Alfred M. Craig

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Alfred Marion Craig
Justice of the Supreme Court of Illinois
In office
1873–1900
Preceded byCharles B. Lawrence
Succeeded byJohn P. Hand
Personal details
BornJanuary 15, 1832
Paris, Illinois
DiedSeptember 6, 1911(1911-09-06) (aged 79)
Galesburg, Illinois
Political partyDemocratic

Alfred Marion Craig (January 15, 1832 – September 6, 1911) was an American judge from

Illinois Supreme Court in 1873. Craig served three nine-year terms there, as Chief Justice four times.[1]

Biography

He was born on January 15, 1832, in Paris, Illinois, the son of David and Mintie Craig. He attended public schools and Knox College, graduating in 1853. He moved to Lewistown and studied law under Hezekiah H. Weed and William C. Goudy. Craig was admitted to the bar in 1855 and moved to Knoxville to form the law firm of Manning, Douglas & Craig.[2]

In 1864, Craig was elected as Knox County judge. He formed a new practice with his brother-in-law C. K. Harvey in 1868. Craig represented Knoxville in the unsuccessful legal battle to remain the

Illinois Central Railroad v. Illinois, a case later taken up by the Supreme Court of the United States
.

Craig was often coveted for political candidacy, but he refused all offers. Grover Cleveland considered Craig to fill the Chief Justice vacancy on the Supreme Court of the United States, but he instead chose to name Melville Fuller. Outside of his law interests, Craig also had large landholdings. He was the president of the Banks of Galesburg and the Bank of Altoona, and was a director of the First National Bank of Knoxville.[2]

Craig married Elizabeth Harvey on August 4, 1857. They had three children, one of whom, Charles C. Craig, also sat on the Illinois Supreme Court.[3] He died in Galesburg on September 6, 1911, from pneumonia and was buried in Hope Cemetery.

References

  1. ^ Leigh Bienen. The Life and Times of Florence Kelley in Chicago 1891-1899 – via Northwestern University School of Law.
  2. ^ a b c Moses, John (1896). Biographical Dictionary and Portrait Gallery of the Representative Men of the United States. Chicago, Illinois: The Lewis Publishing Company. pp. 60–62.
  3. ^ Illinois Supreme Court-Charles C. Craig Archived October 4, 2015, at the Wayback Machine