Mary Jane Spurlin

Mary Jane Spurlin (January 16, 1883 – June 4, 1970) became Oregon's first woman judge in 1926 after Governor Walter M. Pierce appointed her as a Multnomah County district judge. In 1927, Spurlin was elected president of the Portland Federation of Women's Clubs.

Mary Jane Spurlin
Judge Mary Jane Spurlin, 1924[1]
Multnomah County District Court Judge
In office
April 1, 1926 – Unknown
Nominated byGovernor Walter M. Pierce
Personal details
Born(1883-01-16)January 16, 1883
DiedJune 4, 1970(1970-06-04) (aged 87)
Portland, Oregon
Alma materLewis & Clark Law School

Early life

Mary Jane Spurlin was a native of Virginia, the daughter of D. A. and Daisy Marie Spurlin.[2]

Career

Spurlin graduated from Lewis & Clark Law School in 1924. In 1926, Governor Walter M. Pierce appointed her district judge for Multnomah County. She became Oregon's first women judge on April 1, 1926 when she was sworn into that position. Governor Pierce had previously appointed her to Oregon's Child Welfare Commission.[3][4][5]

In 1935, Spurlin became Oregon's director of women's programs for the Works Progress Administration.[6]

Spurlin wrote in 1935 about the negative reactions the public had to uniformed police officers, adding that policewomen in street dress had an advantage over uniformed patrolmen in gaining the confidence of both troublesome children and their parents.[7][8]

Spurlin was a member of the Women Lawyers Association of Oregon.[9] She was also a member of the General Federation of Women's Clubs. Spurlin was elected president of the Portland Federation of Women's Clubs on April 9, 1927. In addition, she was a member of the Business and Professional Women's Club (which was organized in Oregon by Abigail Keasey Frankel), the Soroptimist Club, the Women's Convalescent Home Board, the League of Women Voters, the Phi Delta Delta, and the Professional Woman's League.[2][10]

Personal life

She moved to Oregon in 1913 and lived at 315 Piatt Building, Portland, Oregon.[2]

References
  1. Photo Credit: Oregon Historical Society BB013509
  2. Binheim, Max; Elvin, Charles A (1928). Women of the West; a series of biographical sketches of living eminent women in the eleven western states of the United States of America. p. 233. Retrieved 8 August 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. "Pierce Appoints Woman Judge" Daily Capital Journal, Salem, Oregon, 13 February 1926, p. 1.(subscription required)
  4. "Women Judge on Multnomah Bench", Eugene Guard, Eugene, Oregon, 1 April 1926, p. 1.(subscription required)
  5. "First Women Judge Take Place on Bench", Daily Capital Journal, Salem, Oregon, 1 April 1926, p. 16.(subscription required)
  6. "Griffith Picks Oregon Relief Work Leaders", Statesman Journal, Salem, Oregon, 6 July 1935, p. 1.(subscription required)
  7. Lansing, Ronald B. "Lewis & Clark Law School". Oregon Encyclopedia.
  8. Appier, Janis (1998). Policing Women: The Sexual Politics of Law Enforcement and the Lapd. Temple University Press. ISBN 9781566395601.
  9. "The History of Queen's Bench". January 11, 2004. Queen's Bench. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
  10. "Business and Professional Women’s Club", Statesman Journal, Salem, Oregon, 30 November 1926, p. 7.(subscription required)
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