{{Short description|American judge (1879–1932)}} thumb|From 1919's ''Vermont, Its Government'', by Walter J. Bigelow
'''Julius A. Willcox''' (October 2, 1879 – July 2, 1932) was a Vermont educator, attorney, and judge. A longtime administrator in Vermont's state government, he is most notable for his service as an associate justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1929 to 1931.
==Early life== Julius Abner Willcox was born in Bridport, Vermont on October 2, 1879,{{sfn|''Vermont, Its Government''|page=138}} the son of Edwin Willcox and Alice (Miner) Willcox.{{sfn|''A Record of the Descendants of James Smith Brown and Polly Maria (Taylor) Brown''|page=62}} He was educated in Bridport, and Crown Point and Port Henry, New York.{{sfn|''Vermont, Its Government''|page=138}} He graduated from Middlebury College in 1902,{{sfn|''Vermont, Its Government''|page=138}} and became a school teacher and administrator.{{sfn|''Catalogue of Officers and Students of Middlebury College''|page=343}}
After deciding on a legal career, Willcox studied law in the Ludlow office of William W. Stickney and John G. Sargent.{{sfn|''Vermont, The Green Mountain State''|page=191}} He was admitted to the bar in 1908, and practiced in Ludlow.{{sfn|''Vermont, The Green Mountain State''|page=191}}
==Political career== Willcox was also active in politics and government as a Republican, including serving as the reporter of debates for the Vermont Senate in 1906, second assistant clerk of the Vermont House of Representatives in 1908 and 1910, first assistant clerk in 1912, 1915, and 1917, and clerk in 1919.{{sfn|''Vermont, Its Government''|page=138}} In 1915 and 1916, Willcox was an assistant to the commission that revised Vermont's statutes,{{sfn|''Vermont, Its Government''|page=138}} and in 1917 he was one of the editors who published the updated and compiled version.{{sfn|''Vermont, The Green Mountain State''|page=191}}
In 1921, Willcox was appointed Secretary of Civil and Military Affairs (chief assistant) to Governor James Hartness.{{sfn|''Vermont, The Green Mountain State''|page=191}} In addition, he served on Hartness' military staff with the rank of major.{{sfn|"15,000 Spectators Line City Streets"|page=2}}
==Judicial career== After the August 1921 death of Zed S. Stanton, Hartness appointed Willcox to fill the resulting vacancy as a judge on the Vermont Superior Court.{{sfn|''Vermont, The Green Mountain State''|page=191}} Willcox served until 1929 and advanced by seniority to become the Superior Court's chief judge.{{sfn|"Julius A. Willcox Elected to Vermont Supreme Bench"|page=1}}
In keeping with Vermont's tradition of promoting the chief judge of the Superior Court as state Supreme Court vacancies arose, in February 1929, Willcox was elected an associate justice of the Vermont Supreme Court by the Vermont General Assembly, succeeding Harrie B. Chase following Chase's appointment as a federal judge.{{sfn|"Julius A. Willcox Elected to Vermont Supreme Bench"|page=1}}{{sfn|"Votes to Support Willcox"|page=9}} He remained on the court until 1931, when he resigned due to ill health.{{sfn|"Associate Justice Willcox Resigns from Supreme Court"|page=1}}{{sfn|"Justice Willcox"|page=4}} He was succeeded by Warner A. Graham.{{sfn|"W. A. Graham is Named to the Supreme Bench"|page=2}}
==Death and burial== Willcox died in Plymouth, Vermont on July 2, 1932.{{sfn|''A Record of the Descendants of James Smith Brown and Polly Maria (Taylor) Brown''|page=8}} He was buried at Plymouth Notch Cemetery in Plymouth.{{sfn|''A Record of the Descendants of James Smith Brown and Polly Maria (Taylor) Brown''|page=8}}
==Family== In 1909, Willcox married Annie Maria Brown (1886-1948) of Ludlow.{{sfn|''Catalogue of Officers and Students of Middlebury College''|page=343}}{{sfn|''A Record of the Descendants of James Smith Brown and Polly Maria (Taylor) Brown''|page=8}} They were the parents of three daughters, Marian Elizabeth (1910-2000),{{sfn|"Vermont Death Records, 1909-2008, Entry for Marian Willcox Patterson"}} Dorothy Ellen (1915-2010),{{sfn|"Obituary, Dorothy E. Yates"}} and Joanne (1922-1998).{{sfn|''Catalogue of Officers and Students of Middlebury College''|page=343}}{{sfn|"Obituary, Joanne Willcox Martin"}} They were also the parents of a son, Edwin James (1921-1996).{{sfn|"Memorial, Edwin J. Willcox Jan. 1943"}} Annie Willcox was chairwoman of the Plymouth Republican Committee, and served in the Vermont House of Representatives.{{sfn|"Mrs. Ann Willcox, Former Legislator, Dies at Age of 62"|page=2}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==Sources== ===Books=== *{{cite book |last=Bigelow |first=Walter J. |date=1919 |title=Vermont, Its Government |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=x0kjAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA138 |location=Montpelier, VT |publisher=Historical Publishing Company |ref={{sfnRef|''Vermont, Its Government''}}}} *{{cite book |last=Bryant |first=Blanche |date=1962 |title=A Record of the Descendants of James Smith Brown and Polly Maria (Taylor) Brown |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3182AAAAMAAJ&q=%22julius+abner+willcox%22+1932 |location=Tangerine, FL |publisher=Blanche Brown Bryant |ref={{sfnRef|''A Record of the Descendants of James Smith Brown and Polly Maria (Taylor) Brown''}}}} *{{cite book |last=Crockett |first=Walter Hill |date=1923 |title=Vermont, The Green Mountain State |volume=5 |url=https://archive.org/stream/vermontgreenmoun05croc#page/n293/mode/2up |location=New York, NY |publisher=Century History Company |ref={{sfnRef|''Vermont, The Green Mountain State''}}}} *{{cite book |last=Wiley |first=Edgar J. |date=1917 |title=Catalogue of Officers and Students of Middlebury College |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TapBAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA343 |location=Middlebury, VT |publisher=Middlebury College |ref={{sfnRef|''Catalogue of Officers and Students of Middlebury College''}}}}
===Newspapers=== *{{cite news |date=August 18, 1921 |title=15,000 Spectators Line City Streets |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/234722561 |work=Hartford Courant |location=Hartford, CT |url-access=subscription |via=Newspapers.com |ref={{sfnRef|"15,000 Spectators Line City Streets"}}}} *{{cite news |date=January 26, 1929 |title=Votes to Support Willcox |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/197405870/ |work=Burlington Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |url-access=subscription |via=Newspapers.com |ref={{sfnRef|"Votes to Support Willcox"}}}} *{{cite news |date=February 8, 1929 |title=Julius A. Willcox Elected to Vermont Supreme Bench |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/197311166/ |work=Burlington Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |url-access=subscription |via=Newspapers.com |ref={{sfnRef|"Julius A. Willcox Elected to Vermont Supreme Bench"}}}} *{{cite news |agency=Associated Press |date=October 1, 1931 |title=Associate Justice Willcox Resigns from Supreme Court |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/197362602/ |work=Burlington Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |url-access=subscription |via=Newspapers.com |ref={{sfnRef|"Associate Justice Willcox Resigns from Supreme Court"}}}} *{{cite news |date=October 7, 1931 |title=W. A. Graham is Named to the Supreme Bench |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/197369987/ |work=Burlington Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |url-access=subscription |via=Newspapers.com |ref={{sfnRef|"W. A. Graham is Named to the Supreme Bench"}}}} *{{cite news |date=July 4, 1932 |title=Justice Willcox |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/197375470/ |work=Burlington Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |url-access=subscription |via=Newspapers.com |ref={{sfnRef|"Justice Willcox"}}}} *{{cite news |date=November 29, 1948 |title=Mrs. Ann Willcox, Former Legislator, Dies at Age of 62 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/198001988/ |work=Burlington Free Press |location=Burlington, VT |url-access=subscription |via=Newspapers.com |ref={{sfnRef|"Mrs. Ann Willcox, Former Legislator, Dies at Age of 62"}}}} *{{cite news |date=January 16, 1998 |title=Obituary, Joanne Willcox Martin |url=http://articles.courant.com/1998-01-16/news/9801160274_1_memorial-service-albert-w-martin-daughter |work=Hartford Courant |location=Hartford, CT |ref={{sfnRef|"Obituary, Joanne Willcox Martin"}}}}{{dead link|date=January 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} *{{cite news |date=December 29, 2010 |title=Obituary, Dorothy E. Yates |url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/rutlandherald/obituary.aspx?page=lifestory&pid=147473581 |work=Rutland Herald |location=Rutland, VT |ref={{sfnRef|"Obituary, Dorothy E. Yates"}}}}
===Internet=== *{{cite web |url=https://www.ancestry.com/ |title=Vermont Death Records, 1909-2008, Entry for Marian Willcox Patterson |last=Gebo |first=Annmarie (Assistant Town Clerk, Middlebury, VT) |date=March 28, 2000 |website=Ancestry.com |publisher=Ancestry.com, LLC |location=Provo, UT |access-date=December 22, 2017 |ref={{sfnRef|"Vermont Death Records, 1909-2008, Entry for Marian Willcox Patterson"}}}} *{{cite web |url=http://apps.westpointaog.org/Memorials/Article/13203/ |title=Memorial, Edwin J. Willcox Jan. 1943 |last=Camm |first=Frank |date=March 6, 1996 |website=apps.westpointaog.org/ |publisher=West Point Association of Graduates |location=West Point, New York |access-date=December 22, 2017 |ref={{sfnRef|"Memorial, Edwin J. Willcox Jan. 1943"}}}}
==External links== *{{Find a Grave|89877933}}
{{s-start}} {{s-off}} {{succession box |title=Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court |before=Harrie B. Chase |after=Warner A. Graham |years=1929–1931}} {{s-end}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Willcox, Julius A.}} Category:1879 births Category:1932 deaths Category:People from Bridport, Vermont Category:People from Ludlow (town), Vermont Category:Middlebury College alumni Category:Vermont Republicans Category:Vermont lawyers Category:U.S. state supreme court judges admitted to the practice of law by reading law Category:Justices of the Vermont Supreme Court Category:Vermont National Guard personnel