William C. Hill

William C. Hill (May 10, 1917 – May 28, 1998) was a Vermont attorney and judge. His most notable service came as an associate justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1976 to 1987. Early life William Charles Hill was born in Newark, New Jersey on May 10, 1917, the son of William Herbert Hill and Alice Anna (DeGroot) Hill. He was raised and educated in Irvington, New Jersey, and graduated from Irvington High School. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from New York University in 1939, and in 1941 he received his J.D. from New York University Law School. After admission to the bar, Hill practiced in New York City. Military service Hill joined the United States Army for World War II. He enlisted in 1942, and received his commission as a second lieutenant after completing the Army Administration School's officer training program at North Dakota Agricultural College in Fargo. Hill served in the European Theater of Operations and at the 1st Service Command in Boston as a member of the U.S. Army Claims Service, the agency responsible for adjudicating and resolving incidents of damage or destruction to civilian property. He was a captain when he was discharged in 1946, and he remained in uniform as a member of the United States Army Reserve. Hill was a member of the Judge Advocate General's Corps, and attained the rank of lieutenant colonel before retiring. Early career Hill moved to Vermont in 1946, and lived in Hinesburg and Shelburne while practicing law in Burlington. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, Hill acted as judge of the Burlington municipal court during the judge's absence. In 1950, he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination to represent Hinesburg in the Vermont House of Representatives. Hill was elected in 1952, reelected in 1954 and 1956, and served from 1953 to 1959. In 1959, he was appointed a judge of the Vermont Superior Court. He served until 1976, and was the court's chief judge beginning in 1972. In 1968, Hill received a Master of Arts degree in history from the University of Vermont.