Charles Nelson Pray
Appointed by President Calvin Coolidge in 1924 and confirmed by voice vote, Charles Nelson Pray was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana. He earned a law degree from Chicago College of Law (now Chicago-Kent College of Law) in 1891. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1868–1963
- Appointed by
- Calvin Coolidge, 1924
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Chief judge
- District of Montana, 1948 to 1957
- Education
- Chicago College of Law (now Chicago-Kent College of Law) 1891
- Succeeded by
- William James Jameson
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1924 | District of Montana chief judge 1948 to 1957 | Coolidge (R) | Voice vote |
Party letters show the appointing president’s party, not the judge’s own. A voice vote means the chamber approved aloud. No senator-by-senator tally is recorded.
Confirmation vote
Voice vote
The Senate approved this confirmation aloud, with no senator-by-senator tally recorded. Recorded roll-call votes begin in 1989.
Education
Before the bench
Professional career before and outside the federal bench, as recorded by the Federal Judicial Center.
| Private practice, Chicago, Illinois | 1893-1895 |
| Private practice, Fort Benton, Montana | 1896-1906 |
| Assistant prosecutor, Twelfth Judicial District (Chouteau County), Montana | 1897-1898 |
| Prosecutor, Twelfth Judicial District (Chouteau County), Montana | 1899-1906 |
| U.S. representative from Montana | 1907-1913 |
| Republican candidate for U.S. House of Representatives from Montana | 1912 |
| Private practice, Great Falls, Montana | 1914-1924 |
Judicial Record
In our data, Pray authored 14 published opinions for the court (1935–1957). Most cited: Steele v. United States (14 citations).
A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included. Counts and rankings are objective and recomputable: how we count. We describe the record, not the judge.
Recent & notable rulings
| Year | Case | Citation | Cited |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Steele v. United States | 146 F. Supp. 316 | 14 |
| 1951 | Gamble-Skogmo, Inc. v. McNair Realty Co. | 98 F. Supp. 440 | 13 |
| 1945 | Gerard v. Mercer | 62 F. Supp. 28 | 13 |
| 1940 | United States v. Eldredge | 33 F. Supp. 337 | 13 |
| 1935 | Montana Power Co. v. Public Service Commission | 12 F. Supp. 946 | 12 |
| 1953 | Hutterian Brethren of Wolf Creek v. Haas | 116 F. Supp. 37 | 10 |
| 1954 | Anderson v. United States Civil Service Commission | 119 F. Supp. 567 | 9 |
| 1941 | United States v. Hole | 38 F. Supp. 600 | 8 |
| 1957 | United States v. 5,677.94 Acres of Land, More or Less, of Crow Reservation | 152 F. Supp. 861 | 4 |
| 1941 | Billings Utility Co. v. Federal Reserve Bank | 40 F. Supp. 309 | 4 |
| 1936 | Doll v. Libin | 17 F. Supp. 546 | 4 |
| 1948 | Alansky v. Northwest Airlines, Inc. | 77 F. Supp. 556 | 1 |
| 1936 | United States v. Powers | 16 F. Supp. 155 | 1 |
| 1948 | Snook v. Blank | 92 F. Supp. 518 | 0 |
Showing the 14 most-cited of 14 authored opinions in our data. “Cited” is inbound citations across the CourtListener corpus. Case links open the ruling’s full text (CourtListener) or its page here; read the methodology and verify against the primary source.
Questions & answers
- Who appointed Charles Nelson Pray?
- President Calvin Coolidge appointed Charles Nelson Pray to the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana in 1924.
- Was Charles Nelson Pray appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Charles Nelson Pray was appointed by President Calvin Coolidge, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Charles Nelson Pray's confirmation vote?
- Charles Nelson Pray was confirmed by voice vote on February 8, 1924. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Charles Nelson Pray on?
- Charles Nelson Pray was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- Portrait: Harris & Ewing (Public domain), via Wikimedia Commons
- CourtListener bulk data (Free Law Project): authored opinions & citation counts
How we source & reconcile data → Data & Sources
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39 years on the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana. Data as of 2026-09-28. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).