John D. Works

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American judge and politician (1847–1928)

title: "John D. Works" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1847-births", "1928-deaths", "people-from-rising-sun,-indiana", "american-christian-scientists", "california-republicans", "republican-party-united-states-senators-from-california", "justices-of-the-supreme-court-of-california", "superior-court-judges-in-the-united-states", "u.s.-state-supreme-court-judges-admitted-to-the-practice-of-law-by-reading-law", "19th-century-california-state-court-judges", "19th-century-american-lawyers", "20th-century-american-lawyers", "19th-century-members-of-the-indiana-general-assembly", "politicians-from-san-diego", "presidents-of-the-los-angeles-city-council", "people-of-indiana-in-the-american-civil-war", "union-army-soldiers", "burials-at-inglewood-park-cemetery", "california-state-court-judges", "20th-century-united-states-senators"] description: "American judge and politician (1847–1928)" topic_path: "law" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_D._Works" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American judge and politician (1847–1928) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox officeholder"]

Field	Value
name	John D. Works
birth_name	John Downey Works
image	WORKS, J.D. SENATOR LCCN2016857981 (cropped).jpg
caption	Works, 1905–1928
jr/sr	United States Senator
state	California
term_start	March 4, 1911
term_end	March 3, 1917
predecessor	Frank P. Flint
successor	Hiram Johnson
office1	Member of the Los Angeles City Council for the at-large district
term_start1	December 10, 1909
term_end1	March 22, 1910
predecessor1	Office established
successor1	Frederick J. Whiffen
office3	Associate Justice of the
California Supreme Court
term_start3	October 2, 1888
term_end3	January 5, 1891
appointer3	Robert Waterman
predecessor3	Elisha W. McKinstry
successor3	Ralph C. Harrison
office4	Judge of the
San Diego County Superior Court
term_start4	1886
term_end4	1887
appointer4	George Stoneman
state_house5	Indiana
district5	Ohio and Switzerland
term_start5	January 9, 1879
term_end5	January 6, 1881
predecessor5	William Freeman
successor5	Stephen H. Stewart
birth_date
birth_place	Rising Sun, Indiana, U.S.
death_date
death_place	Los Angeles, California, U.S.
party	Republican
spouse
signature	Signature of John Downey Works.png
branch	Union Army
unit	10th Indiana Cavalry Regiment
battles	Civil War
::

John Downey Works (March 29, 1847June 6, 1928) was an American politician and lawyer. He was a U.S. Senator representing California from 1911 to 1917, and an associate justice of the California Supreme Court from October 2, 1888, to January 5, 1891.

Early life

Works was born in Ohio County, Indiana, and attended public schools there. During the American Civil War, he served as a member of the 10th Regiment of the Indiana Cavalry. Once discharged, he returned home, read law and in 1868 was admitted to the Indiana bar. In November 1878, he was elected as a representative in the Indiana General Assembly, serving during the 1879 term. In June 1883, he published a book of practice, pleading and forms to match the revised code of Indiana.

Political career

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/John_D._Works.jpg" caption="Works {{circa}} 1888–1891"] ::

In 1883, Works's poor health forced a move to San Diego, California, where he became active in the Republican Party, and rose in California politics. In September 1886, he ran on the Republican ticket, and prior to the election was appointed by Governor Robert Waterman as a judge of the San Diego County Superior Court. In September 1887, he resigned to return to private practice, and Governor Waterman appointed Edwin Parker to fill the vacant seat.

In 1888, Governor Waterman appointed Works as an associate justice of the California Supreme Court to fill a vacancy after the resignation of Elisha W. McKinstry. In August 1888, the Republican Party nominated Works and he was elected to the remaining portion of McKinstry's term ending January 5, 1891. In 1891, after stepping down from the bench, Works became president of the San Diego Sun company, and then returned to private practice with his son in the firm of Works & Works in San Diego.

In January 1896, Works moved to Los Angeles, California. In 1903, Works served as President of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. On December 7, 1909, he was elected as a member of the Los Angeles City Council, and chosen as its president, but he resigned shortly after on March 22, 1910.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/John_D._Works,_1909.jpg" caption="Works in 1909"] ::

In 1911, Works was elected to the U.S. Senate, where he served on the committee on Expenditures in the War Department (Sixty-second United States Congress) and the Committee on Fisheries. In February 1917, he and other Progressive Senators, under the moniker "twelve willful men," blocked by filibuster legislation empowering President Woodrow Wilson to arm merchant vessels prior to the United States entering World War I.

Works did not seek renomination to his Senate seat in 1916. The Seventeenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, providing for U.S. senators to be elected by the people instead of state legislatures, had been adopted in 1913 but allowed senators serving at the time to finish their terms. Works was the last U.S. senator from California to be elected by the Legislature.

Later life and death

After retiring from the Senate he wrote two books: Duty to Man: A Study of Social Conditions and How They May Be Improved (1919) and What's Wrong With the World? (1922).

On June 6, 1928, he died in Los Angeles and his ashes were placed in Inglewood Park Cemetery.

Personal life

On November 7, 1868, he married Alice Banta, in Vevay, Indiana, and they had two sons, Thomas L. and Louis R., who became an attorney and practiced with his father, and later the presiding justice of the Court of Appeal, Second Division; as well as five daughters: Josephine (who died as an infant), Ida, Laura, Ethel and Isabel. He is said to have been a member of the Church of Christ, Scientist.

Notes

Selected publications

Works, John D. (1919). Man's Duty to Man: A Study of Social Conditions and How They May Be Improved. New York: Neale Publishing Co.
Online books by John D. Works. Library of the University of Pennsylvania.

References

(1963). "History of the California Supreme Court: The Justices 1850–1900, vol 1". Bender Moss Co.
(6 May 1873). "About the Courts". Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program.
(4 June 1873). "Personal". Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program.
(13 March 1879). "The Legislature". Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program.
(18 June 1883). "Just published: Practice, Pleading and Forms". Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program.
(12 September 1886). "County Tickets". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(13 October 1886). "State News". Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program.
(20 September 1887). "Superior Court: Judge Parker Takes His Seat-Complimentary Resolutions to Judge Works.". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(1 August 1888). "State Republicans". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(7 August 1888). "Young Republicans". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(9 August 1888). "Fourth Ward Republicans". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(12 December 1888). "Local Brevities". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(7 November 1888). "The Returns". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(23 January 1891). "Pacific Coast News". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(4 November 1893). "A Pert Petition". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(8 July 1893). "Gossip of the Hotels". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(31 January 1896). "Festivities at San Diego". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
"LACBA Presidents".
(12 January 1911). "Latest News". Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program.
(9 March 1917). "Extra Session of Congress Seems Probable". Hoosier State Chronicles: Indiana's Digital Historic Newspaper Program.
(2009). "Katharine Graham's Washington". Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.
(7 June 1928). "Former California Solon Dies in L.A.". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(31 December 1920). "Judge Lewis of San Diego County Dead After Week's Illness". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(30 December 1920). "Justice Finlayson Draws Long Term". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(27 March 1895). "Personal". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
(27 April 1920). "L. A. Girl to Marry Tax Expert". California Digital Newspaper Collection.
[http://politicalgraveyard.com/group/christian-scientist.html The Political Graveyard: Christian Scientist Politicians] at politicalgraveyard.com

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