Edgar Sullins Vaught (January 7, 1873 – December 5, 1959) 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 Western District of Oklahoma The United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma (in case citations, W.D. Okla. or W.D. Ok.) is a federal court in the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Tenth Circuit (except for patent claims and claims a ...

Education and career

Born in Cedar Springs, an unincorporated community located at the boundary of Smyth County and Wythe County, Virginia, Vaught attended

Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry University (E&H or Emory) is a private university in Emory, Virginia, United States. The campus comprises of Washington County, which is part of the Appalachian highlands of Southwest Virginia. Founded in 1836, Emory & Henry U ...

Emory Emory may refer to: Places * Emory, Texas, U.S. * Emory (crater), on the Moon * Emory Peak, in Texas, U.S. * Emory River, in Tennessee, U.S. Education * Emory and Henry College, or simply Emory, in Emory, Virginia, U.S. * Emory University, in Atl ...

, Virginia, and received 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 from Carson and Newman College (now

Carson–Newman University Carson-Newman University is a private university in Jefferson City, Tennessee, United States. Carson-Newman is affiliated with the Tennessee Baptist Mission Board. Founded in 1851, the university enrolls about 2,500 students. Studies are offe ...

) in

Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Missouri. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 United States census, ranking as the List of cities in Missouri, 16th most popu ...

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

in 1899, before

reading 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 u ...

to enter the bar in 1906. In 1901, he moved to Oklahoma City (then in

Oklahoma Territory The Territory of Oklahoma was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 2, 1890, until November 16, 1907, when it was joined with the Indian Territory under a new constitution and admitted to the Union as ...

) where he embarked on a career in education - first as principal of Irving High School, and by 1906 becoming superintendent of the Oklahoma City School system. Then he switched careers to law and began a private practice in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Oklahoma, most populous city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat ...

from 1906 to 1928.

Federal judicial service

Vaught received a

recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the President of the United States, president of a Officer of the United States, federal official when the United States Senate, U.S. Senate is in Recess (motion), recess. Under the ...

from 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 May 31, 1928, to a seat on the

vacated by Judge John Hazelton Cotteral. He was nominated to the same position by President Coolidge on December 6, 1928. 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 January 8, 1929, and received his commission the same day. Judge Vaught presided over George A. "Machine Gun" Kelly's trial in 1933 for the kidnapping of prominent Oklahoma City oilman Charles F. Urschel. Kelly was sentenced to life in prison by Vaught. He served as Chief Judge from 1949 to 1956. He assumed senior status on April 22, 1956. His service terminated on December 5, 1959, due to his death in Oklahoma City.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Vaught, Edgar Sullins 1873 births 1959 deaths Judges of the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma United States district court judges appointed by Calvin Coolidge Carson–Newman University alumni United States federal judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law People from Smyth County, Virginia People from Wythe County, Virginia People from Oklahoma City