This is a list of the first minority male lawyer(s) and judge(s) in West Virginia. It includes the year in which the men were admitted to practice law (in parentheses). Also included are men who achieved other distinctions such becoming the first in their state to graduate from law school or become a political figure.
Firsts in West Virginia's history
Lawyers First African American male: John H. Hill (1881)Hill became the first African American to be admitted to the bar of the Jefferson County Circuit Court, thus becoming West Virginia's first African-American male lawyer. First African American male (actively practice): J.R. Clifford (1887)
State judges First African American male: Leon P. Miller (1968) First African American male (Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia): Franklin Cleckley (1969)
West Virginia State Bar
Elliott G. Hicks: First African American male to serve as the President of the West Virginia State Bar (1998)
Firsts in local history
Larry Cann: First Italian American male lawyer in Harrison County, West Virginia Herman Canady: First African American male to serve as a Judge of the Kanawha Circuit Court (1982) James Knox Smith: First African American male lawyer in McDowell County, West Virginia (c. 1880s) Charles E. Price: First African American male to graduate from the West Virginia University College of Law (1949) Franklin Cleckley: First African American male to serve as a law professor at the West Virginia University College of Law (1969) Donald L. Pitts: First African American male to serve as the President of the Raleigh County Bar Association, West Virginia (1996)
See also
List of first minority male lawyers and judges in the United States
Other topics of interest
List of first women lawyers and judges in the United States List of first women lawyers and judges in West Virginia
References
Bibliography