Cuthbert W. Pound

Cuthbert Winfred Pound (June 20, 1864 – February 3, 1935) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He was Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals from 1932 to 1934.

Life He was born on June 20, 1864, in Lockport, Niagara County, New York, the son of Alexander Pound and Almina (Whipple) Pound. He was educated at Lockport High School; and graduated from Cornell Law School in 1887. While a student, Pound was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He studied law in the office of his brother John Pound (died 1904), was admitted to the bar in 1886, and practiced law in Lockport in partnership with his brother.

Headstone of Cuthbert W. Pound, Cold Springs Cemetery, Lockport, New York. Pound was a Republican member of the New York State Senate (29th D.) in 1894 and 1895. Afterwards he moved to Ithaca, New York and became a Law Professor at Cornell from 1895 to 1904.

In June 1900, he was appointed by Governor Theodore Roosevelt to the New York State Civil Service Commission, and remained in office until 1904. In 1903, his 11-year-old son Cuthbert W. Pound Jr. shot himself dead accidentally with a Flobert rifle.

Governor Frank W. Higgins chose Pound as Legal Adviser to the Governor, to take office on January 1, 1905, and in May 1906, appointed him to the New York Supreme Court, to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Henry A. Childs. In November 1906, Pound was elected to a 14-year term to succeed himself.

On August 3, 1915, he was designated a judge of the New York Court of Appeals under the Amendment of 1899 to replace Nathan Lewis Miller who had resigned. In November 1916, he was elected on the Republican and Progressive tickets to a 14-year term on the Court of Appeals, and was re-elected in 1930. On March 8, 1932, he was appointed by Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt as Chief Judge to succeed Benjamin N. Cardozo who had been appointed to the United States Supreme Court. In November 1932, he was elected to succeed himself, and retired from the bench at the end of 1934 when he reached the constitutional age limit of 70 years.

He was author of this inscription on the University of Buffalo Hayes Hall Tower Bell: "All truth is one. In this light, may Science and Religion labor here together for the steady evolution of mankind, from darkness to light, from prejudice to tolerance, from narrowness to broadmindedness." This quotation was recited from memory by Clifford Stoll, at the 2006 TED Conference.

He was member of the Board of Trustees of Cornell University from 1913 until his death.

He died on February 3, 1935, in Ithaca; and was buried at the Cold Springs Cemetery in Lockport.