Fred Louis Wham
Appointed by President Calvin Coolidge in 1927 and confirmed by voice vote, Fred Louis Wham was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois. He earned a law degree from University of Illinois College of Law in 1909. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1884–1967
- Appointed by
- Calvin Coolidge, 1927
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- University of Illinois College of Law 1909
- Succeeded
- George Washington English
- Succeeded by
- William George Juergens
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1927 | Eastern District of Illinois succeeded George Washington English | 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
Judicial Record
In our data, Wham authored 29 published opinions for the court (1928–1961). Most cited: United States v. Eighty Acres of Land in Williamson County (28 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 | United States v. Eighty Acres of Land in Williamson County | 26 F. Supp. 315 | 28 |
| 1941 | Martin v. Lain Oil & Gas Co. | 36 F. Supp. 252 | 23 |
| 1936 | Hessel v. A. Smith & Co. | 15 F. Supp. 953 | 20 |
| 1941 | In Re Anthony | 42 F. Supp. 312 | 16 |
| 1940 | In Re Centralia Refining Co. | 35 F. Supp. 599 | 15 |
| 1936 | In Re Buxton's Estate | 14 F. Supp. 616 | 15 |
| 1931 | Harris v. Missouri Pac. R. Co. | 1 F. Supp. 946 | 15 |
| 1949 | United States v. Illinois Cent. R. Co. | 89 F. Supp. 17 | 13 |
| 1944 | Standard Acc. Ins. Co. v. Leslie | 55 F. Supp. 134 | 12 |
| 1940 | Geary v. Adams Oil & Gas Co. | 31 F. Supp. 830 | 12 |
| 1951 | United States v. 44 CASES, ETC. | 101 F. Supp. 658 | 10 |
| 1939 | United States v. Sixty Acres, More or Less, of Land in Williamson County | 28 F. Supp. 368 | 9 |
| 1938 | Francis v. Humphrey | 25 F. Supp. 1 | 9 |
| 1938 | Thermex Co. v. Lawson | 25 F. Supp. 414 | 8 |
| 1934 | Knapp-Monarch Co. v. Anderson | 7 F. Supp. 332 | 8 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 29 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 Fred Louis Wham?
- President Calvin Coolidge appointed Fred Louis Wham to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois in 1927.
- Was Fred Louis Wham appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Fred Louis Wham was appointed by President Calvin Coolidge, a Republican. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Fred Louis Wham's confirmation vote?
- Fred Louis Wham was confirmed by voice vote on March 1, 1927. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Fred Louis Wham on?
- Fred Louis Wham was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Illinois.
Sources
Each fact on this page traces to a primary public record.
- FJC Biographical Directory
- Wikidata
- 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 Eastern District of Illinois. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).