Summer Marble, Lawyer of Western Kentucky

Several  excerpts were taken from an address delivered before the Kentucky State Bar Association at Middlesborough, Kentucky on 12 July 1910 by Judge W.A. Berry. These excerpts were published in the Paducah News-Democrat on 13 July 1910, p. 6.  One excerpt concerned Summer Marble, which is published here.

Summer Marble

A Western Kentucky lawyer who is entitled to be classed among the great lawyers of Kentucky is Summer Marble. He came from sturdy puritan stock, his ancestors being of the pioneers of New England, and a direct descendant of revolutionary heroes. He was born January 20, 1816, near Northampton, Mass. and died at Princeton, Kentucky in May 1881.

Judge Marble received his education at the country schools  of Northampton and  never had the advantage of a college education. He left home at an early age and went to New Jersey, where for a while he taught school. Soon after this Mr. Marble and a younger brother came to Kentucky and settled in Henry County, where he taught school and studied law at night under the instruction of Judge Rowan, in his office at New Castle. He afterward read law until he obtained his license in 1840. He then moved to Salem, at that time county seat of Livingston County, and Livingston County at that time embraced all the present county of Livingston and the territory now comprising Crittenden County. The bar at Salem was an exceedingly strong one, having among its members Henry Dallam, afterwards of Henderson, Kentucky; George W. Barbour, Robert A. Patterson, Wiley P. Fowler and others of equal prominence and ability; the circuit judge of his district at that time was Judge James Campbell, father of Judge Campbell, now living in Paducah.

In 1842, the county was divided and Crittenden County was cut off and Smithland then became the county seat of Livingston and Marion, the county seat of Crittenden. Mr. Marble moved to Marion and became the first county attorney of the new county; he represented his county in the General Assembly in 1849. He moved to Princeton in 1851 or 1852 and in 1858 to Chicago, but in 1864 he came back to Kentucky on account of his southern proclivities; while in Chicago, however, he was recognized as one of the leading lawyers of the city. In 1875 he went to the state senate.

Mr. Marble ranked among the leading lawyers of his time. He has one son living in Kentucky, a practicing attorney in Western Kentucky courts, Judge William Marble.

Published 21 Mar 2019, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/