Linton Stephens (July 1, 1823 – July 14, 1872)"Political Items", ''The Paola Western Spirit'' (July 19, 1872), p. 1. was a Georgia lawyer and politician who served as a justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia from 1859 to 1860.

Biography

Stephens was the brother of

Alexander H. Stephens Alexander Hamilton Stephens (February 11, 1812 – March 4, 1883) was an American politician who served as the Vice President of the Confederate States of America, vice president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865, and later as the Lis ...

. Their father died on May 7, 1826, and their mother died seven days later, leaving them orphaned before Stephens was three years old. Stephens had two siblings and two half-siblings, and the family was broken up, with the children sent to live with kin on the side of their respective mothers. Stephens went to his grandmother and a maiden aunt on his mother's side, where he remained for nearly four years. In 1830, the administration of his father's estate was wound up, with each child receiving four hundred and forty-four dollars. Stephens was transferred to the guardianship of his uncle, John W. Lindsay of

Upson County, Georgia Upson County is a county located in the west central Piedmont portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 27,700. The county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital ...

. There Stephens first went to school. In 1836, he entered the academy at Culloden for a year only, and the following autumn, he was transferred to the guardianship of his brother, Alexander, in

Crawfordville, Georgia Crawfordville is a town in Taliaferro County, Georgia, United States. The population was 534 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Taliaferro County. History Crawfordville was founded in 1825 as the seat of the newly formed Taliafer ...

.James D. Waddell,
Biographical Sketch of Linton Stephens
' (Atlanta: Dodson & Scott, 1877). {{quote, Then and there it was "his youth awoke first and fully to the life of the mind" under the tutelage of Colonel Simpson Fouche, head of a large and excellent school at Crawfordville, where Stephens was prepared for admission to college. Stephens graduated from

Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is also the largest institution of hig ...

in 1843, and then attended law lectures at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with College admission ...

, thereafter moving to

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most ...

, to study under U.S. Supreme Court Justice

Joseph Story Joseph Story (September 18, 1779 – September 10, 1845) was an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, serving from 1812 to 1845. He is most remembered for his opinions in '' Martin v. Hunter's Lessee'' and '' United Stat ...

until Story's death in 1845. Stephens then returned to Georgia, gaining

admission to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1847, and entering the practice of law. Stephens "at once went into a lucrative practice"."Hon. Linton Stephens", ''The Daily Constitutionalist and Republic'' (June 4, 1859), p. 2. {{PD-notice In June 1859, Governor

Joseph E. Brown Joseph Emerson Brown (April 15, 1821 – November 30, 1894), often referred to as Joe Brown, was an American attorney and politician, serving as the 42nd Governor of Georgia from 1857 to 1865, the only governor to serve four terms. He also se ...

appointed Stephens to a seat on the Georgia Supreme Court vacated by the resignation of

Charles James McDonald Charles James McDonald (July 9, 1793December 16, 1860) was an American attorney, jurist and politician. He was born in Charleston, South Carolina and moved with his family to Hancock County, Georgia in 1794. He served as a brigadier general i ...

. Linton served for fourteen months, resigning in August 1860.''Tennessee Baptist'' (August 4, 1860), p. 3.

Personal life and death

In 1852, Stephens married Emmeline Bell, widow of George Bell and daughter of Georgia judge James Thomas. Emmeline died in 1857, though Stephens afterwards remained close with Judge Thomas. Stephens died of "congestion of the brain" at

Sparta, Georgia Sparta is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Milledgeville Micropolitan Statistical Area. The city's population was 1,400 at the 2010 census. History Sparta was founded in 1795 in the newl ...

, at the age of 49.

References

{{reflist {{s-start {{s-off {{succession box , title= Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia , before=

, after=

Charles J. Jenkins Charles Jones Jenkins (January 6, 1805June 14, 1883) was an American politician from Georgia. A Democrat, Jenkins served as Attorney General of Georgia from 1831–1834. He then went on to serve as Governor of Georgia from December 14, 1865 to ...

, years=1859–1860 {{s-end {{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Linton 1823 births 1872 deaths Georgia State University alumni University of Virginia School of Law alumni Justices of the Supreme Court of Georgia (U.S. state)