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Robert Burns Mayes
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi
In office
April 16, 1910 – August 8, 1912
Preceded by Albert H. Whitfield
Succeeded by Sydney M. Smith
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi
In office
May 10, 1906 – April 16, 1910
Member of the Mississippi State Senate
from the 11th district
In office
January 1892 – January 1894
Preceded by J. L. Turnage
J. C. Burdine
Succeeded by R. P. Willing Jr.
Personal details
Born(1867-06-28)June 28, 1867
Gallatin, Mississippi, U.S.
DiedFebruary 18, 1921(1921-02-18) (aged 53)
Jackson, Mississippi, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Children1

Robert Burns Mayes (June 28, 1867 – February 18, 1921) was an American jurist. He was a state senator and justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi from 1906 to 1912. [1]

Early life

Robert Burns Mayes was born on June 28, 1867, in Gallatin, Mississippi. [2] [3] He was the son of Herman Bowman Mayes, a prominent lawyer, and Charity (Barlow) Mayes. [2] Mayes attended the public schools of Hazlehurst, Mississippi. [2] He then studied law at the University of Mississippi, graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1888. [2] [4] He began practicing law in 1890. [2]

Career

In 1891, Mayes was elected to represent the 11th District as a Democrat in the Mississippi State Senate for the 1892-1896 term. [2] [5] In 1893, he was made a special agent of the United States Department of the Treasury and worked in this position until 1895. [6] [3] Mayes then moved to New York City, and practiced law before returning to Hazlehurst three years later. [6] In 1900, Mayes was appointed to be the Chancellor of Mississippi's 5th Chancery District by Governor Andrew H. Longino; Mayes was re-appointed by Governor James K. Vardaman in 1904, and served until 1906. [2] [7] [8] On May 10, 1906, Mayes was appointed to replace Jeff Truly as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi. [2] After the resignation of Chief Justice Albert H. Whitfield, Mayes became the Court's new chief justice on April 16, 1910. [9] [10] Mayes resigned from the Court on August 8, 1912, to return to private practice. [8] He then joined the law firm known as Mayes & Mayes. [8] He also became a district counsel for the Illinois Central Railroad and the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley Railroad. [6] He was the President of the Mississippi State Bar Association from 1913 to 1914. [6]

Personal life and death

Mayes was a Methodist, and he was also a member of the Knights of Pythias. [8] He married Annie Lanier in 1892, and they had one son, named John Lanier Mayes. [9] He then married Leila Hart Beatty on February 23, 1900. [5] [8] After Leila's death, Mayes married for a third time to Malvina Yerger in May 1920. [9] Mayes died from complications from surgery at 6 PM on February 18, 1921, in Jackson, Mississippi. [11] [9]

References

  1. ^ Leslie Southwick, Mississippi Supreme Court Elections: A Historical Perspective 1916-1996, 18 Miss. C. L. Rev. 115 (1997-1998).
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Rowland, Dunbar (1908). The Official and Statistical Register of the State of Mississippi. Department of Archives and History.
  3. ^ a b Herringshaw, Thomas William (1914). Herringshaw's National Library of American Biography: Contains Thirty-five Thousand Biographies of the Acknowledged Leaders of Life and Thought of the United States; Illustrated with Three Thousand Vignette Portraits ... American Publishers' Association. p. 77.
  4. ^ University of Mississippi (1910). Historical Catalogue of the University of Mississippi: 1849-1909. Marshall & Bruce Company. pp. 215–216.
  5. ^ a b Senate, Mississippi Legislature (1892). Journal. p. 3.
  6. ^ a b c d The National Cyclopedia of American Biography. J. T. White. 1921. p. 293.
  7. ^ Mississippi Auditor of Public Accounts (1906). Report of the Auditor Public Accounts. p. 42.
  8. ^ a b c d e George, Charles Ellewyn (1914). The Lawyer and Banker and Central Law Journal. Lawyers and Bankers' Corporation.
  9. ^ a b c d Rowland, Dunbar; Mississippi Historical Society; Mississippi (1935). Courts, judges, and lawyers of Mississippy, 1798-1935. Jackson, Miss.: Printed for the State department of archives and history and the Mississippi historical society. pp. 127–128.
  10. ^ Pi, Beta Theta (1917). Catalogue of Beta Theta Pi. J. T. Brown. p. 532.
  11. ^ "CJ Mayes Miss Supreme Ct JDN Feb 19 1921". Jackson Daily News. 1921-02-19. p. 6. Retrieved 2022-08-31.
Political offices
Preceded by Justice of the Supreme Court of Mississippi
1906–1912 		Succeeded by


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