VICKERY, WILLIS (26 Nov. 1857-26 Sept. 1932) was a judge of Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court and Ohio 8th District Court of Appeals, and an organizer of Baldwin University Law School.
Born on a farm in Bellevue, Ohio, Vickery received little formal schooling until he entered high school in Clyde, Ohio, at age 19, graduating in 1880. He began studying law with the firm of Everett & Fowler in Fremont. To finance college he taught school while continuing his studies. In 1882 he entered Boston University to study law, graduating in 1884. He was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1885.
Vickery opened a practice in Bellevue with his brother Jesse. In 1896 he moved his practice to Cleveland. In 1897 he helped found Baldwin University Law School, with Arthur Rowley and Charles Bentley, serving as secretary and managing officer. When the Cleveland Law School was formed he combined his duties as Dean with teaching. Vickery partnered briefly with Bentley in the firm Bentley & Vickery, and then formed Vickery, Fleharty & Corlett shortly before his election to the Common Pleas Court in 1908. One of his first judicial decisions concerned Cleveland's fight against railroad interests for control of the lake front. Vickery's opinion favored the City, opening the way for later court rulings upholding Cleveland's title claim. He was elected to the Court of Appeals in 1918 where he served until his death.
Vickery outlived his first two wives, Anna Snyder, with whom he had three children: Lucille, Melville, and Howard, and Eleanor Grant. His third wife, Rosalie Griggs Mayberry, survived him. Vickery was buried in Bellevue.
Last Modified: 10 Jul 1997 05:11:49 PM- Related Article(s)