Glenn Parker (November 25, 1898 – April 18, 1989) was an American jurist who served as a justice of the
Wyoming Supreme Court
The Wyoming Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Wyoming. The Court consists of a Chief Justice and four Associate Justices. Each Justice is appointed by the Governor of Wyoming from a list of three nominees submitted by the ...
from December 5, 1955, to January 6, 1975.
Career
Parker was born in
Murray, Iowa
Murray is a city in Clarke County, Iowa, United States. The population was 684 at the time of the 2020 census. The mascot is the Murray Mustang.
History
Murray got its start in the year 1868, following the construction of the Chicago, Burlington ...
, to Charles Theron Parker (1851–1932) and Mary Lavanchie Ball (1873–1958). He grew up with his family on a farm near
Sheridan, Wyoming
Sheridan is a town in the U.S. state of Wyoming and the county seat of Sheridan County. The town is located halfway between Yellowstone Park and Mount Rushmore by U.S. Route 14 and 16. It is the principal town of the Sheridan, Wyoming, Micro ...
. Parker attended the
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyomin ...
where, in 1922, he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, and in 1924, a law degree. Between the time he received his bachelor's degree and his return to law school, he taught school in Laramie and Casper. Parker served in the
U.S. Army in
World Wars I and
II and rose to the rank of colonel.
Parker was admitted to the Wyoming State Bar in 1927 and practiced law in Laramie. In addition to his private practice, he served as city attorney for two years and county attorney for eight years (1932-1940). From 1949 to 1955, he served as a Wyoming state district court judge in the Second Judicial District (
Albany County in
Laramie).
In 1955, Governor
Milward Simpson
Milward Lee Simpson (November 12, 1897June 11, 1993) was an American politician who served as a U.S. Senator and as the 23rd Governor of Wyoming, the first born in the state. In 1985, he was inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners of the Nati ...
appointed him to the Wyoming Supreme Court to fill a vacancy caused by the death of Chief Justice
William Addison Riner
William Addison Riner (June 26, 1878 – November 20, 1955) was a justice of the Wyoming Supreme Court from January 10, 1928, to November 20, 1955.Wyoming State Archives biography of William A. Riner, available at 2301 Central Ave, Cheyenne, WY 82 ...
(1878–1955). Parker had been endorsed for the position by the
Albany,
Carbon
Carbon () is a chemical element with the symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent—its atom making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds. It belongs to group 14 of the periodic table. Carbon makes ...
, and
Sweetwater County Bar Associations. Parker was chief justice from January 1, 1963, to January 2, 1967, and from January 1, 1973, to January 2, 1975. He was the first graduate of the
University of Wyoming College of Law
The University of Wyoming College of Law is the law school of the University of Wyoming and the only law school located in Wyoming. It is situated in the Rocky Mountains in Laramie, Wyoming at 7,165 ft. between the Laramie Mountains and Snowy ...
to become a state district judge and also the first to serve on the Wyoming Supreme Court. After his retirement in 1975, Parker was associated with the Cheyenne law firm, Hirst and Applegate.
During his legal career, Parker served as Wyoming chairman of the
American Bar Association
The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...
's Committee on Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar and was a member of the
American Judicature Society
The American Judicature Society (AJS) is an independent, non-partisan membership organization working nationally to protect the integrity of the American justice system. AJS's membership — including judges, lawyers, and members of the public — ...
and the
American Law Institute
The American Law Institute (ALI) is a research and advocacy group of judges, lawyers, and legal scholars established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of United States common law and its adaptation to changing social needs ...
. He was also a special lecturer-instructor at the University of Wyoming College of Law.
Family
On June 8, 1924, Parker married, Ruth Beggs ( Lila Ruth Beggs; 1893–1971) in Denver (
Weld County
Weld County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 328,981. The county seat is Greeley.
Weld County comprises the Greeley, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Denver ...
). Together, they had two children. After Ruth died, Parker, on October 7, 1972, married Sally Weitz ( Sarah Barbara Joyce; 1913–2016).
Death
Parker died April 18, 1989, in Cheyenne.
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Bibliography
Notes
References
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See also
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Parker, Glenn
Justices of the Wyoming Supreme Court
1898 births
1989 deaths
University of Wyoming alumni
People from Clarke County, Iowa
20th-century American judges