Robert Roberts Jr.

Robert Ryer Roberts Jr. (March 2, 1872 – May 2, 1940) was an American educator, lawyer, and a Democratic politician in the early 20th century from northern Louisiana. Though born in Union Parish, where he spent his early years, he represented Webster Parish in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1908 to 1914,[2] after which time he became a judge for the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit and the Louisiana 26th Judicial District, based in Webster and Bossier parishes. He was subsequently an attorney in private practice in Shreveport in Caddo Parish.

Robert Ryer Roberts Jr.
Roberts as he appears at Minden City Hall
Mayor of Minden, Louisiana, USA
In office 1905–1906
Preceded by	Alexander McIntyre Leary
Succeeded by	W. H. Webb
Louisiana State Representative for Webster Parish
In office 1908–1914
Preceded by	E. L. Stewart
Succeeded by	W. Burch Lee
Judge of the Louisiana 26th Judicial District (Bossier and Webster parishes)
In office December 4, 1920 – January 2, 1925
Preceded by	John N. Sandlin
Succeeded by	John S. Richardson
Personal details
Born	March 2, 1872[1] Union Parish, Louisiana, USA
Died	May 2, 1940 (aged 68) Shreveport, Louisiana
Nationality	American
Political party	Democratic Party
Spouse(s)	Olive Goodwill Roberts
Relations	Murphy J. Foster Jr. (grandson) Captain Alfred Goodwill (father-in-law)
Children	Robert Roberts, III Olive Roberts Foster
Parents	Robert Sr. and Mary McCormick Roberts
Alma mater	Ruston College Louisiana State University
Occupation	Lawyer; Judge Former educator

One of his grandchildren was subsequent Louisiana Governor Murphy J. "Mike" Foster Jr., who served from 1996 to 2004.

Biography

Roberts was a son of Robert Roberts Sr., born in South Carolina, and the former Mary McCormick, a native of Mississippi. The senior Roberts was a physician, a captain of infantry for the Confederate Army in the American Civil War, and the Union Parish superintendent of schools. The junior Roberts graduated in 1893 from the former Ruston College, a forerunner of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston in Lincoln Parish. He subsequently graduated in 1897 from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. He first taught in public schools before he engaged in the practice of law in the Ruston firm, Barksdale & Barksdale. After admission to the bar, he represented the Barksdale firm in Farmerville, the seat of government of Union Parish. He was elected mayor of Farmerville c. 1900 and then the mayor of Minden in Webster Parish from 1905 to 1906. In 1908, he was elected to the first of two terms in the state legislature as the representative for Webster Parish. He resigned midway in his second legislative term, during which he had been the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. In 1914, before he left the house he was co-author of the Burke-Roberts Workmen's Compensation Act. He was a member of the Louisiana Tax Commission in 1911 and the Louisiana Constitutional Convention of 1913. He was also a private secretary to Governor Luther E. Hall, who appointed Roberts to a two-year opening on the Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit, created by the death of Judge Ben Edwards.[3] Roberts was succeeded in the legislature by W. Burch Lee, who subsequently was the clerk of the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, based in Shreveport.[4]

In 1920, while he still resided in Minden, Roberts was elected judge of the 26th Judicial District Court, a position he held from 1920 to 1925. He succeeded John N. Sandlin, who was elected to the United States House of Representatives for Louisiana's 4th congressional district.[5] After a realignment in 1923, which was temporary, Bossier Parish was moved into the 1st Judicial District with Caddo Parish. Roberts thereafter engaged in his law practice in Shreveport with his son, Roberts Roberts, III, a number designation later used by Judge Roberts's grandson.[3]

Judge Roberts married the former Olive Goodwill (born 1875), the daughter of Captain Alfred Goodwill (1830-1905) and his second wife, the former Ida Victoria Hill (1838-1937). Robert and Olive Roberts had a daughter, also named Olive Roberts (1904-1990), who graduated in 1925 from H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College, the women's division of Tulane University in New Orleans. She married Murphy J. Foster, a sugar planter from St. Mary Parish and a son of Governor Murphy J. Foster Sr. Murphy and Olive Foster were the parents of Governor Mike Foster. One of Olive Foster's paternal cousins, Jasper Goodwill, was also a mayor of Minden, with service from 1955 to 1958.[6]

Judge Roberts was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Kappa Sigma, the Masonic lodge, and the Shreveport Country Club. He was an avid golfer, fisherman, and hunter.[3]

A grandson of Judge and Mrs. Roberts, Robert Roberts, IV (1930-2010), used the designation Robert Roberts, III. He too was a prominent Shreveport attorney, a member from 1955 to 1999 of the firm Blanchard, Walker, O'Quin & Roberts, PLC. He graduated from Davidson College in North Carolina and LSU, from which he received both bachelor's and law degrees. While in law school, he was associate editor of the Louisiana Law Review and a member of the Order of the Coif. He was a former president of the Shreveport Bar Association.[7]

In 1940, Roberts died at his home on Fairfield Avenue in Shreveport following two years of poor health.[1]

References

1. "Judge Robert Roberts Dies in Home Here – Funeral Service Saturday for Prominent North Louisiana Jurist". The Times. Shreveport, Louisiana. May 3, 1940. p. 1. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
2. "Membership of the Louisiana House of Representatives, 1812 - Current" (PDF). house.louisiana.gov. Retrieved March 11, 2015.
3. Henry E. Chambers, "Robert Roberts Jr.", A History of Louisiana, Vol. 2 (Chicago and New York City, American Historical Society, Inc., 1925), pp. 21-22
4. "W. Burch Lee Funeral Here in Afternoon: Former Clerk of Federal Court Expires After Week of Illness". The Shreveport Times through findagrave.com. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
5. Respect for the Past; Confidence in the Future: Webster Parish Centennial, 1871-1971, Webster Parish Police Jury, 1971, p. 17
6. John A. Agan, "Captain Alfred Goodwill's Descendant (Murphy J. Foster Jr.) Makes News", Minden Press-Herald, November 3, 1995
7. "Robert Roberts, III (1930-2010)". Osborn Funeral Home. September 8, 2010. Retrieved March 11, 2015.

Political offices
Preceded by Alexander McIntyre Leary	Mayor of Minden, Louisiana Robert Ryer Roberts Jr. 1905–1906	Succeeded by W. H. Webb
Preceded by E. L. Stewart	Louisiana State Representative for Webster Parish Robert Ryer Roberts Jr. 1908—1914	Succeeded by W. Burch Lee
Preceded by John N. Sandlin	Judge of the Louisiana 26th Judicial District Court (Bossier and Webster parishes) Robert Ryer Roberts Jr. 1920—1925	Succeeded by John S. Richardson