John F. Main

Born in Seaton, Mercer County, Illinois, Main was raised on a farm there,[3] and attended Monmouth College.[1] He worked his way through school while studying for an A.B. from Princeton University, which he received in 1891.[1][2][3][4] He later attended the University of Michigan Law School.[1][2][4]

Main practiced law in Aledo, Illinois, for three years in partnership with George A. Cooke, who later served on the Supreme Court of Illinois.[3] Main moved to Seattle, Washington, in 1900.[3][4] From 1904 to 1909, he was a professor of law at the University of Washington School of Law.[2][3][4][5]

In 1908, Main was a candidate for a seat on the King County Superior Court.[6] Main was unsuccessful, but in 1909, Governor Marion E. Hay appointed Main to a seat on the King County Superior Court vacated by the elevation of George E. Morris to the state supreme court.[3] Main remained on the superior court until September 1912, when he was appointed by Governor Hay to a seat on the state supreme court vacated by the death of chief justice Ralph O. Dunbar.[2][4][3] Main was reelected to the supreme court four times, becoming one of the longest-serving members of that court, and serving as chief justice on two occasions.[2] He planned to seek a fifth term in 1942, winning the Republican primary for the seat, but thereafter was forced to withdraw from the election due to failing health, leaving Joseph A. Mallery running unopposed.[2]

In 1892, Main married Mary G. Crouch, with whom he had one daughter.[1][4] Main died at a sanitarium in Seattle at the age of 78, following a period of failing health.[1][2]