Matthew William Hill (June 26, 1894 – February 28, 1989) was an American lawyer who served as a justice of the Washington Supreme Court from 1947 to 1969, and chief justice from 1957 to 1959.
Matthew W. Hill | |
|---|---|
| Justice of the Washington Supreme Court | |
| In office January 13, 1947 – December 31, 1969 | |
| Preceded by | Edward M. Connelly |
| Succeeded by | Charles F. Stafford Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 26, 1894 Bozeman, Montana, U.S. |
| Died | February 28, 1989 (aged 94) Olympia, Washington, U.S. |
| Spouse | Irma Verne Young |
| Children | 3 |
| University of Washington (LLB) | |
| Occupation | Lawyer, judge |
Early life and education
editMatthew Hill was born on June 26, 1894 in Bozeman, Montana.[1] He was the only child of Saxton Hill and Mary Elma Noe. In 1907, when Matthew was 13 years old, the family moved to Lester, Washington.[2] He attended a two-room school, later being graduated from Stadium High School, Tacoma, in 1912.[1]
He enrolled in the University of Washington where he was a member of the debating team, and vice-president of the University of Washington Associated Students.[3][4] In 1917, he graduated cum laude and Order of the Coif with a Bachelors of Law degree.[1]
Hill taugh high school in Bellingham for one year.[1] During World War I, he served with the United States Coast Guard.[1]
Legal career
editAdmitted to the Bar in 1918, Hill practiced law in Seattle.[1] From 1923 to 1924, he served as an Assistant U.S. District Attorney.[5] He was appointed judge of the King County Superior Court in 1945.[6][7] In 1946, he was elected as a justice of the Supreme Court of Washington State, defeating incumbent Edward M. Connelly, taking office on January 13, 1947, and served as chief justice from January 14, 1957, to January 12, 1958.[8]
After retiring from the bench, Hill served as the chair of the Washington Department of Ecology's State Pollution Control Hearings Board and the Shoreland Hearings Board.[1] He was a member of the American Bar Association, American Judicature Society, the Washington Bar Association, and the World Peace Through Law Association.[1]
Honors
editHe received an honorary Juris Doctor from Seattle Pacific College in 1947.[1] The Matthew W. Hill Scholarship at the University of Washington Law School, established in his memory, supports second and third year students.[9]
Personal life
editIn May 1924, Hill married Irma Verne Young.[1] They had three children: Irma L. Hill, Mary B. Hill, and Matthew Hale Hill.[2]
Hill served on the national council of the Boy Scouts of America, the vice-president of the American Baptist Convention. and a board member of Washington Historical Society and Linfield College.[1] He was a member of the Fraternal Order of Eagles, the Kiwanis, and the Freemasons, serving as the grandmaster of the Free and Accepted Masons of Washington and was a 33rd degree Scottish Rite.[1] He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Olympia.[1]
Hill died on February 28, 1989 in Olympia at the age of 94.[10][1]
Selected publications
edit- Hill, Matthew W. (February 1, 1971). "Sir Matthew Hale and Modern Judicial Ethics". Judicial Ethics and the National News Council.
- Court opinions written by Matthew W. Hill. CourtListener.com.
References
edit- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Memorial Service Today Honors Late Justice Hill". The Olympian. Olympia, Washington. 1990-05-31. p. 16. Retrieved 2026-03-26 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 "Facing the alcohol problem realistically" (PDF). Listen. 11 (1): 7–10. January–February 1958. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
- ↑ Tyee Yearbook. University of Washington. 1917. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
- ↑ University Debaters' Annual, Volume 7. H.W. Wilson Company. 1921. p. 337.
- ↑ Tambara v. Weedin[permanent dead link], case no. 4137 (9th Cir. 1924).
- ↑ "State v. Carroll, 81 Wn.2d 95, 500 P.2d 115 (1972)". Retrieved May 16, 2017.
- ↑ Roberts, Phil (2002). A Penny for the Governor, A Dollar for Uncle Sam. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press. p. 123. ISBN 0295803266.
- ↑
- Sheldon, Charles H. (1988). A Century of Judging: A Political History of the Washington Supreme Court. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press. p. 352. ISBN 0295803290.
- Hunter, Robert T. (Winter 1989). "The Practice of Judging With the Superior and Supreme Courts of Washington 1946-1976". Second Series Volume II, Number 1. The Pacific Northwest Forum. pp. 2–23. Archived from the original on 2014-11-01. Retrieved 2017-05-16.
- "Adventure in Seattle". The Rotarian. Vol. 85, no. 1. June 10, 1954. p. 26.
- "Election Results". The Daily Chronicle (Centralia, WA). November 6, 1946. p. 3. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
In the only supreme court seat for which there was a contest, Matthew W. Hill, former King County superior judge, was way ahead of Edward M. Connelly of Spokane. He led Connelly by more than 40,000 votes, with 1,637 precincts reported.
- "Justices from 1940-1975: Matthew W. Hill". Washington State Courts. Retrieved May 23, 2017.
- ↑ "Deadline Extended*** MATTHEW W. HILL SCHOLARSHIP 2006-2007 $3,600" (PDF). University of Washington Law School-Financial Aid Office. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
- ↑ "Matthew W. Hill Dies", Tacoma Morning News Tribune (March 2, 1989), p. 20.