William Wirt Howe 

 1833-1909 



William Wirt Howe, who was elected a Trustee of the Institu- 

 tion in 1904, died in New Orleans, Louisiana, March 17, 1909. 



Mr. Howe was graduated from Hamilton College in 1853. He 

 served in the Union Army during the Civil War, and reached the 

 rank of major. He followed the profession of the law continu- 

 ously from 186^, and was one of the foremost jurists of the South- 

 ern States. He was judge of the chief criminal court of New 

 Orleans, and afterwards became associate justice of the supreme 

 court of Louisiana. Subsequently he twice served as United 

 States District Attorney for the eastern district of Louisiana, 

 receiving an appointment first from President McKinley and 

 then from President Roosevelt. 



The engrossing duties of his profession did not limit his intel- 

 lectual interest and activities. He served as treasurer of the 

 University of Louisiana, president of the Louisiana Historical 

 Society, and president of the New Orleans Civil Service Commis- 

 sion. He was an able lecturer on law and was the author of 

 '' Studies in Civil Law" and of the "Municipal History of New 

 Orleans." Although after two years' service as Trustee of the 

 Carnegie Institution of Washington he found it necessary to 

 resign because of pressure of other duties and the distance of his 

 home from Washington, he always manifested warm interest in 

 its work. 



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