William Ball Gilbert

William Ball Gilbert (July 4, 1847 – April 27, 1931) was an American attorney and jurist from Oregon. He served as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and of the United States Circuit Courts for the Ninth Circuit. A native of Virginia, he previously served in the Oregon Legislative Assembly. Early life Gilbert was born in Lewinsville, Virginia on July 4, 1847 to Sarah Catherine Ball and John Gilbert. William was named after Colonel William Ball] the grandfather of George Washington's mother Mary Ball; he was related to the colonel from his mother's side of the family. He went to local private schools in Lewinsville, located in Fairfax County, and to schools in neighboring Falls Church. The Gilbert family had pro-Union sympathies, and moved to Ohio before the American Civil War. Gilbert attended high school in Zanesville, Ohio before moving to Williamstown, Massachusetts to attend Williams College. He graduated from Williams in 1868 with an Artium Baccalaureus degree. After graduation he went to the Amazon Basin on a scientific expedition followed by a geologic expedition to Ohio for two years. After giving up on a scientific career, he earned a Bachelor of Laws in 1872 from the University of Michigan Law School. Gilbert was admitted to the bar in Michigan that year, and then moved to Oregon.