Richard Furlong Mitchell (October 11, 1889 – August 2, 1969)[1][2] was the chief justice of the Iowa Supreme Court from December 6, 1932, to December 31, 1942.
Born in Fort Dodge, Iowa,[1] he was the son of Sarah A. (née Furlong) and Peter M. Mitchell. He was one of six children.[3] He graduated from Iowa state law school in 1913. He spent much of the next 19 years of his career in private practice at Fort Dodge.[4] From 1924 to 1931, he was a Democratic State Central Committee member. In 1929 he was a Democratic National committeeman.[5] He married Mirian Reynolds.
He was elected from Webster County on December 6 1932, after Justice William L. Bliss resigned from the court. During that time, he authored 465 opinions.[6] He also served as chief justice for part of his time.[7] He had two daughters while serving, in 1937 and 1942. He left the court in 1942, and was replaced by John E. Mulroney.
After he left the court, he returned to his private practice in Fort Dodge.
During World War Two, he was a labor mediator for President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and then President Harry S. Truman.[7]
In the 1944 Iowa gubernatorial election, Mitchell was the Democratic nominee for governor of Iowa. He received 43.61 percent of the vote, and lost to republican Robert D. Blue.[8] In 1946, Truman appointed Mitchell to the Interstate Commerce Commission, and was the chairman of it from 1954 to 1957. He retired in 1959.[1][7]
Mitchell died at his home in Chevy Chase, Maryland, at the age of 79.[1] His funeral was in Washington DC, and he is buried in Gate of heaven cemetery, in Maryland. His grandson is comedian and actor Jim Gaffigan.[9]
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Democratic nominee for Governor of Iowa 1944 |
Succeeded by Frank Miles |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Justice of the Iowa Supreme Court 1932–1942 |
Succeeded by |
 | This biography of a state judge in Iowa is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
