Sarah Herring Sorin
Encyclopedia
Sarah Herring Sorin, was Arizona
's first woman attorney and the first women to try and win a case in front of the United States Supreme Court unassisted by a male attorney. Mrs. Sorin practiced law with her father Colonel Herring in the firm "Herring & Sorin" initially in Tombstone, Arizona
and later in Tucson. After her father's death, Sorin moved to Globe, Arizona
where she became the attorney for the Old Dominion Copper Company and United Globe Mines
. Sarah Sorin is a member of the Arizona Women's Hall of Fame. (See photo of Sarah Herring Sorin in the Arizona Library Archives.)She is also included in Stanford Law School's
Women's Legal History Biography Project.
and later became Deputy District Attorney in New York City and served in the New York State Legislature.
Sarah finished high school in New York and then went on to obtain her teaching credentials. She taught school in New York City while her brother Howard attended High School. By this time Sarah and Howard were the only members of the family left in New York. Through a usual series of events the rest of the family had moved far west to the city of Tombstone in the Arizona Territory
.
to settle the estate and evaluate various mining holdings. In the process, Colonel Herring caught the mining fever and decided to work the claims located in Bisbee
through his newly formed Neptune Mining Company that was funded by east coast money. In 1880 the family moved out west to Bisbee Canyon to join Colonel Herring, except for the two oldest, Sarah and Howard. Colonel Herring eventually ceased his mining aspirations and established himself as an attorney for mining companies.
When Sarah and Howard moved west in 1882, the Herring family was now residing in Tombstone
. The city was still reeling from the October 1881 Earp-Clanton shoot-out at the O.K. Corral. Colonel Herring was Wyatt Earp's
attorney during the murder trial in which Earp was ultimately acquitted. Due to the volatile and polarized atmosphere surrounding the trial, Sarah's father had to wear guns at all times and was often under the protection of hired gunmen. Herring even wore his guns in the court room.
Not long after her move west, Sarah became the first woman schoolteacher in Tombstone. In her ten years at the school she also had stints as school librarian and principal. Her favorite activities were riding horseback and playing music.
She also enjoyed the parlor games played in the respectable side of town. Sarah found Tombstone a rapidly growing and civilized city, in spite of the feuds and fights of the rough side of town. Tombstone had surpassed 10,000 in population and had more attorneys than any other city in the Arizona Territory. It also had some of the best restaurants between New Orleans and San Francisco. Sarah and her sisters felt perfectly safe strolling down the sidewalk, even at night. They stayed clear of the part of town that housed the saloons and the infamous Birdcage Theater, where Doc Holiday, Virgil Earp
, Wyatt Earp
, and Morgan Earp
could be found.
Sarah's sister Bertha assisted their father in his law office on Toughnut Street, where most of the law offices were located. Brother Howard joined his father's law firm as an attorney after being admitted to the bar in 1885.
In 1886 the tide turned on Tombstone. The water levels in the mines began to rise, ruining its potential for mining. The mining companies began focusing on mines in other areas and the population in Tombstone started its downward spiral. The Herrings did not move. Sarah enjoyed her teaching and her father's law firm thrived. Colonel Herring served the Territory as Arizona Attorney General (1892-3), delegate to the 1891 Constitutional Convention
, and President of the Territorial Bar
.
The family faced disaster on November 2, 1891, when Sarah's brother Howard died during a dental procedure at the age of 27. Howard was the heir apparent to Colonel Herring and his law firm. The family and the city of Tombstone mourned. And somewhere in the midst of this crisis, Sarah decided to become an attorney and take Howard's place in the law firm.
in other parts of the country faced Lavinia Goodell in Wisconsin, Myra Bradwell
in Illinois, Clara Shortridge Foltz in California, and Belva Lockwood in Washington D.C. At the time of the 1890 census there were only 208 women in the U.S. that were listed as Attorneys.
After being admitted to the Bar, Sarah decided to return to New York City and attend New York University's
School of Law
. NYU was one of the first law schools in the nation to actively recruit women. Sarah graduated with an L.L.B. in 1894. She ranked fourth in her class of eighty-six graduates.
Upon graduation from NYU, she returned to her father's law firm in Tombstone. Her first case before the Arizona Supreme Court was in 1896 when she represented a mining company, which she won for her client.
. They were helped in their move by Thomas Sorin, who was to become Sarah's husband.
Sarah married Thomas Sorin on July 22, 1898 in her family's home in Tucson. Sarah was 37 and Sorin was 52. Sorin was a successful miner, who like many others, had left his mining operations in Tombstone to focus on other areas in Arizona. To many he was better known as the co-founder of the Tombstone Epitaph
along with John Clum
. Sorin, who was renowned for his mining expertise, represented the Arizona Territory mining industry at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893.
The Sorins spent the weekends at their ranch in Cochise County. During the week Sarah would travel to Tucson and practice law with her father, while Thomas would travel to various mining operations in the territory.
The law firm of Herring & Sorin focused on more than just representing mining companies. Herring worked with future son-in-law attorney Selim M. Franklin
in founding the University of Arizona
. Herring served a term as the University's Chancellor. Herring Hall was named for him. Colonel Herring was active in Arizona's statehood
in 1912 and assisted in writing the state's first constitution.
Sarah's work brought her in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on four occasions. Her father was alive to witness the first two appearances, but died in 1912, before witnessing her greatest legal achievement in 1913.
Sarah first appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court in October 1906 in the case of Taylor vs. Burns. Herring made the final arguments. Herring & Sorin won the case for their client, Thomas Burns. The opinion was delivered by Justice Brewer.
Her next appearance involved mining tax issues. In an opinion delivered by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes
, they lost their argument. The case did lead to mining companies pushing for statutory revisions to tax laws, which led to the enactment of the Bullion Law, which Herring & Sorin drafted.
Sarah's third appearance before the nation's highest court occurred after her father's death. Sorin was helping her attorney brother-in-law Selim M. Franklin on a title case that was argued before the court.
Her fourth case was her landmark case, Work v. United Globe Mines, where she became the first woman to argue a case unassisted and unaccompanied by a male attorney. This event on November 6, 1913 secured Sarah's place in national legal history. The records show that the written brief presented to the court was solely in Sarah's name. And she gave the final arguments by herself, an accomplishment that did not go unnoticed by the press. It was written up in many newspapers including the New York Times. The Women's Lawyers' Journal reported that Sarah's argument was "one of the most brilliant ever presented to that court by a woman."
On January 5, 1914 Chief Justice White rendered its opinion in favor of Sarah and her client, United Globe Mines.
, closer to the Sorin Ranch. Sarah was the corporate counsel for both the Old Dominion Copper Company and the United Globe Mines
, which was part of the Phelps Dodge
mining empire.
Not long after her triumph in the U.S. Supreme Court in January 1914, Sarah had to travel to Tombstone to deal with her father's estate. Shortly after she fell ill and died of pneumonia on April 30, 1914 in Globe, with her husband at her side. A ceremony was held in Tucson at her sister's home. Her obituary was carried on the front page of several newspapers and a special resolution was prepared by the Arizona State Bar Association. Both Sarah and Thomas Sorin are buried at Evergreen Cemetery
in Tucson.
In 1985 Sarah Herring Sorin was admitted into the Arizona Women's Hall of Fame.
In 1999, the Arizona Women Lawyers Association created an annual Sarah Sorin Award.
It seems appropriate that the state that would produce the first woman to present a case unassisted to the United States Supreme Court, would produce the first woman on the Highest Court in Justice Sandra Day O'Connor
.
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
's first woman attorney and the first women to try and win a case in front of the United States Supreme Court unassisted by a male attorney. Mrs. Sorin practiced law with her father Colonel Herring in the firm "Herring & Sorin" initially in Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona Territory. It was one of the last wide-open frontier boomtowns in the American Old West. From about 1877 to 1890, the town's mines produced USD $40 to $85 million...
and later in Tucson. After her father's death, Sorin moved to Globe, Arizona
Globe, Arizona
Globe has an arid climate, characterized by hot summers and moderate to warm winters. Globe's arid climate is somewhat tempered by its elevation, however, leading to slightly cooler temperatures and slightly more precipitation than Phoenix or Yuma....
where she became the attorney for the Old Dominion Copper Company and United Globe Mines
Copper mining in Arizona
-Jerome:Native Americans used copper minerals of the Verde district at modern-day Jerome as pigment to decorate skin and textiles. The first European to visit the area is thought to be Spanish explorer Antonio de Espejo, who found silver at a location in central Arizona in 1583...
. Sarah Sorin is a member of the Arizona Women's Hall of Fame. (See photo of Sarah Herring Sorin in the Arizona Library Archives.)She is also included in Stanford Law School's
Stanford Law School
Stanford Law School is a graduate school at Stanford University located in the area known as the Silicon Valley, near Palo Alto, California in the United States. The Law School was established in 1893 when former President Benjamin Harrison joined the faculty as the first professor of law...
Women's Legal History Biography Project.
Early Life in New York City
Sarah Herring Sorin was born in New York City on January 15, 1861, to Colonel William and Mary Inslee Herring. The Herring's had five children: Sarah, Howard, Bertha, Henrietta and Mary, from oldest to youngest. Her father, Colonel Herring, had graduated from Columbia Law SchoolColumbia Law School
Columbia Law School, founded in 1858, is one of the oldest and most prestigious law schools in the United States. A member of the Ivy League, Columbia Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Columbia University in New York City. It offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in...
and later became Deputy District Attorney in New York City and served in the New York State Legislature.
Sarah finished high school in New York and then went on to obtain her teaching credentials. She taught school in New York City while her brother Howard attended High School. By this time Sarah and Howard were the only members of the family left in New York. Through a usual series of events the rest of the family had moved far west to the city of Tombstone in the Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
.
From New York to Tombstone
In 1876, upon the death of her copper-mining uncle Marcus Herring, her father ventured to the Arizona TerritoryArizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
to settle the estate and evaluate various mining holdings. In the process, Colonel Herring caught the mining fever and decided to work the claims located in Bisbee
Bisbee
Bisbee may refer to:* Bisbee, Arizona* Bisbee, North Dakota* Bisbee Blue, turquoise from Bisbee, Arizona.* Bisbee Deportation, the illegal expulsion of 1,300 miners from Bisbee, Arizona...
through his newly formed Neptune Mining Company that was funded by east coast money. In 1880 the family moved out west to Bisbee Canyon to join Colonel Herring, except for the two oldest, Sarah and Howard. Colonel Herring eventually ceased his mining aspirations and established himself as an attorney for mining companies.
When Sarah and Howard moved west in 1882, the Herring family was now residing in Tombstone
Tombstone, Arizona
Tombstone is a city in Cochise County, Arizona, United States, founded in 1879 by Ed Schieffelin in what was then Pima County, Arizona Territory. It was one of the last wide-open frontier boomtowns in the American Old West. From about 1877 to 1890, the town's mines produced USD $40 to $85 million...
. The city was still reeling from the October 1881 Earp-Clanton shoot-out at the O.K. Corral. Colonel Herring was Wyatt Earp's
Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was an American gambler, investor, and law enforcement officer who served in several Western frontier towns. He was also at different times a farmer, teamster, bouncer, saloon-keeper, miner and boxing referee. However, he was never a drover or cowboy. He is most well known...
attorney during the murder trial in which Earp was ultimately acquitted. Due to the volatile and polarized atmosphere surrounding the trial, Sarah's father had to wear guns at all times and was often under the protection of hired gunmen. Herring even wore his guns in the court room.
Not long after her move west, Sarah became the first woman schoolteacher in Tombstone. In her ten years at the school she also had stints as school librarian and principal. Her favorite activities were riding horseback and playing music.
She also enjoyed the parlor games played in the respectable side of town. Sarah found Tombstone a rapidly growing and civilized city, in spite of the feuds and fights of the rough side of town. Tombstone had surpassed 10,000 in population and had more attorneys than any other city in the Arizona Territory. It also had some of the best restaurants between New Orleans and San Francisco. Sarah and her sisters felt perfectly safe strolling down the sidewalk, even at night. They stayed clear of the part of town that housed the saloons and the infamous Birdcage Theater, where Doc Holiday, Virgil Earp
Virgil Earp
Virgil Walter Earp fought in the Civil War. He was U.S. Deputy Marshal for south-eastern Arizona and Tombstone City Marshal at the time of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in the Arizona Territory. Two months after the shootout in Tombstone, outlaw Cowboys ambushed Virgil on the streets of...
, Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Earp
Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp was an American gambler, investor, and law enforcement officer who served in several Western frontier towns. He was also at different times a farmer, teamster, bouncer, saloon-keeper, miner and boxing referee. However, he was never a drover or cowboy. He is most well known...
, and Morgan Earp
Morgan Earp
Morgan Seth Earp was the younger brother of Deputy U.S. Marshals Virgil and Wyatt Earp. Morgan was a deputy of Virgil's and all three men were the target of repeated death threats made by outlaw Cowboys who were upset by the Earps' interference in their illegal activities. This conflict eventually...
could be found.
Sarah's sister Bertha assisted their father in his law office on Toughnut Street, where most of the law offices were located. Brother Howard joined his father's law firm as an attorney after being admitted to the bar in 1885.
In 1886 the tide turned on Tombstone. The water levels in the mines began to rise, ruining its potential for mining. The mining companies began focusing on mines in other areas and the population in Tombstone started its downward spiral. The Herrings did not move. Sarah enjoyed her teaching and her father's law firm thrived. Colonel Herring served the Territory as Arizona Attorney General (1892-3), delegate to the 1891 Constitutional Convention
Arizona Constitution
The Constitution of the State of Arizona is the governing document and framework for the U.S. state of Arizona. The current constitution is the first and only adopted by the state of Arizona.-History:...
, and President of the Territorial Bar
State Bar of Arizona
The State Bar of Arizona regulates the practice of law in Arizona. It licenses lawyers and establishes procedures for the discipline of misconduct by lawyers....
.
The family faced disaster on November 2, 1891, when Sarah's brother Howard died during a dental procedure at the age of 27. Howard was the heir apparent to Colonel Herring and his law firm. The family and the city of Tombstone mourned. And somewhere in the midst of this crisis, Sarah decided to become an attorney and take Howard's place in the law firm.
Sarah's Legal Training
In 1892 Sarah quit her teaching job and started working in her father's law firm. Later that year she applied for a license to practice law in the First Judicial District Court of the Territory of Arizona in Tombstone. Her oral examination in open court was conducted by attorneys C.S. Clark, Allen English, and Judge W.H. Barnes. She passed unanimously. Sarah did not receive the same resistance that women attorneysWomen in the U.S. Judiciary
The number of women in the United States judiciary has increased as more women have entered law school.-Breaking into the field of law:The entry of women into the legal profession was continuously thwarted by the general impression that women were unfit to practice law...
in other parts of the country faced Lavinia Goodell in Wisconsin, Myra Bradwell
Myra Bradwell
Myra Colby Bradwell was a publisher and political activist. She was the first woman to be admitted to the Illinois bar to become the first female lawyer in Illinois in 1892.-Life:...
in Illinois, Clara Shortridge Foltz in California, and Belva Lockwood in Washington D.C. At the time of the 1890 census there were only 208 women in the U.S. that were listed as Attorneys.
After being admitted to the Bar, Sarah decided to return to New York City and attend New York University's
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
School of Law
New York University School of Law
The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University. Established in 1835, the school offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in law, and is located in Greenwich Village, in the New York City borough of Manhattan....
. NYU was one of the first law schools in the nation to actively recruit women. Sarah graduated with an L.L.B. in 1894. She ranked fourth in her class of eighty-six graduates.
Upon graduation from NYU, she returned to her father's law firm in Tombstone. Her first case before the Arizona Supreme Court was in 1896 when she represented a mining company, which she won for her client.
Relocation to Tucson
In 1896 the Herring family decided to leave the declining Tombstone and move north to the thriving city of Tucson, ArizonaTucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
. They were helped in their move by Thomas Sorin, who was to become Sarah's husband.
Sarah married Thomas Sorin on July 22, 1898 in her family's home in Tucson. Sarah was 37 and Sorin was 52. Sorin was a successful miner, who like many others, had left his mining operations in Tombstone to focus on other areas in Arizona. To many he was better known as the co-founder of the Tombstone Epitaph
Tombstone Epitaph
The Tombstone Epitaph is a Tombstone, Arizona-based monthly publication that serves as a window in the history and culture of the Old West. Founded on May 1, 1880, The Epitaph is the oldest continually published newspaper in Arizona.-History:...
along with John Clum
John Clum
John Philip Clum was an Indian agent for the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation in the Arizona Territory. He implemented a limited form of self-government on the reservation that was so successful that other reservations were closed and their residents moved to San Carlos. Clum later became the...
. Sorin, who was renowned for his mining expertise, represented the Arizona Territory mining industry at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893.
The Sorins spent the weekends at their ranch in Cochise County. During the week Sarah would travel to Tucson and practice law with her father, while Thomas would travel to various mining operations in the territory.
The law firm of Herring & Sorin focused on more than just representing mining companies. Herring worked with future son-in-law attorney Selim M. Franklin
Selim Franklin
Selim Franklin, Esquire was an American pioneer, auctioneer, real estate agent, chess master, and Canadian legislator. Selim is listed in the Pioneer Club of San Francisco and The Society of California Pioneers...
in founding the University of Arizona
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is a land-grant and space-grant public institution of higher education and research located in Tucson, Arizona, United States. The University of Arizona was the first university in the state of Arizona, founded in 1885...
. Herring served a term as the University's Chancellor. Herring Hall was named for him. Colonel Herring was active in Arizona's statehood
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
in 1912 and assisted in writing the state's first constitution.
Sarah's work brought her in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on four occasions. Her father was alive to witness the first two appearances, but died in 1912, before witnessing her greatest legal achievement in 1913.
U.S. Supreme Court Cases
On April 16, 1906 Colonel Herring applied for his daughter's admission to the United States Supreme Court. Sarah became the 24th woman ever to be admitted. Belva Lockwood, the first woman ever admitted to the U.S. Supreme Court, attended Sarah's ceremony in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
Sarah first appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court in October 1906 in the case of Taylor vs. Burns. Herring made the final arguments. Herring & Sorin won the case for their client, Thomas Burns. The opinion was delivered by Justice Brewer.
Her next appearance involved mining tax issues. In an opinion delivered by Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. was an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932...
, they lost their argument. The case did lead to mining companies pushing for statutory revisions to tax laws, which led to the enactment of the Bullion Law, which Herring & Sorin drafted.
Sarah's third appearance before the nation's highest court occurred after her father's death. Sorin was helping her attorney brother-in-law Selim M. Franklin on a title case that was argued before the court.
Her fourth case was her landmark case, Work v. United Globe Mines, where she became the first woman to argue a case unassisted and unaccompanied by a male attorney. This event on November 6, 1913 secured Sarah's place in national legal history. The records show that the written brief presented to the court was solely in Sarah's name. And she gave the final arguments by herself, an accomplishment that did not go unnoticed by the press. It was written up in many newspapers including the New York Times. The Women's Lawyers' Journal reported that Sarah's argument was "one of the most brilliant ever presented to that court by a woman."
On January 5, 1914 Chief Justice White rendered its opinion in favor of Sarah and her client, United Globe Mines.
Last Days and Aftermath
After her father's passing in 1912, Sarah moved her practice to Globe, ArizonaGlobe, Arizona
Globe has an arid climate, characterized by hot summers and moderate to warm winters. Globe's arid climate is somewhat tempered by its elevation, however, leading to slightly cooler temperatures and slightly more precipitation than Phoenix or Yuma....
, closer to the Sorin Ranch. Sarah was the corporate counsel for both the Old Dominion Copper Company and the United Globe Mines
Copper mining in Arizona
-Jerome:Native Americans used copper minerals of the Verde district at modern-day Jerome as pigment to decorate skin and textiles. The first European to visit the area is thought to be Spanish explorer Antonio de Espejo, who found silver at a location in central Arizona in 1583...
, which was part of the Phelps Dodge
Phelps Dodge
Phelps Dodge Corporation was an American mining company founded in 1834 by Anson Greene Phelps and William Earle Dodge, Sr.. On March 19, 2007, it was acquired by Freeport-McMoRan and now operates under the name Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.-History:...
mining empire.
Not long after her triumph in the U.S. Supreme Court in January 1914, Sarah had to travel to Tombstone to deal with her father's estate. Shortly after she fell ill and died of pneumonia on April 30, 1914 in Globe, with her husband at her side. A ceremony was held in Tucson at her sister's home. Her obituary was carried on the front page of several newspapers and a special resolution was prepared by the Arizona State Bar Association. Both Sarah and Thomas Sorin are buried at Evergreen Cemetery
Evergreen Cemetery
Evergreen Cemetery may refer to:In the United States* Evergreen Cemetery * Evergreen Cemetery , listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Cochise County, Arizona...
in Tucson.
In 1985 Sarah Herring Sorin was admitted into the Arizona Women's Hall of Fame.
In 1999, the Arizona Women Lawyers Association created an annual Sarah Sorin Award.
It seems appropriate that the state that would produce the first woman to present a case unassisted to the United States Supreme Court, would produce the first woman on the Highest Court in Justice Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor is an American jurist who was the first female member of the Supreme Court of the United States. She served as an Associate Justice from 1981 until her retirement from the Court in 2006. O'Connor was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1981...
.
See also
- Women in the United States judiciary
- Sandra Day O'ConnorSandra Day O'ConnorSandra Day O'Connor is an American jurist who was the first female member of the Supreme Court of the United States. She served as an Associate Justice from 1981 until her retirement from the Court in 2006. O'Connor was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1981...
- Belva Lockwood - pioneer woman attorney in Washington DC
- Clara Shortridge Foltz--pioneer woman attorney in California
External links
- Arizona Women's Hall of Fame: Sarah Herring Sorin
- Stanford Law - Women's Legal History: Sarah Herring Sorin PDF
- FindLaw Taylor v. Burns, Sarah Herring Sorin
- Tucson Citizen: Arizona's First Female Attorney
- Tucson's Territorial Pioneers
- Jacquelyn Kasper: Sarah Herring Sorin biography
- Supreme Court Historical Society