Loveland Munson

Loveland Munson (July 21, 1843 – March 24, 1921) was a Vermont attorney, politician and judge who served as President of the Vermont Senate and Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court.

Loveland Munson
Black and white head and shoulders photo of Loveland Munson, facing front
Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
In office
1915–1917
Preceded byGeorge M. Powers
Succeeded byJohn H. Watson
Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court
In office
1890–1914
Preceded byWheelock G. Veazey
Succeeded byRobert E. Healy
Probate Judge of the Manchester, Vermont District
In office
1883–1889
Preceded byRanney Howard
Succeeded byElias B. Burton
President pro tempore of the Vermont Senate
In office
1878–1880
Preceded byWilliam W. Grout
Succeeded byPhilip K. Gleed
Member of the Vermont Senate from Bennington County
In office
1878–1880
Serving with William B. Arnold
Preceded byJ. Henry Guild, Silas Mason
Succeeded byCharles Thatcher, Gilber M. Sykes
Member of the Vermont House of Representatives from Manchester
In office
1882–1884
Preceded byDavid S. Wilson
Succeeded byWilliam H. Fullerton
In office
1872–1876
Preceded byMason S. Colburn
Succeeded bySewell W. Bourn
Personal details
Born(1843-07-21)July 21, 1843
Manchester, Vermont, U.S.
DiedMarch 24, 1921(1921-03-24) (aged 77)
Manchester, Vermont, U.S.
Resting placeDellwood Cemetery, Manchester, Vermont, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseMary Burton Campbell (m. 1882)
EducationBurr and Burton Academy
ProfessionAttorney

Biography

Loveland Munson was born in Manchester, Vermont on July 21, 1843, the son of son of Cyrus and Lucy ( Loveland ) Munson. He attended the local schools and graduated from Burr and Burton Academy in 1862. Munson edited the Manchester Journal newspaper from 1863 to 1866 while studying law with Elias B. Burton, was admitted to the bar in 1866, and practiced with Burton in Manchester as the firm of Burton & Munson.[1]

A Republican, Munson served as Manchester's Town Clerk from 1866 to 1873, and Bennington County's Register of Probate from 1866 to 1876.[2]

In 1872 and 1874 Munson was elected to the Vermont House of Representatives. In 1878 he won election to the Vermont Senate and was chosen as that body's President pro tempore, serving until 1880. In 1882 Munson returned to the Vermont House, and in 1883 he was appointed as the Manchester District's Judge of Probate. In 1889 Munson was appointed to a vacancy on the Vermont Supreme Court. He was elected to the post in 1890 and served until 1914, when he was not reappointed due to his age, and was replaced by Robert E. Healy.[3] His retirement lasted only a month; public outcry led the Vermont General Assembly to return Munson to the bench in January 1915 with appointment as chief justice.[4]

While serving as a justice of the Court, Munson authored the opinion in the well-known torts case Ploof v. Putnam.[5] In 1904 the plaintiff, Ploof, had been sailing on Lake Champlain when a storm suddenly arose. Fearing for the safety of his boat and passengers, he put in at Putnam's dock. Putnam's servant untied Ploof's boat, and Ploof's family was injured and his boat damaged in the storm. The Vermont Supreme Court held that Putnam, the dock owner, was liable for damage and injuries caused by his employee while the employee was acting on the employer's behalf.[6]

Munson served as chief justice until 1917. He died in Manchester on March 24, 1921, and was buried in Manchester's Dellwood Cemetery.[7]

References
  1. Carleton, Hiram, ed. (1903). Genealogical and Family History of the State of Vermont. Vol. 2. New York: The Lewis Publishing Company. pp. 325–326.
  2. Ullery, Jacob G. (1894). Huse, Hiram A. (ed.). Men of Vermont: An Illustrated Biographical History of Vermonters and Sons of Vermont. Brattleboro, Vt.: Transcript Publishing Company. pp. 283–284.
  3. "Court Re-Organization". Burlington Free Press. Burlington, VT. December 5, 1914. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. The National Cyclopædia of American Biography. Vol. 17. New York: James T. White & Company. 1921. p. 322.
  5. Redmond, John W. (1910). Reports of the Cases Argued and Determined in the Supreme Court of the State of Vermont. Vol. 83. Free Press Publishing Company. pp. 252–260.
  6. Oberdiek, John (2014). Philosophical Foundations of the Law of Torts. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. p. 132. ISBN 978-0-19-870138-5.
  7. Proceedings of the Vermont Historical Society for the Years 1919–1920. The Vermont Historical Society. 1921. pp. 278–279.
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