George Bethune Adams

George Bethune Adams (April 3, 1845 – October 9, 1911) was a United States lawyer and federal judge specializing in admiralty law. He served in private practice, litigated before the Supreme Court of the United States, and served as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Early life and career

Adams was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though under the minimum age, he enlisted in a Pennsylvania regiment in the United States Army in 1861, and served for three months before returning to school. He reenlisted in 1863 when Robert E. Lee's forces invaded Pennsylvania, and afterwards entered the Quartermaster's Department of the Army, where he served until 1871. He then worked as a merchant for several years. He read law and became a lawyer in Philadelphia in 1878. Adams was Secretary of the Union League Club of New York in 1894 and 1895.

Federal judicial service

When Judge Addison Brown resigned his seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, the members of the Admiralty Bar adopted a resolution in July 1901 asking the president to appoint Adams. Adams died in Hague, New York on October 9, 1911, after two years' illness. There were no children. She died in 1950 at the age of 101.