Friedrich Heinrich Blume (1875–1971), or Fred H. Blume, as he referred to himself, was a Justice of the Wyoming Supreme Court

Wyoming Supreme Court

The Wyoming Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Wyoming. The Court consists of a Chief Justice and four Associate Justices. Each Justice is appointed by the Governor of Wyoming for an eight-year term. The five Justices select the Chief Justice from amongst themselves. The person...

. He was born in Winzlar

Rehburg-Loccum

Rehburg-Loccum is a town 50 km north west of Hanover in the district of Nienburg in Lower Saxony, Germany.-Geographical location:Rehburg-Loccum borders the Steinhude Lake...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, January 9, 1875. He served as a Justice of the Wyoming Supreme Court for 42 years and by himself translated into English Justinian’s Code and the Novels, two parts of the Corpus Juris Civilis

Corpus Juris Civilis

The Corpus Juris Civilis is the modern name for a collection of fundamental works in jurisprudence, issued from 529 to 534 by order of Justinian I, Eastern Roman Emperor...

. (See Justinian I

Justinian I

Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...

 for a profile of this Emperor.) The following is a time-line of key points in Mr. Blume’s life.

• 1875 - Born Friedrich Heinrich Blume in Winzlar, Germany on Jan. 9.
• 1887 - Immigrates to the U.S., by himself, to join his elder brother, Wilhelm.
• 1892 - Settles in Audubon, Iowa
  Audubon, Iowa
  -2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 2,176 in the city, with a population density of . There were 1,106 housing units, of which 961 were occupied....
  
   where he works & completes high school.
• 1895 - Enrolls at the State University of Iowa.
• 1898 - Graduates, Phi Beta Kappa.
• 1899 - Admitted to the practice of law in Iowa.
• 1905 - Moves, with his wife, to practice law in Sheridan, Wyoming
  Sheridan, Wyoming
  Sheridan is a city in Sheridan County, Wyoming, United States. The 2010 census put the population at 17,444 and a Micropolitan Statistical Area of 29,116...
  
  .
• 1907 - Begins political career.
• 1912 - Backs Theodore Roosevelt’s
  Theodore Roosevelt
  Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
  
   Bull Moose party
  Progressive Party (United States, 1912)
  The Progressive Party of 1912 was an American political party. It was formed after a split in the Republican Party between President William Howard Taft and former President Theodore Roosevelt....
  
  ; when it fails, decides to retire from politics; begins reading history of Western civilization & building extensive library on the subject.
• 1919 - Learns there is no English translation of Justinian’s Code.
• 1920 - Appears to have begun his Code translation.
• 1921 - Appointed to Wyoming Supreme Court.
• 1923/24 - Completes first draft of translation.
• 1929 - Has revised version typed; teaches Roman law at Northwestern University Law School at the invitation of Dean John Henry Wigmore
  John Henry Wigmore
  John Henry Wigmore was a U.S. jurist and expert in the law of evidence. After teaching law at Keio University in Tokyo , he was the dean of Northwestern Law School...
  
  .
• 1933 - Receives letter from Clyde Pharr asking him to join Pharr’s “Project for a Variorum Translation into English of the Entire Body of Roman Law,” with Blume’s translation of the Code to be used as the basis for the Project’s version of that document.
• 1938 - Addresses Riccobono Seminar on The Code of Justinian, and its Value.
• 1939 - Ceases work on the Code translation as his hopes for publication fade.
• 1943 - Pharr renews contact with Blume & revives scaled-down version of translation program to be called “The Corpus of Roman Law”; Blume re-reads Code translation & annotations, makes changes, & sends copy to Pharr; works with Pharr & others on Theodosian Code translation (for which Blume’s own translation of Books XIV-XVI and part of Book X prove very helpful).
• 1951 - Theodosian Code translation published by Princeton University Press
  Princeton University Press
  -Further reading:* "". Artforum International, 2005.-External links:* * * * *...
  
  as first volume in “The Corpus of Roman Law” series; Blume specially noted by Pharr in preface.
• 1952 - Reviews Code translation again in anticipation it being the subject of the project’s next publication.
• 1956 - Accepts that his Code translation will not be published in his lifetime.
• 1963 - Retires from the Court.
• 1971 - Fred H. Blume dies on September 26, at age 96.
• 2007 - Blume's Code and Novels published on Annotated Justinian Code website.

Justice Blume’s translations of the Code and the Novels, as well as his Riccobono
Seminar address, The Code of Justinian, and its Value were published on the web in
2007 as the Annotated Justinian Code. A 2nd edition of the Annotated Justinian Code, containing numerous editions and corrections, was published in 2009.