William W. Morrow

William W. Morrow
United States Senator from California
In office March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1891
Preceded by	Pleasant B. Tully
Succeeded by	John T. Cutting
Judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
In office August 11, 1891 – May 18, 1897
Appointed by	President Benjamin Harrison
Preceded by	Ogden Hoffman
Succeeded by	John J. De Haven
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
In office May 18, 1897 – January 1, 1923
Appointed by	President William McKinley
Preceded by	Joseph McKenna
Succeeded by	Frank H. Rudkin
Personal details
Born	July 15, 1843
Died	July 24, 1929
Political party	Republican

William W. Morrow (July 15, 1843 – July 24, 1929) was a United States Representative from California from 1885 to 1891, and a United States federal judge from 1891 until his death.

Early life, education, and career

Born near Milton, Wayne County, Indiana, he moved with his parents to Adams County, Illinois in 1845, attended the common schools and received private instruction. He moved to Santa Rosa, California, in 1859, taught school and explored mining regions. Morrow went East in 1862 to join the Union Army and served in the National Rifles of the District of Columbia. While in the Army of the Potomac he was appointed a special agent of the United States Treasury Department in January, 1865, and was detailed to California. He remained there and was employed during the next four years in confidential positions under the Secretary of the Treasury. Morrow studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1869 and commenced practice in San Francisco.

Legal and political career

Morrow served as an assistant United States Attorney for California from 1870 to 1874, assisted in organizing the San Francisco Bar Association in 1872 and served as its president in 1892 and 1893. Morrow served as chairman of the Republican State central committee of California 1879 to 1882, attorney for the State board of harbor commissioners from 1880–1883, and also special United States attorney before the French and American Claims Commission 1881 to 1883, and before the Alabama Claims Commission 1882–1885. He was a delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1884, elected as a Republican to the Forty-ninth, Fiftieth, and Fifty-first Congresses (March 4, 1885 – March 3, 1891). Morrow was not a candidate for renomination in 1890.

Federal judicial career

On August 11, 1891, Morrow received a recess appointment from President Benjamin Harrison to a seat on the United States District Court for the Northern District of California vacated by Ogden Hoffman. Formally nominated on December 10, 1891, Morrow was confirmed by the United States Senate on January 11, 1892, and received his commission the same day. While serving in that capacity, Morrow ruled in the famous case of In re Wong Kim Ark that Chinese children born in the United States were automatically U.S. citizens.^[1]

On May 18, 1897, President William McKinley nominated Morrow for elevation to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, to a seat vacated by Joseph McKenna, whom McKinley had just appointed Attorney General of the United States. Morrow was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 20, 1897, and received his commission the same day. He assumed senior status on January 1, 1923, and served in that capacity until his death.

He was one of the incorporators of the American Red Cross and resided in San Francisco, San Francisco County, California, until his death in that city on July 24, 1929. Morrow was interred in Cypress Lawn Cemetery, Colma, California.

References

• United States Congress. "William W. Morrow (id: M001006)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• William W. Morrow at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.