Heritage, Volume 16, Number 2, Spring 1998 Page: 15
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tices Brazzil and Henenberg wrote concurring
opinions, some argue, for posterity.
Their job was done.
In certain ways, the work of the special
Supreme Court may have been, some say,
merely a footnote in Texas jurisprudence,
given the fact that these lawyers presided
over only one case. Although the reported
case mentions the three special justices,
the complete list of "judges and officers"
contained in Volume 272 of Southwestern
Reporter, the generally-cited volume containing
case opinions, does not include
them. However, the holdings set forth in
Johnson v. Darr have been mentioned in
later cases and law review articles more
than 35 times since the Court's opinion
was published, according to Shepherd's Citations.
A Texas court of appeals cited it as
recently as 1990. As precedent, the case
has been used to support later arguments in
appellate courts.
Hortense Ward once said of their roles,
"The novelty... is entirely lost in the great
responsibility". Despite the novelty, the
justices discharged their duties and went
on with their careers. Eventually more
women joined the legal profession and became
judges while Ward, Brazzil, and
Henenberg occasionally, but infrequently
became subjects of newspaper articles and
conference papers. They never became trial
or appellate judges, and except for being
noteworthy among the first Texas lawyers
of their gender, they contributed their talents
to places other than the bench.
Recently, however, their contribution
to the Supreme Court has been acknowledged
by various groups including the Court,
which, in 1997, dedicated a painting of the
special Supreme Court that now hangs in
the courtroom. Yet their greatest legacy is
perhaps contained in Volume 272 of Southwestern
Reporter. There is where one can
find Johnson v. Darr.
The special justices antedated the concept
of women in the Texas judiciary, for
the first permanent trial judge, Sarah T.
Hughes, would not take her oath until ten
years later, and Ruby Kless Sondock would
not join the Supreme Court for another 57
years. But while the legal profession
watched in the spring of 1925, Hortense
Ward, Ruth Brazzil, and Hattie Henenberg
bore their responsibility capably and judiciously.Attorney James R. Evans Jr. practices with an
Austin law firm.Historical Foundation Trust Established
to Preserve State Legal History
By Marshall DokeThe Texas Historical Foundation
created the Texas Legal History Preservation
Trust in 1995 to identify and
preserve information reatig to the legal
history of the Republic and the state.
Texas is losing, almost daily, important
material relating to its legal history.
Materials important toTexas legal
history (that were formerly available to
the public) are rapidly being acquired
for private collections and becoming
inaccessible to historians and the generalpublic.
Important materials in small,
private collections are being lost when
collectors die because he heirs are unaware
of he imortnce of the documents
or have no interest in continuing
the collection. Other important legal
resource materials now are available
only in major law libraries and T are not
available through commercial computerized
legal services. Several examples
illustrate this growing problem:
* The session laws (the official"
(1838) in its rare book collection but
does not have volume one and two
(1836-37) of the session laws of the
Republic of Texas.
* In 1898, the Laws of Texas 18221897
were compiled, arranged, and reprinted
by H.P.N. Gammel and published
by the Gammel Book Company,
Austin, Texas. This 10-volume set was,
until relatively recently, a staple of law
libraries and law firms across the state.
This set of books is, however, no longer
available even from commercial law
book dealers.
* The published opinions of the
Supreme Court of Texas are available
in most major law school libraries, but
they are not readily available for purchase
by new libraries. Moreover, the
decisions are available by commercial
computerized legal services only from
1886. Texas Courts of Appeals (formerly
Courts of Civil Appeals) are available in computer data base format only
from 1944.
There is another category of legal material
that is rapidly disappearing: court
files and records of old cases with invaluable
historical information. Courts and
county and district clerks all over Texas
are "trashing" old records (including
pleadings, briefs, evidence, and transcripts
of proceedings) because the records are
too expensive to store. It will be a tragic
loss of Texas history if this information is
d estroyed without (at a a selective
basis) microfilming the records.
Law books and other legal documents
are important not only to Texas jurisprudence
but also to historians, students,
and others interested in this state's culture
and history. Court decisions, for
example, have significance far beyond
the specific parties involved and the legal
issues decided.
The legal history of Texas certainly
shares historical importance with the
state's archaeological, architectural, and
cultural records and traditions. Our legal
history has a statewide interest and importance,
and its preservation for public
availability is a worthwhile goal.
As the fundraising efforts continue
for the THF endowment, specific preservation
projects have yet to be designated.
Informal discussions, however, indicated
early projects could include digitizing
the session laws of the Republic of
Texas and Gammels Laws of Texas.
Contributions in excess of $5,000 to
the Texas Historical Foundation Legal
History Preservation Trust permit the
donor to "name a fund within the Trust.
Several Texas law firms have already
recognized the importance of preserving
this important component of our Texas
history and have made contributions to
the THF Trust. These firms have been
recognized in HERITAGE magazine.
To send contributions orsubmit ideas
for future projects, please contact the
Texas Historical Foundation Legal History
Preservation Trust at P.O. Box
50314, Austin, TX 78763.HERITAGE * SPRING 1998 15
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Texas Historical Foundation. Heritage, Volume 16, Number 2, Spring 1998, periodical, Spring 1998; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth45398/m1/15/: accessed March 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Historical Foundation.