Marion D. Patterson

Marion Dean Patterson (October 20, 1876 – January 6, 1950) was an American jurist who was an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania from 1940 until his death in 1950.

Early life

Patterson was born on October 20, 1876, in Williamsburg, Pennsylvania and graduated from Stewart's Academy.[1] He taught school in Blair County, Pennsylvania for seven terms[1] and studied law in his spare time.[2] He graduated from Dickinson Law School and was admitted to the bar in 1904.[1]

Career

Patterson was District Attorney of Blair County from 1912 to 1928, when he was elected president judge of the Court of Common Pleas for the Twenty-Fourth Judicial District.[3] He was a candidate for the Republican nomination in the 1934 Pennsylvania gubernatorial election, but withdrew from the race on April 25 and endorsed Lieutenant Governor Edward C. Shannon.[4] Patterson still appeared on the primary ballot and received 9,096 votes, while Shannon finished a distant second behind William A. Schnader.[5] In 1935, Patterson was a candidate the Pennsylvania Supreme Court election, but lost the Republican nomination to Horace Stern.[6] In 1938, Patterson was elected to a second ten-year term on the Court of Common Pleas.[3]

In 1939, Patterson was a candidate for the Pennsylvania Supreme Court seat that was being vacated by the retiring John W. Kephart.[7] Patterson received the backing the Republican establishment[8] as well as Kephart's endorsement.[7] In the Republican primary, he faced Sara Soffel, the first woman to run for a seat on the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. She ran in both the Republican and Democratic primaries and garnered the most total votes, but did not receive a majority in either race.[8] He narrowly defeated Democrat Herbert Funk Goodrich in the general election, 226,784 votes to 222,553.[9]

Patterson was sworn in on January 2, 1940.[10] He was succeeded on the common pleas court by his brother, George.[11]

On January 6, 1950, Patterson suffered a heart attack in the Supreme Court conference room at Philadelphia City Hall.[3] He was taken to Pennsylvania Hospital, where he suffered two more heart attacks, the final one being fatal. He was survived by his wife and two children.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c Pennsylvania State Manual. Department of Property and Supplies for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. 1929. p. 232. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Justice Patterson Dies Of Heart Attack at 73". The Pittsburgh Press. January 7, 1950. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  3. ^ a b c "JUSTICE M.D. PATTERSON". The New York Times. January 7, 1950. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  4. ^ Townley, John B. (April 25, 1934). "Patterson Quits Governor Race, Backs Shannon". The Pittsburgh Press. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  5. ^ The Pennsylvania Manual. Harrisburg: Pennsylvania Bureau of Publications. 1935. pp. 414–415.
  6. ^ "Barnes and Stern Victors For State Supreme Court". The Pittsburgh Press. September 18, 1935. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  7. ^ a b "Canadiates Get Signers". Reading Eagle. June 23, 1939. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  8. ^ a b Taylor, Robert (October 15, 1939). "Judge Sara Soffel Polled Most Votes, Yet Was Loser". The Pittsburgh Press. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  9. ^ McFarland, Kermit (November 24, 1939). "Returns Show Slight Change In Vote Tallies". The Pittsburgh Press. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  10. ^ "Notables See Schaffer Take High Seat". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. January 3, 1940. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
  11. ^ "Blair Judge Named". The Pittsburgh Press. February 5, 1940. Retrieved 3 November 2025.
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