Charles H. Cooper

For the English antiquarian, see Charles Henry Cooper.

Charles Henry Cooper (September 15, 1865 – September 17, 1946) was a British-American justice of the Montana Supreme Court from 1919 to 1924.[1]

Early life

Born in Houghton Regis, England,[2] he came to the United States in 1883 with his brother Walter. They moved to Wisconsin in 1884 and finally to Helena, Montana, in 1885. Cooper passed the bar examination in 1892,[1] and entered the practice of law in the state.

Career

In 1906, Cooper purchased the 600-acre (240 ha) Seven-Bar-Nine cattle ranch,[3][4] about 50 miles (80 km) north of Helena near Craig, Montana.[5]

In 1918, Cooper ran as a Republican against John A. Matthews for a seat on the state supreme court, winning by a few hundred votes out of nearly 90,000 votes cast.[6] He took his seat on the court 1919 and resigned on August 30, 1924.[1]

Personal life

Cooper married Alice Louise Brazier of Gillingham, England, on March 24, 1894, with whom he had two sons,[1] Arthur and Frank. After he retired from the Supreme Court in 1924, Cooper and his wife moved to California to manage several estates left to him in a will. His son Frank soon followed him and became an actor in Hollywood. To distinguish himself from other actors named "Frank Cooper", Frank changed his name to Gary Cooper and achieved great fame.

During World War II, Cooper often read Shakespeare to hospitalized soldiers.[1] He died in Los Angeles, California, at the age of 81.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Biographies and Histories of Montana's Justices, Judges, and Courts, 1865-2020" (PDF). State Law Library of Montana. 2020. p. 27. This work in is in the public domain, reproduction and non-commercial distribution of this work are permitted with attribution.
  2. ^ Meyers, Jeffrey (1998). Gary Cooper: American Hero. New York: William Morrow. p. 1. ISBN 978-0-688-15494-3.
  3. ^ * Arce, Hector (1979). Gary Cooper: An Intimate Biography. New York: William Morrow and Company. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-688-03604-1.
  4. ^ Swindell, Larry (1980). The Last Hero: A Biography of Gary Cooper. New York: Doubleday. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-385-14316-5.
  5. ^ Meyers 1998, pp. 7–8.
  6. ^ "State Legislature Will Be Republican", Conrad Independent-Observer (November 14, 1918), p. 3.
Political offices
Preceded by
Court reconfigured
 Justice of the Montana Supreme Court
1919–1924 		Succeeded by