John A. Hunter (November 15, 1833 – June 22, 1887)Judge John A. Hunter
, ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' (June 23, 1887), p. 2. was chief justice of the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

of the

Utah Territory The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah, the 45th st ...

from 1879 to 1884. Born in

Manchester, Ohio Manchester is a village in Manchester Township, Adams County, Ohio, United States, along the Ohio River. The population was 1,839 at the 2020 census. History The community was originally founded in 1790 as Massie's Station for Nathaniel Ma ...

, Hunter entered the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

in 1857, but withdrew the following Spring. He practiced law with his father beginning in 1860, later establishing his own practice with friends in

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, he served in the

13th Ohio Infantry Regiment The 13th Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service Three-months regiment The 13th Ohio Infantry Regiment organized at Columbus, Ohio, on April 20 – May 7, 1861, under Colonel Abra ...

, achieving the rank of captain, until he mustered out in 1861. On July 2, 1879, Hunter was appointed chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Utah Territory, remaining in that office for five years. Hunter died in Salt Lake City after a lingering illness of two years.

References

1833 births 1887 deaths People from Utah Territory People from Manchester, Ohio Union army officers Justices of the Utah Supreme Court {{Utah-state-judge-stub