Background
Hawley, James H. was born on January 17, 1847 in Dubuque, Iowa, United States. Son of Thomas and Annie (Carr) Hawley.
Hawley, James H. was born on January 17, 1847 in Dubuque, Iowa, United States. Son of Thomas and Annie (Carr) Hawley.
Educated Dubuque High School.
He was elected to the Idaho territorial legistature, served as mayor of Boise, U. S. attorney, and in 1890 opened his own law office.
At the time of the Haywood trial, Hawley was the most experienced trial attorney, both as a defense attorney and a prosecutor, in the state of Idaho. Borah said of him, "Jim Hawley has defended more men, got them acquitted, and prosecuted more men, and got them convicted, than any lawyer in America."
Hawley was confidant that his efforts in the Haywood trial had secured a conviction. He said that he had "no more doubt of the result than I had of getting up in the morning." Some time after the acquittal of Haywood, Hawley blamed the verdict on instructions favorable to the defense given by Judge Wood.
Hawley fit the stereotype of a western lawyer perfectly. He would sit at the counsel table during trials, dressed and groomed casually, chewing on a toothpick with his boots on the tabletop. He was famous for his ability to establish rapport with Idaho juries, talking to them as a neighbor might, rather than offering flights of oratory.
Mined until 1871; admitted to bar, February 14, 1871, and entered practice. Senior member Hawley & Hawley.
Hawley won the 1910 Democratic gubernatorial nomination and was elected governor of Idaho. During his tenure, four new counties were established, a highway district law was initiated, stricter search and seizure liquor laws were put into effect, "pioneer day" was instituted as a legal holiday, a location for the state sanatorium for the feeble-minded was secured, and the state constitution was revised to include recall, initiative, and referendum.
History of Idaho: The Gem of the Mountains
James H. Hawley was a Roman Catholic
Member Hawley & Hawley. Member Idaho House of Representatives, 1870-1871, Senate, 1874-1875.
Married Mary E. Bullock, July 4, 1875. Children: Edgar T., Jess B., Mistress.
prosecuting attorney in the Haywood trial
