Home County: Carroll
Term of Service at the Supreme Court of Missouri: January 1881 – December 1890
In, February of 1861, he was a member of the Missouri State Convention, representing the Tenth Senatorial District.[vi] In 1878, Ray was appointed as a member of a Board of Examiners for the law school at the University of Missouri, known at the time as, the State University.[vii] Before he was elected to the Court, Ray was in private practice and was an accomplished real-estate attorney.[viii]
Ray was elected to Supreme Court of Missouri, at the general election in November 1880[ix] and began his service with the Court in January 1881.[x] Judge Ray served a ten-year term that ended on December 31, 1890.[xi] Judge Ray was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Missouri, from January 1889[xii] to the conclusion of his term with the Court in December 1890.[xiii]
Judge Robert D. Ray died on August 26th, 1891, in Carrollton, Missouri.[xiv]
[i] Alexander A. Lesueur, compiler, Alexander A. Lesueur, Secretary of State, Official Manual, State of Missouri, for the Years 1889-90, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1890), 209, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/1904/rec/7
[ii] Michael K. McGrath, ed., Michael K. McGrath, Secretary of State, Directory of Missouri, 1887-88, 6th edition, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1888), 183, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/2124/rec/6 See also: “Hon. Robert D. Ray,” The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and other Missouri Cities. Biographical Sketches with Steel Engraved Portraits, (St. Louis, MO: American Biographical Publishing Company, 1884), 367, image courtesy of Google Books website, accessed May 18, 2021, available from https://books.google.com/books?id=VZxKRGM1KlAC&q=robert+d.+ray#v=snippet&q=robert%20d.%20ray&f=false
[iii] Michael K. McGrath, ed., Michael K. McGrath, Secretary of State, Directory of Missouri, 1887-88, 6th edition, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1888), 183, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/2124/rec/6
[iv] Alexander A. Lesueur, compiler, Alexander A. Lesueur, Secretary of State, Official Manual, State of Missouri, for the Years 1889-90, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1890), 209, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/1904/rec/7
[v] Michael K. McGrath, ed., Michael K. McGrath, Secretary of State, Official Directory of Missouri for 1885, 5th edition, (St. Louis, MO: John J. Daly Stationery & Printing Company, 1885), 154, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/775/rec/5
[vi] Missouri General Assembly, Proceedings of the Missouri State Convention, Held at Jefferson City and St. Louis, (St. Louis, MO: George Knapp & Co., Printers and Binders, 1861), 9, image courtesy of Google Books website, accessed on May 18, 2021, available from https://www.google.com/books/edition/Journal_and_Proceedings_of_the_Missouri/-V9GAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=Robert%20D.%20Ray See also: Michael K. McGrath, ed., Michael K. McGrath, Secretary of State, Official Directory of Missouri for 1883, 4th edition, (St. Louis, MO: John J. Daly Stationery and Printing Company, 1883), 139, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 18, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/308/rec/4
[vii] “The University Law School,” The State Journal, (Jefferson City, Missouri), May 3, 1878, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the Chronicling America website, accessed May 18, 2021, available from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87052128/1878-05-03/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1845&index=2&rows=20&words=D+Ray+Robert&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Missouri&date2=1902&proxtext=Robert+D.+Ray&y=17&x=13&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1
[viii] “Hon. Robert D. Ray,” The Bench and Bar of St. Louis, Kansas City, Jefferson City, and other Missouri Cities. Biographical Sketches with Steel Engraved Portraits, (St. Louis, MO: American Biographical Publishing Company, 1884), 367, image courtesy of Google Books, accessed May 18, 2021, available from https://books.google.com/books?id=VZxKRGM1KlAC&q=robert+d.+ray#v=snippet&q=robert%20d.%20ray&f=false
[ix] Alexander A. Lesueur, compiler, Alexander A. Lesueur, Secretary of State, Official Manual, State of Missouri, for the Years 1889-90, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1890), 209, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/1904/rec/7
[x] Thomas K. Skinker, state reporter, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Missouri, vol. 72, (Kansas City, MO: Ramsey, Millett & Hudson, 1881), iii. Publication located in the Supreme Court of Missouri Law Library.
[xi] Michael K. McGrath, ed., Michael K. McGrath, Secretary of State, Official Directory of Missouri for 1885, 5th edition, (St. Louis, MO: John J. Daly Stationery & Printing Company, 1885), 117, information courtesy of Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed May 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/738/rec/5
[xii] F.M. Brown, state reporter, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Missouri, vol. 97, (Columbia, MO: E.W. Stephens, Publisher, 1889), iii. Publication available in the Supreme Court of Missouri Law Library.
[xiii] F.M. Brown, official reporter, Reports of Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Missouri, vol. 102, (Columbia, MO: E.W. Stephens, Publisher, 1891), iii. Publication available in the Supreme Court of Missouri Law Library.
[xiv] “Death of Judge Ray,” Rolla Herald, (Rolla, Missouri), September 3, 1891, image courtesy of State Historical Society of Missouri Digital Newspaper Project Collection, accessed May 18, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/129056103/?terms=robert%20d.%20ray&match=1 See also: “Judge Robert Ray,” Find A Grave website, Find a Grave Memorial ID 127563445, Oak Hill Cemetery, Carrollton, Carroll County, Missouri, maintained by CC-Genealogy, contributor 47277372, accessed May 18, 2021, available from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/127563445/robert-darwin-ray [To confirm date of death on headstone.]
Biographical information authored by Mr. John “Jack” Ries, 2021, University of Missouri, Columbia.