The Great SCOV Quiz—Part 2

SCOV Law is once again pleased to present the work of Paul Gillies, Vermont lawyer and historian.  Paul has recently begun work on his big project: A History of the Vermont Supreme Court.  To kick off this project he designed a 75-question quiz that he deems "impossible."  Today brings the second of three installments.  See here for the introduction and Part One (Questions 1–25).  Answers to today's questions can be found at the bottom of the post.

SCOV Quiz Part II (Questions 26–50)

26.    Which judge wrote the first law digest published in Vermont?[i]

27. Which judge served as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the District of Columbia after his time on the court?[ii]

28.   Which judge was refused reelection to the court by the legislature for writing too many opinions?[iii]

29.   Which judge had the longest beard?[iv]

30.   Which judge often went barefoot while on the bench?[v]

31.   Which judge lost his public office after being accused of representing a black man in court?[vi]

32.   Which judge was known as a great duck hunter?[vii]

33.  Which judge paid a social call on Stephen Burroughs, the most notorious criminal of his day?[viii]

34.   Which judge was called the greatest jurist in New England by James Kent?[ix]

35.    Which judges were sons of other judges?[x]

36.   Which judge held that atheists could not be competent witnesses in court?[xi]

37.    Who was the fastest judge?[xii]

38.    Which judge had Nathaniel Hawthorne as his brother-in-law?[xiii]

39.   Which judge sold collected decisions of the Supreme Court?[xiv]

40.   Which judge was not born in the United States?[xv]

41.   Which judges had brothers who also served on the court?[xvi]

42.   Which judge was named for another judge?[xvii]

43.   Which judge later held the position of Chief Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court?[xviii]

44.   What was the largest number of judges to sit as the Vermont Supreme Court at one time?[xix]

45.   What caused the entire Supreme Court to resign in 1914?[xx]

46.   Which judge purchased a slave?[xxi]

47.    In what decision did the Vermont Supreme Court first accept the germ theory?[xxii]

48.    Which judge led the company that disarmed and dispersed Shay’s Rebellion?[xxiii]

49.      Which judge was refused reelection because he was caustic, partisan, and grouchy in  Court?[xxiv]

50.   Which judge wrote a philosophy of law?[xxv]

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[i] Nicholas Baylies.  

[ii] Wendell Stafford.  Fish, 169-171.

[iii] Titus Hutchinson.  His refusal to grant a reprieve of his execution to Dr. Norman Cleaveland before his appeal was heard also played a role.  The House commuted the sentence before Cleaveland could be hung.

[iv] Jonathan Ross.

[v] Theophilus Harrington. 

[vi] Thomas Chandler, Jr. lost the Speakership of the General Assembly as a result of that rumor.

[vii] John Pierpoint.  Fish, 122.  “In the fall of the year he was accustomed to spend many happy days hunting ducks on Dead Creek, Little Otter, Lewis Creek and Lake Champlain, where he was rowed in his long boat which was propelled by sweeps in the hands of his trusted guide. He was the first wing shot in his vicinity, and his unerring aim was sure to result in a full bag of birds, whether he went in pursuit of ducks on the waters, or woodcock and partridges on the land. . . . On one occasion Judge Peck was with him and saw him bring down a partridge ‘two or three minutes after it had disappeared beyond the cedars.’"

[viii] Isaac Redfield.

[ix] Samuel Prentiss. 

[x] Asa O. Aldis was the son of Asa Aldis; George Powers was the son of H.H. Powers; Moses Robinson was father to Jonathan Robinson.

[xi] Isaac Redfield, in Arnold v. Estate of Arnold, 13 Vt. 362 (1841).

[xii] Samuel Phelps rendered 43 verdicts during a single four week term in Rutland County one year.  Fish, 99-102.

[xiii] Royall Tyler.

[xiv] There were three:  Nathaniel Chipman, Royall Tyler, and William Brayton.

[xv] Benjamin Steele was born in Stanstead, Quebec, to parents who were Vermont residents, temporarily residing in Canada.

[xvi] Isaac and Timothy Redfield were brothers, as were Paul and Harrie Chase.

[xvii] Pierpoint Isham was named for his mother’s cousin, John Pierpoint.

[xviii] Simeon Olcutt.

[xix] Seven, between 1870 and 1896.

[xx] Their terms ended in October; new elections were scheduled for January, when the new legislature convened; the Governor reappointed some members of the court to cover the gap; then there were two Supreme Courts; it was a mess: so the judges all resigned, and the crisis was averted.

[xxi] Stephen Jacob.

[xxii] State v. Morse, 84 Vt. 387 (1911).

[xxiii] Royall Tyler, in 1787, entered the church where Shay and his men had lodged, took to the pulpit, and announced that the rebellion was over.

[xxiv] James Barrett.

[xxv] Nathaniel Chipman.