Daniel Mulford Valentine

Daniel Mulford Valentine (June 18, 1830 – August 5, 1907) was a member of the Kansas House of Representatives in 1862, a member of the Kansas State Senate in 1863 and 1864 and justice of the Kansas Supreme Court from January 11, 1869, to January 9, 1893.

Life and education

He was born June 18, 1830, in Shelby County, Ohio, where he remained until he moved to Iowa in 1854. While young although raised a Christian he was also interested in spiritualism and wrote Spiritual Rapping in 1852 proposing a reconciliation of Christianity and spiritualism. The other sons were J. W. Valentine in the lumber business, Harry E. Valentine, who worked with his father, and Ralph E. Valentine, who worked in real estate and finance. and in 1962 was elected to the Kansas State Senate and served in 1863 and 1864.

When the term of justice Lawrence Dudley Bailey came to an end Valentine stood for election on the Republican ticket for the Supreme Court position, winning the nomination against Bailey and four others. He was duly elected and started the first of his twenty-four years of service to the court the following January. but was beaten by Stephen Haley Allen, running as a Populist, by 162,338 to 158,191.

He served out the remainder of his term, expiring January 9, 1893, and planned to resume his practice in his home town of Topeka, and did so holding a leading position at the bar.

When he retired from the supreme court he returned to private practice in Topeka as the senior member of Valentine, Harkness & Godard for a year, and then again the senior member of Valentine, Harkness & Valentine the practice he stayed in until his death. His health had been failing over the previous five to six months but had become serious a week before his death. He had spent much of the week slipping in and out of consciousness, and had been unconscious for several hours before dying. At the time of his death he was the oldest member of the state supreme court, and had served longer than any previous justice. He was buried in Topeka cemetery and was survived by his wife and all nine children with all by two, Mrs. J. F. Merrick and Miss Lillian Valentine, attending his funeral.