Law and Judiciary Research Guide

Articles from Missouri Historical Review and Missouri Times

Editorial Cartoons

The State Historical Society of Missouri’s editorial cartoon collection began in 1946 with an important donation of works by Pulitzer Prize–winning artist Daniel Robert Fitzpatrick of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The collection has now grown to more than 8,000 works and includes many other well-known cartoonists such as Bill Mauldin and Tom Engelhardt. The works reflect attitudes and opinions on contemporary local, national, and international events. Most of the cartoons in the Society’s collection that touch upon law and judiciary topics were drawn by Fitzpatrick or Engelhardt.

View Law and Judiciary Related Editorial Cartoons

See the entire Editorial Cartoon digital collection online here.

Manuscripts

The State Historical Society of Missouri manuscript collections include records of the Supreme Court of Missouri, the Court of Appeals, and circuit and municipal courts as well as papers of lawyers and judges that practiced in and presided over these courts. Some examples of available collections include the papers of lawyer, Kansas City mayor, and US senator James Alexander Reed; the Oliver Family Papers, a prominent Cape Girardeau family collection including legal firm records, speeches, and writings; and the papers of Laurance Mastick Hyde, a Missouri Supreme Court justice from 1942 to 1966.

View All Law and Judiciary Manuscript Collections

Photographs

A selection of portraits of Missouri judges from 1897 to 1937 is available online.

Outside Resources

These links, which open in another window, will take you outside the Society's website. The Society is not responsible for the content of the following websites.

Famous Trials-University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law

Famous Trials is the Web’s largest and most visited collection of original essays, trial transcripts and exhibits, maps, images, and other materials relating to the greatest trials in world history.

Legal Information Institute-Cornell University Law School

A not-for-profit group that believes everyone should be able to read and understand the laws that govern them, without cost.

Library of Congress-Law Library of Congress

Congress established its Law Library in 1832, recognizing the need for ready access to reliable legal materials. The Law Library has grown over the years to become the world’s largest law library, with a collection of over 2.65 million volumes that cover virtually every jurisdiction in the world.

Missouri Constitution

"We, the people of Missouri, with profound reverence for the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, and grateful for His goodness, do establish this constitution for the better government of the state." (Preamble to the Missouri Constitution)

Missouri Courts

The Missouri Judiciary consists of three levels of courts: The trial courts (also known as the circuit courts), an intermediate appellate court (the Missouri Court of Appeals) that is divided into three regional districts, and the Supreme Court of Missouri. Click here to learn more about Missouri courts including: The Supreme Court of Missouri, Missouri Court of Appeals, Local Courts, Court Reporters, Boards & Commissions, Judicial Personnel, and the Office of State Courts Administrator.

Missouri State Archives-Supreme Court of Missouri Historical Records

The Supreme Court of Missouri Historical Database provides an index and abstract of the criminal and civil court cases that were appealed to the territorial Superior Court and state Supreme Court of Missouri up to 1868, and a partial listing of cases to 1889. This database is made possible by a partnership between the Missouri State Archives, the Supreme Court of Missouri, and the Supreme Court of Missouri Historical Society. Digital images are available for some case files dating from 1821 through 1865.

The Supreme Court Historical Society

The Society, a private, nonprofit organization, is dedicated to the collection and preservation of the history of the Supreme Court of the United States. Incorporated in the District of Columbia in 1974, it was founded by Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, who served as its first honorary chairman.

The United States Department of Justice-Missouri

The U.S. Department of Justice website includes links to information created and maintained by other public and/or private organizations. This website contains a variety of information about Missouri courts at the state and local levels; Missouri laws, regulations, and orders; legal ethics and attorney regulations; local government; state agencies and offices; and other general law and judiciary resources.

The University of Missouri School of Law

This website features online resources for legal research and includes helpful links to over 30 research topics, books, articles, and other online resources.