Hugh M. Morris
Encyclopedia
Hugh Martin Morris was an American attorney and jurist. He was born in Greenwood
, Sussex County
, Delaware
. He graduated from Delaware College (now the University of Delaware
) with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1898 where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. His career was diverse and included teaching school in Sussex County followed by the study of law, and admittance to the Bar in 1903. From 1903-1919 he practiced law in Wilmington, Delaware
and in 1919 he was appointed Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware by President Woodrow Wilson
.
Judge Morris was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws by the University of Delaware
in 1928. In 1930, he returned to private practice as the principal in the Wilmington, Delaware law firm that is now Morris, Nichols, Arsht and Tunnell.
Judge Morris served on the University of Delaware Board of Trustees from 1929-1959 including as its President from 1939-1959. He was initiated as a graduate member into the University's Phi Kappa Tau
fraternity chapter.
The Hugh M. Morris Library at the University of Delaware, first completed in 1963 and expanded in 1986, was named in honor of Judge Morris. The Library was formally dedicated on April 4, 1964 with Judge Morris in attendance.
Judge Morris' estate was purchased by the State of Delaware and is part of a state park.
Greenwood, Delaware
As of the census of 2000, there were 837 people, 335 households, and 211 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,267.2 people per square mile . There were 394 housing units at an average density of 596.5 per square mile...
, Sussex County
Sussex County, Delaware
Sussex County is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of Delaware. As of 2010 the population was 197,145, an increase of 25.9% over the previous decade. The county seat is Georgetown. The Seaford Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Sussex County.Sussex County is...
, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
. He graduated from Delaware College (now the University of Delaware
University of Delaware
The university is organized into seven colleges:* College of Agriculture and Natural Resources* College of Arts and Sciences* Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics* College of Earth, Ocean and Environment* College of Education and Human Development...
) with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1898 where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. His career was diverse and included teaching school in Sussex County followed by the study of law, and admittance to the Bar in 1903. From 1903-1919 he practiced law in Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
and in 1919 he was appointed Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware by President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
.
Judge Morris was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws by the University of Delaware
University of Delaware
The university is organized into seven colleges:* College of Agriculture and Natural Resources* College of Arts and Sciences* Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics* College of Earth, Ocean and Environment* College of Education and Human Development...
in 1928. In 1930, he returned to private practice as the principal in the Wilmington, Delaware law firm that is now Morris, Nichols, Arsht and Tunnell.
Judge Morris served on the University of Delaware Board of Trustees from 1929-1959 including as its President from 1939-1959. He was initiated as a graduate member into the University's Phi Kappa Tau
Phi Kappa Tau
Phi Kappa Tau is a U.S. national collegiate fraternity.-History:Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity was founded in the Union Literary Society Hall of Miami University's Old Main Building in Oxford, Ohio on March 17, 1906...
fraternity chapter.
The Hugh M. Morris Library at the University of Delaware, first completed in 1963 and expanded in 1986, was named in honor of Judge Morris. The Library was formally dedicated on April 4, 1964 with Judge Morris in attendance.
Judge Morris' estate was purchased by the State of Delaware and is part of a state park.