Harry Evans Watkins
Appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1937 and confirmed by voice vote, Harry Evans Watkins was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia. He earned a law degree from West Virginia University College of Law in 1923. He previously served on the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia. Rulings & record ↓ Sources ↓
- Lived
- 1898–1963
- Appointed by
- Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1937
- Confirmed
- by voice vote
- Education
- West Virginia College of Law 1923
- Succeeded by
- Sidney Lee Christie
Federal judicial service
| Year | Court | Appointed by | Vote |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1937 | Northern District of West Virginia | F.D. Roosevelt (D) | Voice vote |
| 1937 | Southern District of West Virginia | F.D. Roosevelt (D) | 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, Watkins authored 46 published opinions for the court (1938–1963). Most cited: Carpenter v. Flemming (43 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A selective record from published opinions in the CourtListener corpus, not every ruling; most unpublished district orders are not included.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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Carpenter v. Flemming | 178 F. Supp. 791 | 43 |
| 1939 | Crum v. Appalachian Electric Power Co. | 29 F. Supp. 90 | 24 |
| 1962 | Taylor v. Ribicoff | 204 F. Supp. 144 | 20 |
| 1962 | Mann v. Equitable Gas Company | 209 F. Supp. 571 | 18 |
| 1958 | Lewis v. Mearns | 168 F. Supp. 134 | 18 |
| 1951 | Brown v. United States | 99 F. Supp. 685 | 18 |
| 1963 | Woolridge v. Celebrezze | 214 F. Supp. 686 | 17 |
| 1943 | American Casualty Co. of Reading, Pa. v. Morris | 51 F. Supp. 889 | 17 |
| 1947 | United States v. Sehon Chinn | 74 F. Supp. 189 | 15 |
| 1962 | Logan Planing Mill Co. v. Fidelity & Casualty Co. of New York | 212 F. Supp. 906 | 14 |
| 1951 | United States v. Everngam | 102 F. Supp. 128 | 14 |
| 1940 | In Re Philpott | 37 F. Supp. 43 | 14 |
| 1953 | Farley v. Skeen | 113 F. Supp. 736 | 13 |
| 1946 | Eastern Coal Corporation v. Yoke | 67 F. Supp. 166 | 13 |
| 1960 | Maryland Casualty Co. v. Continental Casualty Co. | 189 F. Supp. 764 | 12 |
Showing the 15 most-cited of 46 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 Harry Evans Watkins?
- President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Harry Evans Watkins to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia in 1937.
- Was Harry Evans Watkins appointed by a Democrat or a Republican?
- Harry Evans Watkins was appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, a Democrat. JudicialFinder records the appointing president's party, not a judge's own politics.
- What was Harry Evans Watkins's confirmation vote?
- Harry Evans Watkins was confirmed by voice vote on March 2, 1937. No senator-by-senator tally was recorded.
- Which court was Harry Evans Watkins on?
- Harry Evans Watkins was a Judge on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia.
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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26 years on the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia. Data as of 2026-08-10. Informational only; verify against the primary source before relying. Not a consumer report (FCRA).