Benjamin C. Dawkins Sr.

Benjamin Cornwell Dawkins Sr. (July 19, 1881 – August 22, 1966) was a United States federal judge.

Born in Ouachita Parish in northeastern Louisiana, Dawkins completed his law degree at Tulane University in 1906 and entered private practice in Monroe, Louisiana until 1912. From 1912 to 1918, he was a state district court judge; in 1918 he became an associate justice of the Supreme Court of Louisiana, a position that he held until 1924.

On April 25, 1924, President Calvin Coolidge nominated Dawkins to a seat on the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana vacated by the death of George W. Jack. Dawkins was confirmed by the United States Senate, and received his commission, on May 5, 1924. He served as chief judge of the court from 1948 to 1953, and assumed senior status on May 17, 1953. He continued working in that capacity until his death. He was succeeded on the court by his son and namesake, Benjamin Cornwell Dawkins Jr.

Sources

• Benjamin Cornwell Dawkins Sr. at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.