Charles Merrill Hough

Charles Merrill Hough (May 18, 1858 – April 22, 1927) was a United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and previously was a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He was the son of brigadier general Alfred Lacey Hough (1826-1908) and Mary Jane Merrill. He married Ethel Powers in 1906. They bore two children: Helen Anastasia Hough (1905-1978) and John Newbold Hough (1906-2000). Hough's most historically memorable judicial ruling came in 1908 when he quashed a libel suit brought by U.S. government for President Theodore Roosevelt against a newspaper critical of the way the administration handled Panama Canal startup. U.S. Supreme court upheld Hough’s ruling unanimously in 1911.

Charles Merrill Hough
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
In office August 21, 1916 – April 22, 1927
Appointed by	Woodrow Wilson
Preceded by	Emile Henry Lacombe
Succeeded by	Augustus Noble Hand
Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
In office June 27, 1906 – September 5, 1916
Appointed by	Theodore Roosevelt
Preceded by	Seat established by 34 Stat. 202
Succeeded by	Martin Thomas Manton
Personal details
Born	Charles Merrill Hough May 18, 1858 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Died	April 22, 1927 (aged 68) New York City, New York
Education	Dartmouth College (AB) read law

Education and career

Born on May 18, 1858, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Hough received an Artium Baccalaureus degree in 1879 from Dartmouth College and read law in 1883. He entered private practice in New York City, New York from 1884 to 1906.[1]

Federal judicial service

Hough was nominated by President Theodore Roosevelt on June 20, 1906, to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, to a new seat authorized by 34 Stat. 202. He was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 27, 1906, and received his commission the same day. His service terminated on September 5, 1916, due to his elevation to the Second Circuit.[1]

Hough was nominated by President Woodrow Wilson on August 15, 1916, to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated by Judge Emile Henry Lacombe. He was confirmed by the Senate on August 21, 1916, and received his commission the same day. He was a member of the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges (now the Judicial Conference of the United States) in 1926. His service terminated on April 22, 1927, due to his death in New York City.[1]

References

1. Charles Merrill Hough at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.

Sources

• Charles Merrill Hough at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.