Benson Walker Hough (March 5, 1875 – November 19, 1935) was a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district. Each district covers one U.S. state or a portion of a state. There is at least one feder ...

of the

United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio The United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (in case citations, S.D. Ohio) is one of two United States district courts in Ohio and includes forty-eight of the state's eighty-eight counties—everything from the Columbus, Oh ...

Education and career

Born in Berkshire Township, Delaware County,

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, Hough received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree from

Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University (abbrevriated OWU) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1842 by Methodist leaders and Ohio Valley, Centra ...

in 1897 and a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

from the

Ohio State University Moritz College of Law The Michael E. Moritz College of Law is the Law school in the United States, law school of Ohio State University, a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1891, the school is ...

in 1899. He entered private practice in

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, Ohio from 1900 to 1916. He was the Adjutant General of Ohio from 1915 to 1916, serving in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

from 1917 to 1919. He voluntarily requested a demotion from General to Colonel in order to accompany the 4th Ohio Infantry, renamed the 166th US Infantry, and incorporated into the 42nd Infantry Division, to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Hough was elected as a justice of the

Supreme Court of Ohio The Supreme Court of the State of Ohio is the highest court in the U.S. state of Ohio, with final authority over interpretations of Ohio law and the Ohio Constitution. The court has seven members, a chief justice and six associate justices, ...

, serving from 1920 to 1923. He was the

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the Southern District of Ohio from 1923 to 1925.

Federal judicial service

Hough was nominated by President

Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States, serving from 1923 to 1929. A Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer from Massachusetts, he previously ...

on January 31, 1925, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge John Elbert Sater. He was confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

on February 9, 1925, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on November 19, 1935, due to his death at a hospital in

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451–1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, the capital city of the U.S. state of Ohio * Columbus, Georgia, a city i ...

, Ohio. He was interred in Berkshire Township.

Personal

Hough was married to Edith Markel on June 25, 1902, and had one child.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hough, Benson W. 1875 births 1935 deaths Justices of the Supreme Court of Ohio United States attorneys for the Southern District of Ohio Judges of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio United States district court judges appointed by Calvin Coolidge United States Army personnel of World War I Ohio Wesleyan University alumni Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni Lawyers from Columbus, Ohio People from Delaware County, Ohio United States Army colonels Military personnel from Ohio Ohio National Guard personnel