Curtis Dwight Wilbur (May 10, 1867 – September 8, 1954) was an American lawyer,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

state judge, 43rd

United States Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On Mar ...

and a

United States circuit judge In the United States, a federal judge is a judge who serves on a court established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. Often called "Article III judges", federal judges include the chief justice and associate justices of the U.S. Su ...

of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts for the following federal judicial districts: * Distric ...

Early life and education

Wilbur was born May 10, 1867, in Boonesboro,

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

, to Dwight Locke Wilbur and Edna M. Lyman. His family moved to Jamestown,

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of ...

(now

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

), where he graduated high school. In 1884, he was appointed to the

United States Naval Academy The United States Naval Academy (USNA, Navy, or Annapolis) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as United States Secre ...

, graduating with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

degree in 1888. Shortly after graduation, Wilbur resigned his commission, a common practice at the time, and moved to Riverside,

. He

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

at night while teaching mathematics during the day, and was admitted to the California bar in 1890.

Career

Wilbur associated with the firm of Bruson, Wilson & Lamme, and engaged in private practice for eight years in

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, California. He was active in Republican politics, and in 1898 was president of the Fourth Ward Republican club. In 1898, he served as

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

Deputy Assistant District Attorney in the office of John C. Donnell, and by 1899 he was the Chief Deputy under District Attorney James C. Rives. In September 1902, the Republican Party nominated Wilbur for the post of judge of the

Los Angeles County Superior Court The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is the California Superior Courts of California, Superior Court located in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States. The Sup ...

to the take the seat of

Lucien Shaw Lucien Shaw (March 1, 1845 – March 19, 1933) was the 18th Chief Justice of California and a prominent Republican politician in California during the early 20th century. Biography Shaw was born on a farm in Vevay, Switzerland County, Indiana, ...

, who was running for Supreme Court. Wilbur won the election and in November 1902 began to hear cases ''

pro tempore ''Pro tempore'' (), abbreviated ''pro tem'' or ''p.t.'', is a Latin phrase which best translates to 'for the time being' in English. This phrase is often used to describe a person who acts as a '' locum tenens'' ('placeholder'). The phrase is ...

''. He was especially interested in promoting children's welfare. While on the Superior Court, he was presiding judge of the juvenile department; in 1906 he was a director of the Bethlehem Benevolent Board; in 1910, he was a founding director of the Juvenile Improvement Association; in 1912, he was president of the Social Purity League, which offered religious lectures to the public; in 1915, he helped organize the

Boy Scouts Boy Scouts or Boy Scout may refer to: * Members, sections or organisations in the Scouting Movement ** Scout (Scouting), a boy or a girl participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouting America, formerly known as Boy Scouts of America ...

in Los Angeles, and was named permanent chairman of the executive committee; and he served as president of the state Sunday School Association, organizing evangelical gatherings for young people. It was during his time on the California Superior Court that he wrote and first published (in 1905) his popular children's book "The Bear Family at Home, and How the Circus Came to Visit Them". He taught at the newly founded law school of the University of Southern California from about 1904 until 1917, while he sat on the Superior Court. Annually, he taught one course, extraordinary legal remedies. In 1917, Governor William Stephens appointed Wilbur to the

California Supreme Court The Supreme Court of California is the highest and final court of appeals in the courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sac ...

, where he served as an associate justice from January 1, 1918. In September 1922, Wilbur defeated William P. Lawlor in the primary election, and in November was chosen as the 19th

Chief Justice of California The Supreme Court of California is the Supreme court, highest and final court of appeals in the judiciary of California, courts of the U.S. state of California. It is headquartered in San Francisco at the Earl Warren Building, but it regularly ...

, holding the position from January 1923 to March 19, 1924. When Wilbur resigned, Governor

Friend Richardson Friend William Richardson (born William Richardson; December 1, 1865September 6, 1943) was an American newspaper publisher and politician. A member of the Progressive Party and later the Republican Party, Richardson was elected as the Californi ...

appointed Louis Wescott Myers to take the post of chief justice.

Secretary of the Navy

On March 19, 1924, Wilbur was sworn in as

. The first appointee of 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 ...

, Wilbur came into the position with a reputation as a man of high intellect and a character of "unimpeachable integrity." However, one critic called Wilbur "a good Sunday school teacher who wants to make the Navy safe for boys." In July 1925, he accompanied three battleships on a cruise of the Pacific coast, stopping in

Marin County Marin County ( ) is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is ac ...

for a picnic of 600 midshipmen with a group of more than 100 society women on

Mount Tamalpais Mount Tamalpais (; ; Miwok languages, Miwok: ''Támal Pájiṣ''), known locally as Mount Tam, is a mountain, peak in Marin County, California, Marin County, California, United States, often considered symbolic of Marin County. Much of Mount Tama ...

. In August 1928, he again accompanied a fleet to

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, California on its way to Pacific training exercises. By the end of his term, Wilbur had achieved success in enlarging and modernizing the fleet and established a

naval air force Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves '' navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seaborne aviation encompass ...

, which would grow to become a potent component in the war with

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Federal judicial service

On March 1, 1929, in the last hours of his presidency, President Coolidge nominated Wilbur to the

in San Francisco. However, when the 70th Congress ended that week, the Senate had not acted on the nomination, so it expired. Wilbur was nominated by President

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...

on April 18, 1929, to the

, to a new seat authorized by 45 Stat. 1414. 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 May 2, 1929, and received his commission the same day. He was a member of the

Conference of Senior Circuit Judges The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial co ...

(now the

Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial co ...

) from 1931 to 1944. He assumed senior status on May 10, 1945. His service terminated on September 8, 1954, due to his death in

Palo Alto Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. Th ...

, California.

Legacy

The guided missile destroyer USS ''Curtis Wilbur'' (DDG-54) is named for him.

Personal life

Wilbur was married twice. On November 9, 1893, Wilbur married Ella T. Chilson. She died on December 10, 1896. On January 13, 1898, he remarried to Olive Doolittle. They lived in a grand home completed in 1904 on Frederick Knob in San Francisco. Following retirement, Wilbur spent time with his wife and their three surviving children: Edna, Paul C. and Lyman Dwight. In the summer of 1933, one of Wilbur's children, Dr. Leonard F. Wilbur (March 2, 1907, Los Angeles – March 24th 1940, China), travelled to China with his wife Jean B. Spaulding. He studied at the College of Chinese Studies in Beijing in 1933–1934, achieving relative proficiency in Chinese. From the autumn of 1934 he worked at the American Board Mission Hospital in Taigu in the province of

Shanxi Shanxi; Chinese postal romanization, formerly romanised as Shansi is a Provinces of China, province in North China. Its capital and largest city of the province is Taiyuan, while its next most populated prefecture-level cities are Changzhi a ...

, becoming its superintendent in 1936. He died of a typhus fever on March 24, 1940, at the age of 33, shortly after having returned from a furlough he spent at the

Stanford University School of Medicine The Stanford University School of Medicine is the medical school of Stanford University and is located in Stanford, California, United States. It traces its roots to the Medical Department of the University of the Pacific, founded in San Fra ...

, and after having been ill for two weeks. He was survived by his wife and a daughter named Ruth. Wilbur's brother,

Ray Lyman Wilbur Ray Lyman Wilbur (April 13, 1875 – June 26, 1949) was an American medical doctor who served as the third president of Stanford University and as the 31st United States Secretary of the Interior under President Herbert Hoover, also a Stanford al ...

, was

United States Secretary of the Interior The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natura ...

under

, and a president of

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

References

Sources

*
Image of Zola Vredenburgh watching Judge Robert Kenny playing chess against Judge Wilbur Curtis, Los Angeles, 1934.
Los Angeles Times Photographic Archive (Collection 1429). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles

External links

* *
Photo of Curtis Wilbur
and anothe
photo
January/February 1925. Library of Congress.
Photo of Curtis Wilbur and wife
Getty Images. * — Cypress Lawn Memorial Park, Colma, San Mateo County, California, USA
Curtis D. Wilbur
California Supreme Court Historical Society.
Opinions authored by Curtis D. Wilbur
Courtlistener.com

California State Courts. {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilbur, Curtis D. 1867 births 1954 deaths Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit United States court of appeals judges appointed by Herbert Hoover United States secretaries of the navy California lawyers United States Naval Academy alumni American Congregationalists Chief justices of California Coolidge administration cabinet members 20th-century American politicians People from Boone, Iowa California Republicans United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law U.S. state supreme court judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law Burials at Cypress Lawn Memorial Park