Samuel Austin Kingman

Samuel Austin Kingman (June 26, 1818 – September 9, 1904) was a justice of the Kansas Supreme Court from February 9, 1861 to January 9, 1865, and chief justice from January 14, 1867 to December 30, 1876.

Early life, education, and career Born June 26, 1818 in Worthington, Massachusetts, Kingman was educated at the common schools.

At the age of 20 he moved to Kentucky, where he resided for eighteen years, engaged first in teaching school, where he was admitted to the bar and practiced as an attorney; held the office of county clerk and county attorney. He was one of twenty-five members of the 1850 legislature that did not draw their allotted recess payments. He had been member of the Whig Party and was the delegate from Lexington, Kentucky at the 1851 Whig State Convention. In 1856 he moved to Iowa, where he remained for only one year. The convention started a few weeks later on July 5 and Kingman was elected as the temporary president.

Two years later he was elected Chief Justice and took his seat January 14, 1867, for the term of six years. In 1872 he was re-elected for a full term, but at the end of 1876 he resigned his office by reason of his failing health and retired from active public life, residing at Topeka. and although he was persuaded to run he lost to James M. Harvey.

Both Kingman County, Kansas and Kingman city were named in his honor during his lifetime, in 1872 and 1874 respectively. Although his health had been in decline for several years he was suffering no particular illnesses at the time so his death was deemed to be from old age. He had survived two of the chief justices that followed him, Albert H. Horton and David Martin as well as almost all of the other fifty-one delegates to the Wyandotte convention. He was buried at Topeka Cemetery.