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County: Jasper
Term of Service at the Supreme Court of Missouri: January 1895 – December 1904
Judge Waltour M. Robinson was born November 28, 1850,[i] near Paris in Monroe
County.[ii] He was educated in the
public schools of Paris, Missouri.[iii] At 16 years old, he
attended William Jewell College and completed his education there.[iv] After attending William
Jewell, Robinson read law at his brother’s law firm for one year.[v] He then attended the Union
College of Law of the Chicago and Northwestern University for two years.[vi]
After completing law school, Robinson moved to Webb
City, Missouri, and began to practice law in January of 1877.[vii] In 1877, he was also
appointed as City Attorney of Webb City.[viii] He served in that position for four years.[ix] Robinson was elected as
the Prosecuting Attorney of Jasper County, Missouri and served in that capacity
for four years.[x]
During his first term of four years, he lived in Carthage, Missouri.[xi] He then spent two years
practicing civil law in this area.[xii] He returned to Webb City
and was elected again City Attorney.[xiii] In 1892, Judge Waltour M. Robinson was
elected as the Circuit Judge for the Twenty-fifth Judicial District of
Missouri.[xiv]
In 1894,
Judge Robinson was elected to the Supreme Court of Missouri, for a ten-year
term.[xv]
Judge Robinson began his service with the Court in January of 1895.[xvi]
In 1895, while a judge with the Court, William Jewell College presented him with
an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.[xvii]
In January of 1903, Robinson became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court [xviii]
and served in that capacity until the conclusion of his term, on December 31,
1904.[xix]
Judge Waltour M. Robinson died March 10, 1933, in St. Louis.[xx]
[i] “Walter (spelling error noted should be Waltour) Moss Robinson,” Missouri State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Certificate of Death, 1910-1970 Database, information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed July 27, 2021, available from https://www.sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1933/1933_00011512.PDF
[ii] Scroggs & Davis, compiler, Souvenir of the Missouri Legislature
(Thirty-Ninth General Assembly) State Officers,
Etc., 1897-8, vol. 1, (Sedalia, MO: Sedalia Printing
Company, Printers, Binders, and Blank-Book Markers, 1897), 27, information courtesy of
Google Books, accessed July 17, 2021,
available from https://www.google.com/books/edition/Souvenir_of_the_Missouri_Legislature_thi/VB86AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=souvenir+of+the+missouri+legislature&printsec=frontcover
[iii] Scroggs & Davis, compiler, Souvenir of the Missouri Legislature
(Thirty-Ninth General Assembly) State Officers,
Etc., 1897-8, vol. 1, (Sedalia, MO: Sedalia Printing
Company, Printers, Binders, and Blank-Book Markers, 1897), 32, information courtesy of
Google Books, accessed July 17, 2021,
available from https://www.google.com/books/edition/Souvenir_of_the_Missouri_Legislature_thi/VB86AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=souvenir+of+the+missouri+legislature&printsec=frontcover See
also: “The Three New
Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society
of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on
July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1
[iv]Scroggs & Davis, compiler, Souvenir of the Missouri Legislature
(Thirty-Ninth General Assembly) State Officers,
Etc., 1897-8, vol. 1, (Sedalia, MO: Sedalia Printing
Company, Printers, Binders, and Blank-Book Markers, 1897), 32, information courtesy of
Google Books, accessed July 17, 2021, https://www.google.com/books/edition/Souvenir_of_the_Missouri_Legislature_thi/VB86AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=souvenir+of+the+missouri+legislature&printsec=frontcover
See also: “The
Three New Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15,
1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society
of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on
July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1
[v] “The Three New Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1
[vi] Scroggs & Davis, compiler, Souvenir of the Missouri Legislature
(Thirty-Ninth General Assembly) State Officers,
Etc., 1897-8, vol. 1, (Sedalia, MO: Sedalia Printing
Company, Printers, Binders, and Blank-Book Markers, 1897), 32, information courtesy of
Google Books, accessed July 17, 2021,
available from https://www.google.com/books/edition/Souvenir_of_the_Missouri_Legislature_thi/VB86AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=souvenir+of+the+missouri+legislature&printsec=frontcover See
also: “The Three New
Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society
of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on
July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1
[vii] “The Three New Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1 See also: "Personals," The Missouri Historical Review, vol. xxvii, no. 4, July 1933, 374, image courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri website, Missouri Historical Review collection, accessed July 28, 2021, available from https://digital.shsmo.org/digital/collection/mhr/id/13373/rec/111
[viii] “The Three New Ones,” Iron
County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society
of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on
July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1 See
also: Scroggs & Davis, compiler, Souvenir of the Missouri Legislature (Thirty-Ninth General
Assembly) State Officers,
Etc., 1897-8, vol. 1,
(Sedalia, MO: Sedalia Printing Company, Printers, Binders,
and Blank-Book Markers, 1897), 27, information courtesy of Google Books,
accessed July 17, 2021, available from https://www.google.com/books/edition/Souvenir_of_the_Missouri_Legislature_thi/VB86AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=souvenir+of+the+missouri+legislature&printsec=frontcover
[ix] Scroggs & Davis, compiler, Souvenir of the Missouri Legislature
(Thirty-Ninth General Assembly) State Officers,
Etc., 1897-8, vol. 1, (Sedalia, MO: Sedalia Printing
Company, Printers, Binders, and Blank-Book Markers, 1897), 27, information courtesy of
Google Books, accessed July 17, 2021,
available from https://www.google.com/books/edition/Souvenir_of_the_Missouri_Legislature_thi/VB86AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=souvenir+of+the+missouri+legislature&printsec=frontcover
[x] “The Three New Ones,” Iron
County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society
of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on
July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1 See
also: Scroggs & Davis, compiler, Souvenir of the Missouri Legislature (Thirty-Ninth General
Assembly) State Officers,
Etc., 1897-8, vol. 1,
(Sedalia, MO: Sedalia Printing Company, Printers, Binders,
and Blank-Book Markers, 1897), 27, information courtesy of Google Books,
accessed July 17, 2021, available from https://www.google.com/books/edition/Souvenir_of_the_Missouri_Legislature_thi/VB86AQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=souvenir+of+the+missouri+legislature&printsec=frontcover
[xi] “The Three New Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1
[xii] “The Three New Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1
[xiii] “The Three New Ones,” Iron County Register (Ironton, Missouri), November 15, 1894, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/338993605/?terms=waltour%20robinson&match=1 See also: "Personals," The Missouri Historical Review, vol. xxvii, no. 4, July 1933, 374, image courtesy of The State Historical Society of Missouri website, Missouri Historical Review collection, accessed July 28, 2021, available from https://digital.shsmo.org/digital/collection/mhr/id/13373/rec/111 See also: Alexander A. Lesueur, compiler, Alexander A. Lesueur, Secretary of State, Official Manual of the State of Missouri for the Years 1893-94, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1894), 398, information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed July 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/2584/rec/9
[xiv] Alexander A. Lesueur, compiler, Alexander A. Lesueur, Secretary of State, Official Manual of the State of Missouri for the Years 1893-94, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1894), 398, information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed July 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/2584/rec/9
[xv] Alexander A. Lesueur, compiler, Alexander A. Lesueur, Secretary of State, Official Manual of the State of Missouri, for the Years 1895-6, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1896), 142, information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed July 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/2633
[xvi] F.M. Brown, Official Reporter, Reports of Cases Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Missouri, vol. 127, (Columbia, MO: E.W. Stephens, Publisher, 1895), iii. Publication located in the Supreme Court of Missouri Law Library.
[xvii] “Missouri News,” The State Republican (Jefferson City, Missouri), June 27, 1895, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri's Digital Newspaper Project, accessed on July 17, 2021, available from https://shsmo.newspapers.com/image/80093855/?terms=Waltour%20Robinson&match=1
[xviii] “Judge W.M. Robinson Elected Chief Justice,” The St. Louis Republic, (St. Louis, Missouri), January 7, 1903, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the Chronicling America website, accessed on August 20, 2021, available from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn84020274/1903-01-07/ed-1/seq-12/#date1=1903&index=9&rows=20&words=Robinson+Waltour&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=&date2=1903&proxtext=Waltour+Robinson&y=22&x=19&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1 See also: Sam B. Cook, compiler, Sam B. Cook, Secretary of State, Official Manual of the State of Missouri, for the Years 1903-4, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1904), 214, information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed July 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/4946/rec/14
[xix] Sam B. Cook, compiler, Sam B. Cook, Secretary of State, Official Manual of the State of Missouri, for the Years 1903-1904, (Jefferson City, MO: Tribune Printing Company, State Printers and Binders, 1904), 214, information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed July 17, 2021, available from https://mdh.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/bluebook/id/4946/rec/14 See also: “Robinson Succeeded by Lamm,” Fair Play. (Ste. Genevieve, Missouri), December 31, 1904, image digitized by the State Historical Society of Missouri, information courtesy of the State Historical Society of Missouri’s Digital Newspaper Project, accessed August 23, 2021, available from https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn87052181/1904-12-31/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1904&index=4&rows=20&words=Robinson+Waltour&searchType=basic&sequence=0&state=Missouri&date2=1904&proxtext=Waltour+Robinson&y=13&x=16&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=1
[xx] “Walter (spelling error noted should be Waltour) Moss Robinson,” Missouri State Board of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, Certificate of Death, 1910-1970 Database, information courtesy of the Missouri Digital Heritage website, Missouri State Archives, accessed July 27, 2021, available from https://www.sos.mo.gov/images/archives/deathcerts/1933/1933_00011512.PDF
Biographical Information Authored by Ms. Lillian Williams, 2021, University of Missouri-Columbia, Missouri.