Robert R. Lewis

Robert Rathbun Lewis (August 1, 1880 – September 12, 1961) was an American jurist who was Secretary of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania from 1929 to 1930 and judge of the court of common pleas of Potter County, Pennsylvania from 1930 to 1952. A member of the Republican Party, he held leadership positions in several civic and agricultural organizations, including the Black Forest Conservation Association and the Pennsylvania Co-Operative Potato Growers. Lewis also served as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania from 1938 to 1939 and was active in local Rotary and church work in Coudersport.

Early life Lewis was born on August 1, 1880, in Duke Center, Pennsylvania to Willis Irving and Lucretia (Rathbun) Lewis. He was a descendant of William Lewis, who immigrated to Massachusetts Bay Colony from Wales in 1632. Lewis was educated in the Coudersport, Pennsylvania public schools and graduated from the Wilbraham Wesleyan Academy in 1899. In 1903, he received his Bachelor of Philosophy degree from Wesleyan University.

Career After graduating, Lewis studied law under his father and was admitted to the Potter County bar in 1905. He took office on May 6, 1929. He was elected to a ten-year term in November 1931. In 1951, Lewis was defeated for reelection by Walter Pierre Wells, who beat Lewis in both the Republican and Democratic primaries.

Other work Lewis was president of the Bayless Manufacturing Company of Austin, Pennsylvania, the Lewisville Water Company, and the Roulette Water Company, director and vice president of the Home Electric Company of Coudersport, and solicitor and director of the Citizens' Safe Deposit and Trust Company of Coudersport.

Personal life On July 7, 1907, Lewis married Margaret M. Wrean in Penn Yan, New York. They had one son and two daughters. He also served as president of the Rotary Club of Coudersport.