Arthur William Rogers (1904 - 1992)

Born 28 May 1904 in Richmond, Ray County, Missouri

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 27 Nov 1992 at age 88 in Richmond, Ray County, Missouri

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Biography

Judge Arthur William Rogers was born in Richmond, Ray, Missouri in 1904. He and his family lived in a small house south of what is now Missouri highway 210. That house was torn down in the 1950s. His family moved to S. Shotwell Street south of "Water Tower Hill." This area was called "Dog Town" throughout the years.

After completing his freshman year in Richmond High School, he quit school and joined his brothers, Ernest and Albert "Alby" working a small coal mine on the north side of Camden, Ray, Missouri. While working the mine, Ernest was killed in a train wreck in Camden. They had worked for about 6 years but decided to quit mining coal. Arthur was permitted to re-enroll in high school and he finished his sophomore and junior years. The University of Missouri permitted him to enroll there, but his initial college credits were applied to his high school lack of credits, so after three years the University would not award him an associate degree. However, the Missouri Law School agreed that he had earned enough credits to enroll in Law School. Thus, the first degree he received after completing Junior High School was his Law Degree.

During his University years, he worked in the winter serving tables at Gabler's Black and Gold restaurant and in the summer delivering ice so that he had enough money to pay for his university fees and living expenses. He also played baseball and wrestled for the University of Missouri sports teams.

Upon graduation and taking the bar examination, he immediately filed for Ray County Prosecuting Attorney and spent early summer campaigning and getting acquainted with citizens of Ray County. He lost his first election, but two years later, he filed again and this time became Ray County Prosecuting Attorney. In Missouri, a law had eliminated Justices of the Peace and established Magistrate Judges as the replacement. Unlike the Justice of the Peace, a Magistrate Judge was required to have a Law Degree. In small counties, Probate Judges were ex-officio the Magistrate Judge. He was defeated in his first attempt to win this position but prevailed in his second attempt.

Judge Rogers never lost another election. He served about 12 years as Probate/Magistrate Judge. When the Ray, Carroll, Clay Counties Circuit grew very large in population due to Clay County, just north of Kansas City, the state decided to split this circuit and Judge Rogers was named by the Governor to be the Circuit Judge, an office he held for many years.

Married June 17, 1936. He was Circuit Judge of Missouri's Eighth Circuit, which included Ray and Carroll counties, from 1955 until he retired in 1976. Buried at Richmond Cemetery, Richmond, Missouri.

Arthur was born in 1904. He died in 1992.

Sources

"United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M2BT-73L: accessed 3 September 2019), Albert Rogers, Richmond Ward 1, Ray, Missouri, United States, Arthur as a 5-year-old child; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 143, sheet 13A, family 293, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1982), roll 807; FHL microfilm 1,374,820.

"United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M8CP-MYS : accessed 3 September 2019), Arthur William Rogers in household of Albert Rogers, Richmond, Ray, Missouri, United States; citing ED 148, sheet 11A, line 28, family 42, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll 942; FHL microfilm 1,820,942.

"United States Census, 1940," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K77B-5ZF : 28 July 2019), Arthur Rogers, Ward 4, Richmond, Richmond Township, Ray, Missouri, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 89-22, sheet 2A, line 9, family 25, Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 - 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012, roll 2143.

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