William Stryker Gummere
Encyclopedia
William Stryker Gummere (1852-1933) was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey
. Gummere was captain of the Princeton
football team that met Rutgers
in 1869 in the first intercollegiate football game played in America.
After graduating from Princeton in 1870 at the age of 18, Gummere studied law at his father's office in Trenton and was admitted to the bar in 1873, the same year he received his A.M.
from Princeton. Gummere received an honorary
LL.D. in June 1902 from Princeton. In the Class of 1870's twentieth reunion book, Gummere said he was a Republican. Consequently, he added, I have never held office. Republicans don't as a usual thing hold office in New Jersey. This pessimism proved premature because five years later a Democratic governor appointed Gummere to the Supreme Court of New Jersey, and six years after that a Republican governor appointed him Chief Justice, a position he held until his death thirty-two years later.
Gummere was appointed an associate justice on the New Jersey Supreme Court in 1895. On January 28, 1901, he was appointed to the position of chief justice and sworn in as such on November 19, 1901 along with Mahlon Pitney
who was sworn in on same day as associate justice. Prior to serving on the NJ Supreme Court, Gummere became popularly known as "Dollar-a-life Gummere” after his ruling in a Jersey City
case where a child had been killed in a street railroad accident. The parents brought suit for $50,000 compensation, but Justice Gummere ruled that a child's life is financially not worth more than $1 to its parents. After stubborn fighting in the courts, and taking the case to the highest tribunal in the State, Justice Gummere was overborne and $1000 awarded the parents of the dead child. (Abram Graham vs. Jersey City Consolidated Traction Company. Case came into court April 10, 1896. Justice Gummere made his ruling July 20, 1896. Appeal was taken and the case was settled November 11, 1901.
When he died at the age of 80, a Democratic governor, echoing the tributes of other judges, said that New Jersey had lost one of its greatest jurists and America one of its keenest legal minds, and that the treasure store of legal opinion that Gummere had left would be vital for generations long after most of us are forgotten.
New Jersey Supreme Court
The New Jersey Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It has existed in three different forms under the three different state constitutions since the independence of the state in 1776...
. Gummere was captain of the Princeton
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
football team that met Rutgers
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
in 1869 in the first intercollegiate football game played in America.
After graduating from Princeton in 1870 at the age of 18, Gummere studied law at his father's office in Trenton and was admitted to the bar in 1873, the same year he received his A.M.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
from Princeton. Gummere received an honorary
Honorary degree
An honorary degree or a degree honoris causa is an academic degree for which a university has waived the usual requirements, such as matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of examinations...
LL.D. in June 1902 from Princeton. In the Class of 1870's twentieth reunion book, Gummere said he was a Republican. Consequently, he added, I have never held office. Republicans don't as a usual thing hold office in New Jersey. This pessimism proved premature because five years later a Democratic governor appointed Gummere to the Supreme Court of New Jersey, and six years after that a Republican governor appointed him Chief Justice, a position he held until his death thirty-two years later.
Gummere was appointed an associate justice on the New Jersey Supreme Court in 1895. On January 28, 1901, he was appointed to the position of chief justice and sworn in as such on November 19, 1901 along with Mahlon Pitney
Mahlon Pitney
Mahlon Pitney was an American jurist and Republican Party politician from New Jersey, who served in the United States Congress and as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.-Biography:...
who was sworn in on same day as associate justice. Prior to serving on the NJ Supreme Court, Gummere became popularly known as "Dollar-a-life Gummere” after his ruling in a Jersey City
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
case where a child had been killed in a street railroad accident. The parents brought suit for $50,000 compensation, but Justice Gummere ruled that a child's life is financially not worth more than $1 to its parents. After stubborn fighting in the courts, and taking the case to the highest tribunal in the State, Justice Gummere was overborne and $1000 awarded the parents of the dead child. (Abram Graham vs. Jersey City Consolidated Traction Company. Case came into court April 10, 1896. Justice Gummere made his ruling July 20, 1896. Appeal was taken and the case was settled November 11, 1901.
When he died at the age of 80, a Democratic governor, echoing the tributes of other judges, said that New Jersey had lost one of its greatest jurists and America one of its keenest legal minds, and that the treasure store of legal opinion that Gummere had left would be vital for generations long after most of us are forgotten.