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Frank Henry Kerrigan

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Frank Henry Kerrigan
Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
In office
January 28, 1924 – February 9, 1935
Appointed byCalvin Coolidge
Preceded byWilliam Cary Van Fleet
Succeeded byMichael Joseph Roche
Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court
In office
January 8, 1923 – February 11, 1924
Preceded byWilliam A. Sloane
Succeeded byJohn E. Richards
Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal, First District
In office
January 9, 1907 – January 7, 1923
Preceded byRalph C. Harrison
Personal details
Born(1868-09-17)September 17, 1868
Contra Costa County, California
DiedFebruary 9, 1935(1935-02-09) (aged 66)
San Francisco, California
Political partyRepublican
EducationUniversity of California, Hastings
College of the Law
read law

Frank Henry Kerrigan (September 17, 1868 – February 9, 1935) was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. He also served for nearly 30 years as a California state court judge, and was an associate justice of the California Supreme Court from January 8, 1923, to February 11, 1924.

Education and career

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Kerrigan was born in Contra Costa County, California, to Henry Kerrigan and Elizabeth Donlin, and attended the local schools.[1] Kerrigan then studied at University of California, Hastings College of the Law and read law to enter the bar in 1889.[2] From 1890 to 1900, Kerrigan was in private practice in San Francisco, California. During this time, from 1894 to 1900, he was also a justice of the peace in San Francisco, and in January 1896 was made presiding justice of the court.[3][4] When he resigned from the city court, Governor Henry Gage named Percy V. Long as a replacement.[5]

State judicial service

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Kerrigan was elected a judge of the San Francisco County Superior Court from 1900 to 1906.[6][7] In November 1900, he won election to a four-year unexpired term, at the same time future Supreme Court judges William P. Lawlor and M. C. Sloss won full terms on the Superior Court.[8] In 1904, Kerrigan was re-elected to a new term on the trial bench.[9] Following the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire, a test case was brought before Judge Kerrigan to establish land title since so many legal records were destroyed.[10][11] Governor George Pardee appointed John A. Hosmer to Kerrigan's Superior Court seat when he went to the state appellate court.[12]

In November 1906, Kerrigan was nominated on the Republican Party ticket and elected as an associate justice of the newly created California District Court of Appeals, First District.[13] He held this seat from January 8, 1907 to January 7, 1923.[14] The three judges elected in 1906 drew straws to determine length of term, and Kerrigan drew an eight-year term. In May 1907, Kerrigan was nearly run over by an automobile at the corner of Sutter and Gough Streets.[15] In 1914, he ran successfully for re-election.[16] In April 1920, he temporarily sat on the Supreme Court to fill the vacancy of Justice Lucien Shaw. At that time, Kerrigan sought the appointment to the open seat of Justice Henry A. Melvin, who died during his term. But Governor William Stephens named William A. Sloane to the position instead.[17] Again, in November 1921, Kerrigan was a strong contender for appointment to the high court when Frank M. Angellotti retired, but he was not picked.[18]

In November 1922, Kerrigan won election as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of California, serving from January 8, 1923, to February 11, 1924.[19][20][21] In the election, he and Emmett Seawell replaced incumbent justices William Sloane and Charles A. Shurtleff.[22]

Federal judicial service

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Kerrigan was nominated by President Calvin Coolidge on January 21, 1924, to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California vacated by Judge William Cary Van Fleet.[23][24] He was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 28, 1924, and received his commission the same day. In February 1932, he was the trial judge for the case seeking to block construction of the Golden Gate Bridge, in which he upheld the legality of the special purpose district.[25][26] In September 1932, during Prohibition, he ruled bottles and bottle caps had potentially legal uses and were not in violation of the national dry laws.[27][28] Kerrigan died in office on February 9, 1935, in San Francisco.[24] In August 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt announced that Superior Court Judge Michael Joseph Roche would succeed Kerrigan, instead of Congressman Clarence F. Lea, who had sought the post.[29]

Clubs

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Kerrigan was an early bicycle aficionado, and was president of both the Associated Cycling Clubs in 1897,[30] and the next year of the Bay City Wheelmen.[31][32][33] In 1900, he was grandmaster of the 20-mile road race for the Baker & Hamilton Trophy.[34] In 1904, he awarded the winner of the mile bicycle race the Frank Kerrigan cup.[35] In December 1909, Kerrigan and his friends in the Olympic Club ran a four mile course capped by a mid-winter swim in the Pacific Ocean.[36] He also belonged to the California Club, where he competed in tournament tennis.[37] Kerrigan was a member of the Native Sons of the Golden West,[38] and the Order of Eastern Star.[39]

Personal life

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On November 29, 1905, Kerrigan married Jessie McNab.[40][41] The couple reconciled after a separation from 1915 to 1918, and in 1920 they divorced.[42][28] They had two children, Stewart and Jane.[24][43]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Judge Frank H. Kerrigan". Mariposa Gazette. No. 23. California Digital Newspaper Collection. October 28, 1922. p. 1. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  2. ^ "Judge Kerrigan Seeks Place on Supreme Bench". Sacramento Union. No. 26037. California Digital Newspaper Collection. June 29, 1922. p. 5. Retrieved July 28, 2017. Judge Kerrigan is a native of Contra Costa county, receiving his education in the public schools of that place, later taking college work at the Hastings College of Law.
  3. ^ "Kerrigan Will Preside". San Francisco Call. Vol. 79, no. 40. California Digital Newspaper Collection. January 9, 1896. p. 14. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  4. ^ "Frank H. Kerrigan, presiding Justice of the Peace". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 132. California Digital Newspaper Collection. October 10, 1900. p. 12. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  5. ^ "Commissioned by Gage and Phelan, Long Appointed Justice of the Peace to Succeed Kerrigan". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 25. California Digital Newspaper Collection. December 25, 1900. p. 12. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  6. ^ "Story of the City's Ballots". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 160. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 7, 1900. p. 14. Retrieved August 12, 2017. Photo of Frank H. Kerrigan.
  7. ^ "Judge Kerrigan's Stenographer". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 13. California Digital Newspaper Collection. December 13, 1900. p. 7. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  8. ^ "The Superior Bench". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 159. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 6, 1900. p. 6. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  9. ^ "People Favor Incumbent Superior Judges". San Francisco Call. Vol. 96, no. 143. California Digital Newspaper Collection. October 21, 1904. p. 2. Retrieved August 12, 2017. There is active public sentiment in favor of the re-election of the incumbent Superior Judges Frank H. Kerrigan.
  10. ^ "Title Act Argued Before Court". San Francisco Call. Vol. 100, no. 97. California Digital Newspaper Collection. September 5, 1906. p. 4. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  11. ^ "Add to Opinion on Title Act". San Francisco Call. Vol. 101, no. 37. California Digital Newspaper Collection. January 6, 1907. p. 44. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  12. ^ "Governor Jolts Interests in Filling Vacancies on the Superior Bench of State". San Francisco Call. Vol. 101, no. 39. California Digital Newspaper Collection. January 8, 1907. p. 1. Retrieved August 12, 2017. Judge John A. Hosmer was appointed to succeed Judge Frank H. Kerrigan, who, according to the Governor's construction of the law creating the District Appellate Court, ceased to be a Judge of the San Francisco court at 12 o'clock last night
  13. ^ "Republicans Name Ticket". Red Bluff News. No. 44. California Digital Newspaper Collection. September 14, 1906. p. 2. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  14. ^ "Appellate Judge Hall Draws Longest Straw". Los Angeles Herald. Vol. 34, no. 100. California Digital Newspaper Collection. January 9, 1907. p. 1. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  15. ^ "Judge Kerrigan Meets With Painful Accident". San Francisco Call. Vol. 101, no. 173. California Digital Newspaper Collection. May 22, 1907. p. 14. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  16. ^ California Blue Book, Or State Roster. Sacramento, CA: State Printing Office. 1915. p. 436. Retrieved July 27, 2017. Election 1914, For the First District, Frank H. Kerrigan was elected Associate Justice for a full term, vice self, term expired.
  17. ^ "Many Candidates for Supreme Bench". Sacramento Union. No. 59. California Digital Newspaper Collection. April 28, 1920. p. 3. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  18. ^ "Lucien Shaw May Be Named Chief of Supreme Court". Sacramento Union. No. 25800. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 7, 1921. p. 1. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  19. ^ "Judge Kerrigan Seeks Place on Supreme Bench". Sacramento Union. No. 26037. California Digital Newspaper Collection. June 29, 1922. p. 5. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  20. ^ "Keen Interest in Contest for Bench". Sacramento Union. No. 26167. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 7, 1922. p. 2. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  21. ^ "Vote Tabulation". Sacramento Union. No. 26171. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 11, 1922. p. 2. Retrieved July 27, 2017. Frank H. Kerrigan, 315,093 (votes)
  22. ^ "Interest Turns to Judgeship Race". Sacramento Union. No. 26169. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 9, 1922. p. 2. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  23. ^ "Kerrigan to be Federal Judge". Madera Tribune. No. 66. California Digital Newspaper Collection. January 21, 1924. p. 1. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  24. ^ a b c "Judge Kerrigan Dead in S. F. of Heart Illness". Healdsburg Tribune. No. 84. California Digital Newspaper Collection. February 11, 1935. p. 4. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  25. ^ "Gate Bridge Battle Starts in S.F. Courts". Healdsburg Tribune. No. 89. California Digital Newspaper Collection. Tribune Service. February 17, 1932. p. 2. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  26. ^ "Marin Co. Body Urges Rossi in Bridge Appeal". Healdsburg Tribune. No. 232. California Digital Newspaper Collection. August 6, 1932. p. 4. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  27. ^ "Sale of Beer Making Goods Ruled Legal". Healdsburg Tribune. No. 262. California Digital Newspaper Collection. United Press. September 13, 1932. p. 4. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  28. ^ a b Johnson, J. Edward (1966). History of the California Supreme Court: The Justices 1900-1950, vol 2 (PDF). San Francisco, CA: Bancroft-Whitney. pp. 74–80. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 25, 2017. Retrieved August 14, 2017.
  29. ^ "Roche Picked for Judgeship, Lea Gets Go-by". Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar. California Digital Newspaper Collection. August 22, 1935. p. 4. Retrieved July 25, 2017.
  30. ^ "His Hopes Realized, Kerrigan Had Made the New Cycling Movement Success, When Its Membership Exceeded the League's His Work Was Done". San Francisco Call. Vol. 82, no. 68. California Digital Newspaper Collection. August 7, 1897. p. 14. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  31. ^ "To Govern Cyclers, Bay City Wheelmen Elect Officers for the Ensuing Term — Baker & Hamilton Race". San Francisco Call. Vol. 84, no. 99. California Digital Newspaper Collection. September 7, 1898. p. 9. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  32. ^ "President Frank H. Kerrigan of the Bay City Wheelmen". San Francisco Call. Vol. 82, no. 69. California Digital Newspaper Collection. August 8, 1897. p. 16. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  33. ^ "Cyclers' Annual Picnic, Annual Outing of the Bay City Wheelman". San Francisco Call. California Digital Newspaper Collection. June 20, 1898. p. 7. Retrieved August 12, 2017. "Baseball and various other outdoor games served to pass the time until lunch.
  34. ^ "Twenty-Mile Race Will Have Two Entries". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 107. California Digital Newspaper Collection. September 15, 1900. p. 4. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  35. ^ "Lawrence Wins Kerrigan Cup". San Francisco Call. Vol. 96, no. 155. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 2, 1904. p. 6. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  36. ^ "Clubmen to Take Dip in the Briny". San Francisco Call. Vol. 107, no. 28. California Digital Newspaper Collection. December 28, 1909. p. 8. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  37. ^ "Two Teams Left in Tennis Play". San Francisco Call. Vol. 93, no. 26. California Digital Newspaper Collection. December 26, 1902. p. 3. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  38. ^ "Stanford's New Officers, Members of the Popular Native Son's Parlor at an Installation Banquet". San Francisco Call. Vol. 87, no. 43. California Digital Newspaper Collection. January 12, 1900. p. 11. Retrieved August 12, 2017. Judge Frank H. Kerrigan acted as toastmaster and was at his best, keeping the Native Sons In a roar by the witty manner of introducing those who had been selected to entertain and to respond to toasts.
  39. ^ "Eastern Star Has Annual Reception". San Francisco Call. Vol. 104, no. 113. California Digital Newspaper Collection. September 21, 1908. p. 5. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  40. ^ "Miss Jessie McNab Engaged". Press Democrat. No. 237. California Digital Newspaper Collection. September 26, 1905. p. 3. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  41. ^ "Wedded at Chancel of Chrysanthemums, Miss McNab Plights Troth with Jurist in Floral Dreamland". San Francisco Call. Vol. 98, no. 183. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 30, 1905. p. 4. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  42. ^ "Judge Reconciled to Wife After 4 Years". Los Angeles Herald. No. 268. California Digital Newspaper Collection. September 10, 1918. p. 11. Retrieved August 12, 2017.
  43. ^ "Granddaughter of Ross Hastings Is Named". Sausalito News. No. 46. California Digital Newspaper Collection. November 24, 1938. p. 3. Retrieved August 12, 2017.

Sources

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Legal offices
Preceded by Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
1924–1935 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court
1923–1924 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Associate Justice of the California District Court of Appeals, First District
1907–1923 		Succeeded by
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