Fred H. Blume

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Friedrich Heinrich Blume (1875-1971), or Fred H. Blume, as he referred to himself, was a Justice of the Wyoming Supreme Court. He was born in Winzlar, Germany, January 9, 1875. He served as a Justice of the Wyoming Supreme Court for 42 years and single-handedly translated into English Justinian’s Code and the Novels, two parts of the Corpus Juris Civilis. (See Justinian I for a profile of this Emperor.) The following is a time-line of key points in Mr. Blume’s life[1][2].

  • 1875 - Born Friedrich Heinrich Blume in Winzlar, Germany on Jan. 9.
  • 1887 - Immigrates to the U.S., by himself, to join his elder brother, Wilhelm.
  • 1892 - Settles in Audubon, Iowa where he works & completes high school.
  • 1895 - Enrolls at the State University of Iowa.
  • 1898 - Graduates, Phi Beta Kappa.
  • 1899 - Admitted to the practice of law in Iowa.
  • 1905 - Moves, with his wife, to practice law in Sheridan, Wyoming.
  • 1907 - Begins political career.
  • 1912 - Backs Theodore Roosevelt’s Bull Moose party; when it fails, decides to retire from politics; begins reading history of Western civilization & building extensive library on the subject.
  • 1919 - Learns there is no English translation of Justinian’s Code.
  • 1920 - Appears to have begun his Code translation.
  • 1921 - Appointed to Wyoming Supreme Court.
  • 1923/24 - Completes first draft of translation.
  • 1929 - Has revised version typed; teaches Roman law at Northwestern University Law School at the invitation of Dean John Henry Wigmore.
  • 1933 - Receives letter from Clyde Pharr asking him to join Pharr’s “Project for a Variorum Translation into English of the Entire Body of Roman Law,” with Blume’s translation of the Code to be used as the basis for the Project’s version of that document.
  • 1938 - Addresses Riccobono Seminar[3][4] on The Code of Justinian, and its Value.
  • 1939 - Ceases work on the Code translation as his hopes for publication fade.
  • 1943 - Pharr renews contact with Blume & revives scaled-down version of translation program to be called “The Corpus of Roman Law”; Blume re-reads Code translation & annotations, makes changes, & sends copy to Pharr; works with Pharr & others on Theodosian Code translation (for which Blume’s own translation of Books XIV-XVI and part of Book X prove very helpful).
  • 1951 - Theodosian Code translation published by Princeton University Press as first volume in “The Corpus of Roman Law” series; Blume specially noted by Pharr in preface.[5]
  • 1952 - Reviews Code translation again in anticipation it being the subject of the project’s next publication.
  • 1956 - Accepts that his Code translation will not be published in his lifetime.
  • 1963 - Retires from the Court.
  • 1971 - Fred H. Blume dies on September 26, at age 96.

Justice Blume’s translations of the Code and the Novels, as well as his Riccobono Seminar address, The Code of Justinian, and its Value were published on the web in 2007 as the Annotated Justinian Code.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Golden, Michael (1993). "Journey for the Pole: The Life and Times of Fred H. Blume, Justice of the Wyoming Supreme Court (pts. 1–2)". Land and Water Law Review 28 (195, 202, 511). 
  2. ^ Kearley, Timothy G. (2007). "Justice Fred Blume and the Translation of Justinian's Code". Law Library Journal 99 (525). 
  3. ^ The Riccobono Seminar on Roman Law was a law society meeting at the Catholic University of America founded by Salvatore Riccobono Jr.
  4. ^ Randazzo, Salvo (2002). "The Roman Legal Tradition and American Law: The Riccobono Seminar of Roman Law in Washington". Roman legal tradition 1: 123-44. 
  5. ^ Pharr, Clyde (1952). The Theodosian code and novels, and the Sirmondian constitutions. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0837124948 9780837124940.