List of first minority male lawyers and judges in Tennessee

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This is a list of the first minority male lawyer(s) and judge(s) in Tennessee. It includes the year in which the men were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are other distinctions such as the first minority men in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.

Firsts in Tennessee’s history[edit]

Benjamin Hooks: First African American male judge in Tennessee since Reconstruction Era (1965)

Lawyers[edit]

State judges[edit]

Federal judges[edit]

Assistant United States Attorney[edit]

Assistant District Attorney[edit]

Faculty[edit]

  • First African American male law professor: Joseph H. Dismukes in 1883[16]

Firsts in local history[edit]

  • Prince Albert Ewing:[17][18][19] First African American male lawyer in Nashville, Davidson County, Tennessee
  • A. A. Birch Jr. (1956):[6] First African American male to serve as a prosecutor and judge in Davidson County, Tennessee
  • Martesha L. Johnson (2018) [20] First African American to serve as a Chief Public Defender for Metro Nashville, Davidson County and second woman.
  • Rheubin Taylor:[21] First African American male to serve as the County Attorney for Hamilton County, Tennessee (1994)
  • Gerald Webb:[22] First African American male judge in Hamilton County, Tennessee (2019)
  • William Francis Yardley (1872):[23] First African American male lawyer in Knoxville, Knox County, Tennessee
  • General Quarles Boyd:[24] First African American male lawyer in Clarksville, Montgomery County, Tennessee
  • John McClellan Sr.:[25] First African American male to serve as the Justice of the Peace in Putnam County, Tennessee (1972)
  • Thomas Frank Cassels:[8] First African American male to serve as the Attorney General Pro Tem of Shelby County Criminal Court (c. 1880s)
  • Josiah T. Settle (1875):[8] First African American male to serve as a prosecutor in Shelby County, Tennessee
  • Ural B. Adams:[8] First African American male to serve as the Public Defender of Shelby County, Tennessee (1979)
  • Floyd Peete:[8] First African American male to serve as the Chancellor of Shelby County Chancery Court (1990)
  • S.A. Wilbun:[8] First African American male to serve as the Assistant City Attorney in Memphis, Tennessee (1964) [Shelby County, Tennessee]
  • Joe Brown:[26] First African American male prosecutor in Memphis, Tennessee [Shelby County, Tennessee]
  • Tarik Sugarmon:[27] First African American male to serve as a juvenile court judge in Shelby County, Tennessee (2022)

See also[edit]

Other topics of interest[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ “Yardley, William Francis (1844-1924) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed”. www.blackpast.org. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  2. ^ “McGhee, Fredrick L. (1861-1912) | The Black Past: Remembered and Reclaimed”. www.blackpast.org. Retrieved 2017-10-26.
  3. ^ Brock, Roslyn M. (2010-05-03). “Benjamin Hooks”. Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2018-01-11.
  4. ^ Inc, The Crisis Publishing Company (2010). The Crisis. The Crisis Publishing Company, Inc.
  5. ^ “Milestones”. benfjones.org. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  6. ^ a b c d “Justice A.A. Birch dies at age 78”. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  7. ^ a b c d Ely, James W.; Brown (Jr.), Theodore; Huebner, Timothy S.; Brown, R. Ben; Thompson, Ruth Anne; Vile, John R.; Pierce, Carl A. (2002). A History of the Tennessee Supreme Court. Univ. of Tennessee Press. ISBN 978-1-57233-178-5.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h “Milestones « Ben F. Jones Chapter of the National Bar Association”. benfjones.com. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
  9. ^ Upon Birch’s appointment as a Criminal Court Judge for the Twentieth District (Davidson County) in 1978
  10. ^ Ely, James W.; (Jr.), Theodore Brown (2002). A History of the Tennessee Supreme Court. Univ. of Tennessee Press. ISBN 9781572331785.
  11. ^ Sabato, Larry (2003). Midterm Madness: The Elections of 2002. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9780742526860.
  12. ^ Mason, Richard. “Judge Hector Sanchez becomes first Hispanic trial court judge in Tennessee”. WVLT. Retrieved 2022-10-21.
  13. ^ a b Staff, Times; Reports, Wire (2006-02-24). “Odell Horton, 77; First Modern Black Federal Judge in Tennessee”. Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  14. ^ “Judge ‘Joe’ Haynes Jr. plans to take a step back”. The Tennessean. Retrieved 2018-01-19.
  15. ^ “Judge Arthur T. Bennett honored for his service to the state of Tennessee”. localmemphis.com. Retrieved 2020-03-05.
  16. ^ deGregory, Crystal A. (May 2011). “RAISING A NONVIOLENT ARMY: FOUR NASHVILLE BLACK COLLEGES AND THE CENTURY-LONG STRUGGLE FOR CIVIL RIGHTS, 1830s-1930s” (PDF). Graduate School of Vanderbilt University.
  17. ^ King, Lovalerie (2003). A Student’s Guide to African American Literature, 1760 to the Present. Peter Lang. ISBN 9780820455211.
  18. ^ “No Story Untold – Parthenon Publishing”. Parthenon Publishing. 2016-12-05. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
  19. ^ “Classmate Announcements – Vanderbilt Lawyer (Volume 37, Number 1)”. law.vanderbilt.edu. Retrieved 2018-02-14.
  20. ^ “Martesha L. Johnson, Chief Public Defender – Public Defender of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County”. publicdefender.nashville.gov. Retrieved 2022-01-28.
  21. ^ “Race relations in Chattanooga”. timesfreepress.com. Retrieved 2020-03-12.
  22. ^ “Gerald Webb Sworn In As The First African American Judge For Hamilton County, Tennessee, Courts”. Essence. Retrieved 2019-07-17.
  23. ^ Smith, Jessie Carney (2012-12-01). Black Firsts: 4,000 Ground-Breaking and Pioneering Historical Events. Visible Ink Press. ISBN 9781578594245.
  24. ^ “Karen Willis county’s first black female assistant DA”. The Leaf-Chronicle. Clarksville, Tennessee. October 16, 2012. p. E4. Retrieved 2018-02-14 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ Trotter, Megan. “Contributors to progress honored at IMPACT banquet”. Herald Citizen. Retrieved 2020-03-13.
  26. ^ Moore, Scott (1998-08-30). “JOE BROWN: JUDGE FOR YOURSELF”. Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-02-15.
  27. ^ Hawkins, Sydney. “Shelby County elects its first Black juvenile court judge”. Action News 5. Retrieved 2022-08-12.