document in permanent file in the law library.
[vi] The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Other Missouri Cities, (St. Louis, MO: H.C. Cooper Jr. & Co., 1884), 267. Paper copy of document in permanent file in the law library.
[vii] The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Other Missouri Cities, (St. Louis, MO: H.C. Cooper Jr. & Co., 1884), 267. Paper copy of document in permanent file in the law library.
[viii] The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Other Missouri Cities, (St. Louis, MO: H.C. Cooper Jr. & Co., 1884.), 267. Paper copy of document in permanent file in the law library.
[ix] Charles C. Whittelsey, reporter, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Missouri Vol. XXXV (St. Louis, MO: George Knapp & CO., 1865), iv.
[x] Charles C. Whittelsey, reporter, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Missouri Vol. XXXV (St. Louis, MO: George Knapp & CO., 1865), iv.
[xi] Missouri General Assembly, “Missouri Constitution, 1865,” Article V, Judicial Section 7, page 28 of 72, image courtesy of Missouri State Archives, Missouri State Constitutions, 1820-1945 Digital Database, accessed June 28, 2019, available from http://cdm16795.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p16795coll1/id/114/rec/3
[xii] Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 160.
[xiii] Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 181. See also: Missouri General Assembly, “Missouri Constitution, 1865,” Article V, Judicial Section 7, page 28 of 72, image courtesy of Missouri State Archives, Missouri State Constitutions, 1820-1945 Digital Database, accessed June 28, 2019, available from http://cdm16795.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/p16795coll1/id/114/rec/3
[xiv] Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 181.
[xv] The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and Other Missouri Cities, (St. Louis, MO: H.C. Cooper Jr. & Co., 1884.), 267. Paper copy of document in permanent file in the law library. See also: Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 160. See also: The State Journal Staff, The State Journal, (Jefferson City, Missouri), Friday, December 29, 1876, information courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri-Columbia, MO image courtesy of Chronicling America website, accessed on June 21, 2019, available from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87052128/1876-12-29/ed-1/seq-2/#date1=1876&index=6&rows=20&words=Judge+Wagner&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Missouri&date
[xvi] Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 160.
[xvii] Horace W. Fuller, ed., The Green Bag, Vol. III, (Boston, MA: The Boston Book Company, 1891), 181.
[xviii] “In Memory of Judge Wagner,” La Belle Star (La Belle, MO), September 5, 1902. Paper copy of newspaper in permanent file in the law library.
Biographical information authored by Mr. Maxwell Beffa, 2019, University of Missouri-Columbia.