Draft:Samuel C. Polley

Samuel Polley and Samuel Cleland Polley should redirect here.

Samuel Cleland Polley (January 13, 1864 – May 7, 1949) was Secretary of State of South Dakota and a justice of the South Dakota Supreme Court. He served as secretary of state from 1908 to 1912. He served on the court from from 1913 to July 1, 1947.

He studied at the St. Cloud State Normal School.

His birth occurred in Winnebago Valley township, Houston county, Minnesota, his parents being John C. and Amanda A. (Korn) Polley. The father, who was born in Youngstown, Ohio, February 26, 1826, and was an agriculturist by occupation, removed to Houston county, Minnesota, in 1857 and in the fall of 1878 took up his abode in Aitkin county, Minnesota, being the first man to engage in farming in that county. There he made his home until called to his final rest on the 26th of September, 1886, while his wife died in August, 1896. To them were born eleven children, three of whom died in infancy, the others being as follows: Robert Bruce, who was born in 1853 and is a resident of the state of Washington; lsabella, who passed away at the age of sixteen years; Alice, who is the widow of Lafayette Knox and resides in Pasadena, California; Anna Louise, the wife of W. A. Schoemaker, who is the president of the State Normal School of St. Cloud, Minnesota; Theresa, who gave her hand in marriage to Charles H. Foot, a practicing attorney of Kalispell, Montana: Samuel O., of this review; Jessie M., a school teacher of Minneapolis; and Helen, who is the wife of Arthur P. White, of Bemidji, Minnesota.

Samuel C. Polley supplemented his early public-school training by a course in the State Normal School at St. Cloud, Minnesota, and in the University of Minnesota. In the latter he pursued a law course and was graduated LL. B. in 1890. He has since concentrated his eflorts upon the practice of law and has advanced continuously until he stands today as one of the foremost representatives of the bar of the state. He has resided in Deadwood since 1890 and throughout the intervening years, while engaged in private practice, has.been connected with some of the most important litigation heard in the state. In 1912 he was elected to the supreme bench, whereon he is now sitting. His decisions indicate strong mentality, careful analysis, a thorough knowledge of the law and an unbiased judgment. The judge on the bench fails more frequently, perhaps, from a deficiency in that broad-mindedness which not only comprehends the details of a situation quickly but also insures a complete self-control under even the most exasperating conditions than from any other cause, and the judge who makes a success in the discharge of his multitudinous delicate duties is a man of well rounded character, finely balanced mind and of splendid intellectual attainments. That Judge Polley is regarded as such a jurist is a uniformly accepted fact.

Judge Polley has filled other public ofiices, all of which have been largely in the line of his profession. He was states attorney for Lawrence county for the years 1901 and 1902. In 1908 he was elected secretary of state for a term of two years, being reelected in 1910, while in 1908 he was also a member of the Capitol Commission that had charge of the building, finishing and furnishing of the new capitol at Pierre. During that period he was likewise a member of the state board of pardons and a member of the state board of assessment and equalization. His political allegiance has always been given to the republican party, While his religious faith is indicated by his membership in the Episcopal church. In the line of his profession he is connected with the South Dakota State Bar Association and the American Bar Association.

On November 15, 1899, Polley married Lenore V. McConnell, a daughter of Alexander S. McConnell, at Deadwood. They had a daughter and two sons.

Polley died in a convalescent home in Rapid City at the age of 85.

References

Category:1864 births Category:Justices of the South Dakota Supreme Court

This open draft remains in progress as of July 5, 2023.