Charles Bowen Howry

Charles Bowen Howry
From October 1895's The Record of Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Judge of the United States Court of Claims
In office
1897–1915
Preceded by Charles C. Nott
Succeeded by George Eddy Downey
Personal details
Born (1844-05-14)May 14, 1844
Oxford, Mississippi, U.S.
Died July 20, 1928 July 20, 1920(1920-07-20) (aged 76)
Washington, D.C.
Resting place Oxford Memorial Cemetery, Oxford, Mississippi
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Edmonia Beverley Carter
Harriet (Hallie) Holt
Sallie Bird Smith
Children 6
Alma mater University of Mississippi
Occupation Attorney
Military service
Allegiance Confederate States of America
Service/branch Confederate States Army
Years of service 1862-1865
Rank Captain
Unit 29th Mississippi Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars

American Civil War

Charles Bowen Howry (May 14, 1844 – July 20, 1928) was a Mississippi attorney and politician. A veteran of the Confederate States Army, Howry was most notable for his service as a judge of the United States Court of Claims.

Born to a prominent Oxford, Mississippi judge in 1844, Howry was educated in Oxford and began attendance at the University of Mississippi. He withdrew to serve in the military during the American Civil War, and attained the rank of captain as a member of the 29th Mississippi Infantry Regiment. After the war Howry returned to college to complete the requirements for his law degree, attained admission to the bar, and practiced in Oxford.

A Democrat, Howry was active in politics as a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives and a prominent member of the state and national Democratic committees. He went on to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi and an Assistant U.S. Attorney General. In 1897 he was appointed a judge of the United States Court of Claims, and he served until retiring in 1915. After retiring, Howry practiced law, and served as chairman of the federal railroad Board of Arbitration in 1916, and special counsel to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Howry died in Washington, D.C. in 1928, and was buried in Oxford.

Early life

Howry was born on May 14, 1844 in Oxford, Mississippi,[1] the son of James M. Howry and Narcissa (Bowen) Howry.[2] He was educated in Oxford and began studies at the University of Mississippi, but left college to serve in the American Civil War.[3]

Military career

Howry joined the Confederate States Army's 29th Mississippi Infantry Regiment as a private.[4] He later received a commission, and attained the rank of captain.[4] Howry's combat experience included the Battles of Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, New Hope Church, Peachtree Creek, Atlanta, Jonesborough, and Franklin.[1] Howry was wounded at the Battle of Franklin, and remained in the military until the end of the war.[2]

After the war, Howry was a longtime member of the United Confederate Veterans.[5] He served in several leadership roles, including commander of the Army of Northern Virginia department with the rank of lieutenant general.[5]

Start of career

After the war, he studied law with L.Q.C. Lamar, and then returned to the University of Mississippi, from which he received an LL.B. degree in 1867.[4] Howry was admitted to the bar later that year, and entered private practice in Oxford.[4] He was a trustee of the university from 1882 to 1894,[2][4] and in 1896 the university awarded him the honorary degree of LL. D.[2]

Continued career

In addition to practicing in Oxford, Howry was active in politics as a Democrat, and was elected to a term as prosecuting attorney of Lafayette County in 1869.[4] He was a member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1880 to 1884.[4] From 1885 to 1889, Howry was U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Mississippi.[2][4]

Howry was a longtime member of the Mississippi Democratic Party's executive committee,[4] and he was a member of the Democratic National Committee from 1891 to 1896.[1] From 1891 to 1892, Howry was a vice president of the American Bar Association.[4] He was an Assistant U.S. Attorney General for the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. from 1893 to 1897.[4]

Judicial career

In 1897, Howry was nominated by President Grover Cleveland to the seat on the Court of Claims vacated by the promotion of Charles C. Nott to Chief Judge.[6] While on the court, Howry became known for his ability to apply the historical precedents of Anglo-American common law to his decisions and written opinions.[6] His notable opinions included the decisions in the French Spoliation Claims, Ayres v. United States and Lincoln v. United States.[7]

President Woodrow Wilson offered to appoint Howry as Chief Judge, which he declined because of Wilson's condition that if he accepted, Howry would retire on reaching age 70 in 1914.[8] He retired on March 15, 1915, and was succeeded by George Eddy Downey.[8]

Later career

In addition to resuming the practice of law, he was chairman of the federal railroad Board of Arbitration in 1916,[9] and special counsel to the U.S. Department of Labor from 1918 to 1919.[10]

Howry's former residence in Washington, D.C.

Death and burial

Howry died in Washington of heart failure on July 20, 1928.[11] He was buried at Oxford Memorial Cemetery.[11]

Family

In 1869, Howry married Edmonia Beverley Carter of Virginia.[8] She died in 1879, and they were the parents of two sons, Lucien Beverley Howry and Willard Carter Lowry, and a daughter, Maude.[12]

Howry remarried in 1880, becoming the husband of Harriet (Hallie) Holt of Columbus, Mississippi.[8] They had four children -- Charles Jr., Hallie, Elizabeth, and Mary.[12] The second Mrs. Howry died in 1898.[12]

In 1900, Howry married Sallie Bird Smith (d. 1942), the widow of Buckingham Smith.[8]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Distinguished Successful Americans of Our Day, p. 575.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Official Congressional Directory, p. 335.
  3. ↑ "Five Representative Sigs", p. 205.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Five Representative Sigs", p. 206.
  5. 1 2 "Department of the Army of Northern Virginia, U.C.V.", p. 84.
  6. 1 2 Encyclopedia of Mississippi, p. 241.
  7. ↑ Encyclopedia of Mississippi, pp. 241-242.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Encyclopedia of Mississippi, p. 242.
  9. ↑ "The Award of the Federal Board of Arbitration", p. 867.
  10. ↑ The National Cyclopedia of American Biography, p. 55.
  11. 1 2 "Judge C. B. Howry Buried at Oxford", p. 3.
  12. 1 2 3 Bicentennial Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States, p. 235.

Sources

Magazines

  • Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity (October 1895). "Five Representative Sigs: Charles Bowen Howry". The Record of Sigma Alpha Epsilon. Vol. XV no. 3. Lynn, MA: The Nichols Press.
  • Small, Arthur Everett (December 30, 1916). "The Award of the Federal Board of Arbitration in the Wage Controversy Between Railroads and Switchmen". The Economic World. New York, NY: The Chronicle Company.
  • Howry, Charles B. (March 1924). "Department of the Army of Northern Virginia, U.C.V." Confederate Veteran. Vol. XXXII no. 3. Nashville, TN: Trustees of the Confederate Veteran.

Books

  • Distinguished Successful Americans of Our Day. Chicago, IL: Successful Americans. 1911.
  • Bicentennial Committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States (1983). Judges of the United States (2 ed.). Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.
  • Capace, Nancy (2000). Encyclopedia of Mississippi. Santa Barbara, CA: Somerset Publishers, Inc. ISBN 978-0-403-09603-9.
  • U.S. Congress Joint Committee on Printing (1914). Official Congressional Directory. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office.
  • White, James Terry (1932). The National Cyclopedia of American Biography. New York, NY: James T. White and Company.

Newspapers

  • "Judge C. B. Howry Buried at Oxford". The Clarion-Ledger. Jackson, MS. July 24, 1928 – via Newspapers.com. (Subscription required (help)).

Further reading

  • Bennett, Marion Tinsley (1976). The United States Court of Claims: A History; Part I: The Judges, 1855–1976. Washington, D.C.: Committee on the Bicentennial of Independence and the Constitution of the Judicial Conference of the United States.


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