Levi Hubbell

Levi Hubbell (April 15, 1808 – December 8, 1876) was an American lawyer, judge and politician. He was the first Wisconsin state official to be impeached by the Wisconsin State Assembly in his role as Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the 2nd Circuit. He was also Chief Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court prior to the 1852 law which organized a separate Supreme Court, and he later became the first United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin. He served one term each in the Wisconsin State Assembly and New York State Assembly.[1]

This article is about the Wisconsin jurist. For the Iowa legislator, see Levi M. Hubbell.

The Honorable Levi N. Hubbell
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
In office 1871 – June 1875
Appointed by	Ulysses S. Grant
Preceded by	John B. D. Cogswell (District of Wisconsin)
Succeeded by	Gerry Whiting Hazelton
2nd Chief Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court
In office June 18, 1851 – January 2, 1852
Preceded by	Alexander W. Stow
Succeeded by	Edward V. Whiton
Justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court
ex officio
In office August 28, 1848 – June 1, 1853
Wisconsin Circuit Court Judge for the 2nd Circuit
In office August 28, 1848 – September 9, 1856
Preceded by	Position Established
Succeeded by	Alexander Randall
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the Milwaukee 1st district
In office January 1, 1864 – January 1, 1865
Preceded by	John Sharpstein
Succeeded by	Jackson Hadley
Member of the New York State Assembly from the Tompkins 1st district
In office January 1, 1841 – January 1, 1842
Preceded by	William Henry Bogart
Succeeded by	Charles Humphrey
Personal details
Born	Levi Hubbell (1808-04-15)April 15, 1808 Ballston Spa, New York
Died	December 8, 1876(1876-12-08) (aged 68) Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Resting place	Forest Home Cemetery Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Nationality	American
Political party	Republican National Union (1864) Whig (before 1855)
Spouse(s)	Susan Linn (DeWitt) Hubbell (m. 1836; died 1849) Mary Morris (Beall) Hubbell (m. 1852; died 1866)
Children	Simeon DeWitt Hubbell ^(b. 1837; died 1915) Richard Walter Hubbell ^(b. 1840; died 1910) Singleton Beall Hubbell ^(b. 1855; died 1884) Mary Morris Cooper Hubbell ^(b. 1858; died 1879)
Mother	Clarissa (Fitch) Hubbell
Father	Abijah Hubbell
Alma mater	Union College
Occupation	lawyer, judge
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	New York Militia
Years of service	1833–1836
Rank	Adjutant General

Biography

Born in Ballston, New York, Hubbell graduated from Union College in 1827 and was admitted to the New York Bar. He practiced law with his brother at Canandaigua, New York.[2]

Hubbell was appointed adjutant general of the New York Militia from 1833 to 1836[3] by Governor William Marcy and served in the New York Assembly in 1841 as a Whig.

In 1844, Hubbell moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin Territory where he practiced law at Finch & Lynde. When Wisconsin was admitted to the union on May 29, 1848, he ran as an independent Democrat in the second district, which then included both Milwaukee and Dane counties and was elected as one of the Wisconsin Circuit Court judges, which at that time constituted the Wisconsin Supreme Court.[2] Hubbell became chief justice of the supreme court after Alexander W. Stow left office. In 1853, however, when a new separate Supreme Court was being organized,[4] Hubbell lost the nomination for a seat on the new court.

Hubbell remained a circuit court judge, but was impeached and acquitted by the Wisconsin State Legislature on charges of corruption. He soon resigned in 1856, but in 1863, he was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly.

In 1871, he was appointed United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, but was forced to resign in 1875 because of accusations of corruption.[5][6][7]

Hubbell died in Milwaukee on December 8, 1876.[8] He was buried at Forest Home Cemetery in Milwaukee.

He was married twice. He had two sons with his first wife, Miss DeWitt of Albany, and a son, Dr. Singleton Beall Hubbell, M.D., and a daughter with the second wife, Miss Beall.[9]

See also

• Impeachment in the United States

Notes

1. The Political Graveyard.com lists three Levi Hubbells; they are the same man
2. Winslow, John Bradley, 1851-1920. (1907). Story of a great court : being a sketch history of the Supreme Court of Wisconsin, its judges and their times from the admission of the state to the death of Chief Justice Ryan. Chicago : T. H. Flood & company. p. 16.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
3. Wisconsin Historical Society
4. "An Act to provide for the organization of a separate Supreme Court, and for the election of justices thereof". Act 395 of 1852 (PDF). 5th Wisconsin Legislature. pp. 601–604. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
5. Wisconsin Court System. Levi Hubbell (1808-1876).
6. Levi Hubbell, Wisconsin Historical Society
7. Members of the Wisconsin State Legislature 1848-1999
8. History of the Hubbell Family
9. Hubbell, Walter (1915). History of the Hubbell family : containing genealogical records of the ancestors and descendents of Richard Hubbell from A.D. 1086 to A.D. 1915. Hubbell. OCLC 698023440.