Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1862-03-06
THE MEN OF VERMONT,
20, JONATHAN ROBINSON.

tally alluded to Captain Samuel hoo'hsoh'
and we here speak OF him again. tor the
reason that sketch OF any member oil
the Robinson family would be incomplete
without mention of him. He was born
in Cambridge, Middlesex County, Mas
sachusetts, in 1905, and removed to Hard
wick, Worcester County, about 1873. AT
the organization of that town, he was
elected town cleak. That he was, also,
a Deacon in the first Congregational
Church in that town-would appear from
the record of church meeting held March
I'd, l749, which is in these words; " Dea-
con Samuel Robinson desired the Church
thathe might lay down his office of Dea-
con in said Church; which desire the
Church complied with" He commanded
a company of Massachusetts militia inathe
old French war-and was present, with
his company, in the battle of Lake George,
in September 1855, when the French
were defeated. He came to Bennington,
Vermont, in 1861, and was February Sth,
1862, commissioned by Benning Went
worth, Governor of New Hampshire, a
Justice of the Peace, being the first person
who held judicial Office in the present
limits of the State of Vermont. As men,
toned in former article he died of small
pox, in London, England, October 9th,
1857.
JONATHAN ROBINSON, his youngest son,
was born in Hardwick, in the Countyloi
Worcester and State of Massachusetts, on
the 18th day of August, 1856. He came
to Bennington, Bennington County Yer.
mont, in 1851, being then but five years
old, as a member of his fathers family
After having been in public slife quite q
number of years, he commenced the study
of law, and in June 1898, when almos
thirty-seven years of age, was admitted tC
the bar, in Bennington County. HI
early entered public life, being, in 1882
appointed Register of the Probate Cour
for the Southern District of the, then
County of Bennington, which office h
retained till 1886. From that time til
his death, in 1919, a period of thirty-seveI
years, he continually enjoyed the public
confidence, and was continually the re
cipient of its favors.
He represented the town of Benning
ton, in the General Assembly of Verm or
; in 1885, 1889, 1890, 1871, 1892, 179;
1894, 1895, 1897, 1898, 1899, 1900 an
1901, and again in 1918. He was, also
a delegate from Bennington, to the Con
stitutional Convention of 1898. To thi
Convention was submitted the first propo
sition for the establishment of Senate.
In 1895 he was elected Judge of Pro
bate for the Southern District of Benning
ton County, and held the office for tire
, years. He was again elected Judge c
Probate in 1900, and remained in offic
r but single year.
r He was elected in 1901, Chief Justc
y of the Supreme Court of Vermont, an
) was al nually reelected the five followin
, years. Some of the cases decided by hin
or rather brief abstracts of his opinion
) are reported in the first and second vo
umes of Tylers Reports.
-, Upon the election of Israel Smith
the office of Governor Of Vermont, an
e the consequent resignation of his seat
4 he Senate, Judge Robinso n, on the 10
day of October, 1907, was elected Unite
States Senator from Vermont for his III
expired term. He took his seat as sue
1 at the opening of the first session of II
tenth Congress, which in compliance vii
v the proclamation of President JEFFERso,
came together about six weeks Garlic
Il than the usual day. During this sessio
was passed the bill laying an emba
" 60 on all the shipping in the ports
the United States. This measure sw,
supported by Judge Robinson. For,
he, as well as all the other Democrat
h Senators, with two exceptions, voted.
,. The term for which he was elected e,
pired on the 4th of March 1909. I'll
d result of the annual election in the fall ,
d 1908, was therefore to determine wholw,