James Ward Rector was an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 jurist from Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

.

Born in Glenwood, Missouri

Glenwood, Missouri

Glenwood is a village in Schuyler County, Missouri, United States. The population was 196 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Kirksville Micropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

, Rector received his bachelors and law degrees from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. He served as special counsel to the Governor of Wisconsin

Governor of Wisconsin

The Governor of Wisconsin is the highest executive authority in the government of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The position was first filled by Nelson Dewey on June 7, 1848, the year Wisconsin became a state...

. In 1946, he was appointed to the Wisconsin Supreme Court

Wisconsin Supreme Court

The Wisconsin Supreme Court is the highest appellate court in the state of Wisconsin. The Supreme Court has jurisdiction over original actions, appeals from lower courts, and regulation or administration of the practice of law in Wisconsin.-Location:...

, but was defeated in the election in 1947. Rector then served on the Wisconsin Public Service Commission and then resigned, in 1949, to become president of a bank and practiced law.