Rush Elmore (February 27, 1819 - August 14, 1864) was an American attorney and jurist who served as an associate judge of the Supreme Court of the Kansas Territory.
Early life edit
Elmore was born in Autauga County, Alabama, on February 27, 1819.[1][2] His father, John Archer Elmore, was a soldier in the American Revolution who served under General Nathanael Greene.[3] He became an attorney in private practice in Montgomery, Alabama after studying at the University of Alabama.[1][2] In May 1846, at the outbreak of the Mexican-American War, Elmore raised a company and became its captain.[3] After the war, he returned to Montgomery to continue his private practice.
Career edit
In 1854, Elmore was appointed by President Franklin Pierce to become an associate judge of the newly formed Supreme Court of the Kansas Territory.[1] Elmore, along with chief judge Samuel Dexter Lecompte and associate judge Sanders W. Johnston, were all appointed as pro-slavery sympathizers.[4]
In 1855, Pierce removed Elmore, Johnston, and then-Governor Andrew Horatio Reeder after accusations were made against them for illegally purchasing Native American land. Elmore was replaced by judge Sterling G. Cato.[4] However, these accusations were later proven false, and Elmore was repromoted by President James Buchanan in 1858 upon Cato's resignation.[1]
In 1857, Elmore helped draft the Lecompton Constitution and advocated for its submission to the people of Kansas for approval.[1][5]
Later life and death edit
Elmore left the Court in 1860, upon Kansas' admission into the Union. Although he was a slaveowner and a supporter of slavery in Kansas, he disagreed with secession and remained loyal to the United States. He continued private practice as an attorney in Topeka, Kansas, until his death there on August 19, 1864.[2]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e "Rush Elmore - Kansapedia - Kansas Historical Society". Kansas Historical Society. October 2012. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
- ^ a b c "Death of Judge Elmore". Kansas Daily Tribune. Lawrence, Kansas. Newspapers.com. 19 August 1864. p. 2. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
- ^ a b Brannon, Peter A. (5 April 1936). "Through The Years - Captain Rush Elmore's Company". The Montgomery Advertiser. Newspapers.com. p. 7. Retrieved 16 January 2024.
- ^ a b Templar, George; Smith, Joan Templar; Templar, Ted M. (1992). "Chapter II - Kansas: The Territorial and District Courts". In Logan, James (ed.). The Federal Courts of the Tenth Circuit: A History. U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. pp. 17, 18, 532. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
- ^ "Affairs in Kansas - Meeting of the Constitutional Convention". The New York Times. 17 September 1857. p. 1. Retrieved 16 January 2024.