Dawkins, Walter Ireland, 1858-1936.

Walter Dawkins was a lawyer and later judge in Baltimore, Md. He graduated from St. John's College in Annapolis, Md.

From the description of Diary, 1899-1900. (Winterthur Library). WorldCat record id: 122598805

Attorney and judge of the Supreme Bench of Baltimore, 1911-1934.

From the description of Walter Ireland Dawkins diaries, 1902-1932. (Duke University Library). WorldCat record id: 721986131

Walter Ireland Dawkins was a judge on the Supreme Bench of Baltimore from 1911 to 1934. He was born in Leonardtown, Maryland, on October 21, 1858, the son of Young Paran Dawkins, a St. Mary's County farmer, merchant, judge of the Orphans Court, and member of the Board of County Commissions. Walter Dawkins received a B.S. in 1880 and M.A. in 1883 from St. John's College and practiced law briefly in St. Mary's County. He then moved to Chattanooga, Tennessee, and returned to Baltimore City in 1887. In Baltimore he built up a solid law practice and was on several occasions considered as a potential mayoral candidate. He was defeated in the Democractic primary in 1906 for a berth on the supreme bench, but was appointed to the bench in 1911 to fill a vacant term. Later that year he was elected to a fifteen year term and re-elected in 1926. In 1928, the state extended his term six years past the normal retirement age of seventy. He retired in 1934 and died two years later. Dawkins was active in numerous local organizations and served one term as President of the Maryland State Bar Association.

He was a "confirmed bachelor," rarely recording interactions with women of any kind. The diary for 1920 shows that Dawkins had a live-in servant, "Ding", who, according to the U.S. Census for 1920, was a 32-year-old Japanese immigrant, formally named Dengi Hanno.

From the guide to the Walter Ireland Dawkins Diaries, 1902-1932, (David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University)