History and the Alabama Lawyer

The practice of law lends itself naturally to the study of history. The profession's very foundation is built upon the determinations of the past and the preservation of longstanding principles that have defined our culture. That lawyers have played a significant role in shaping the fabric of our state and nation should come as a surprise to no one, but we seldom take time to reflect upon our profession's impact on Alabama.

Lawyers + history = natural connection
Lawyers have been a force in forging the political and social landscape of Alabama since the territorial period. Of the 44 delegates who gathered in Huntsville in July 1819 to draft the state's first constitution, at least 18 were lawyers. Among them was Judge Harry Toulmin, who had been appointed by President Thomas Jefferson in 1804 to serve as judge of the Superior Court for the Tombigbee District of the Mississippi Territory in what would become southwest Alabama. Judge Toulmin was instrumental in the 1807 capture and arrest of former Vice President Aaron Burr and went on to compile the first Alabama Digest in 1823. Judge Toulmin's contributions to the legal profession in Alabama were recognized with his introduction into the Alabama Lawyers' Hall of Fame in 2005.

Renaissance man
Another Alabama lawyer who helped shape the times in which he lived was Thomas Goode Jones. As a young major in the Confederate Army, Jones carried the flag of truce at Appomattox. After returning to Alabama, he established a successful law practice in Montgomery and entered the world of post-reconstruction politics. Jones was elected governor in 1890 and re-elected in 1892, in what is arguably the most contentious gubernatorial election in Alabama history. Having narrowly defeated Populist candidate Reuben Kolb in 1892, Jones recognized the threat agrarian-based populism posed to the Democratic Party. He served as a delegate to the 1901 Constitutional Convention and, while he opposed the disfranchisement of blacks, he argued in favor of suffrage restrictions. Jones was later appointed by President Theodore Roosevelt as United States District Judge for the Middle District of Alabama where he served until his death in 1914. Prior to his appointment to the federal bench, Jones served as president of the Alabama State Bar and authored the Alabama Code of Legal Ethics.

Lawyers who’ve influenced history
Judge Harry Toulmin and Governor Thomas Goode Jones are but two of the myriad lawyers who have influenced the history of Alabama. In many ways the study of Alabama history is a study of the role lawyers play in shaping society. The impact of lawyers in Alabama is the focus of a new book to be published in February and written by Pat Boyd Rumore entitled, From Power to Service: The Story of Lawyers in Alabama. It is a book that should be read and enjoyed by every lawyer in Alabama, because, after all, our profession has played a large part in making the State of Alabama what it is today. Look for an order form in the January issue of The Alabama Lawyer.

—Adrian D. Johnson is an associate in the Montgomery firm of Parnell & Crum PA and a member of the ASB History and Archives Committee.

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