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Harvey Bell, Jr.


Gender:
Male
Born:
April 9, 1791
Died:
July 11, 1848
Home Town:
Waybridge, VT
Later Residences:
Middlebury, VT
Marriage(s):
Betsey Sergeant Bell (January 29, 1818)
Biographical Notes:
Harvey Bell, Jr. was born to Harvey Bell and Mary Reeves Bell on April 9, 1791 in Waybridge, Vermont. After graduating from Middlebury College, he studied law with John Simmons in Middlebury prior to attending the Litchfield Law School in 1812. After completing his studies in Litchfield, he was admitted to the bar and set up a legal practice in Middlebury that he continued for 25 years.

Bell pursued other interests while practicing law. From 1826 to 1843, he acted as the secretary to the Board of Trustees for Middlebury College. Bell served as a member of the Governor's Council in 1835, and was elected to the Vermont State Senate from 1836 to 1837. He also worked as a newspaper proprietor and editor of the Northern Galaxy from 1841 to 1848.

On January 29, 1818, Bell married Betsey Sergeant and they had three children. He died in Middlebury, Vermont.
Quotes:
"Mr. Bell was a most estimable citizen, and possessed in a large degree the confidence and respect of the public." Obituary Notice, St. Albans Messenger, July 27, 1848, Page: 3. St. Albans, Vermont

Education
Years at LLS:
1812
Other Education:
Graduated from Middlebury College in 1809.

Profession / Service
Profession:
Lawyer; Political Office; Editor
Admitted To Bar:
1812
Training with Other Lawyers:
He studied law with John Simmons in Middlebury, VT prior to attending the LLS.
State Posts:
State Senator (VT) 1836-1837
State Committees:
Member of the Governor's Council of VT in 1825

help The Citation of Attendance provides primary source documentation of the student’s attendance at the Litchfield Female Academy and/or the Litchfield Law School. If a citation is absent, the student is thought to have attended but currently lacks primary source confirmation.

Records for the schools were sporadic, especially in the formative years of both institutions. If instructors kept comprehensive records for the Litchfield Female Academy or the Litchfield Law School, they do not survive. Researchers and staff have identified students through letters, diaries, family histories and genealogies, and town histories as well as catalogues of students printed in various years. Art and needlework have provided further identification of Female Academy Students, and Litchfield County Bar records document a number of Law School students. The history of both schools and the identification of the students who attended them owe credit to the early 20th century research and documentation efforts of Emily Noyes Vanderpoel and Samuel Fisher, and the late 20th century research and documentation efforts of Lynne Templeton Brickley and the Litchfield Historical Society staff.
CITATION OF ATTENDANCE:
Bond, William Key. Lectures on law by the Honable. Tapping Reeve and James Gould esquire at Litchfield, Connecticut, An. Dom: 1811 & 1812 Rare Book Collection, Lillian Goldman Law Library, Yale University.

Catalogue of the Litchfield Law School, Hartford, CT: Press of Case, Tiffany and Company, 1849,10.

Litchfield County Bar Association Records, 1812, Litchfield Historical Society, Helga J. Ingraham Memorial Library.
Secondary Sources:
Pearson, Thomas Scott. Catalogue of the Graduates of Middlebury College. Windsor: Printed at the Vermont Chronicle Press, 1853.

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