Rhoda Lewis, First Female Hawaii State Supreme Court Judge

Rhoda Lewis was a pioneer for women. Only one other woman in the United States had served before her as a justice of a State Supreme Court, and in that case it was in Ohio (Hayes). Rhoda Lewis was the second woman to have that honor, and the first in Hawaii.

Rhoda V. Lewis

Rhoda Lewis's Early Life
Rhoda Valentine Lewis was the second daughter of Josephine Valentine Spitzer Lewis and her husband, Charles Tobias Lewis. She was born in Chicago, Illinois, on August 31, 1906. In 1911, when Rhoda Lewis was five years old, her family moved to Honolulu where her mother's family lived and where she attended Punahou School. For a time her father worked for the sugar industry in the Philippines as a mechanical engineer, and Rhoda Lewis and her sister attended the American European School of Manila. Later, she attended Berkeley High School in Berkeley, California.

Early Legal Career
Rhoda Lewis graduated from Stanford University in 1927 and Stanford Law School in 1929, finishing her J.D. early because she took law classes as an undergraduate. She graduated first in her class in law school, the only woman in a class of seventy (Matsuda).

The years following Lewis's graduation were difficult ones. She said that in law school she was "treated so well that the obstacles I encountered upon graduation came as a shock" (Matsuda). The economy during the Depression affected the legal profession, but it was particularly difficult for women. Law firms hired men with families to support over women.

Unable to find a private practice legal job in California or Hawaii, Rhoda Lewis took a job as the secretary of the Committee of Bar Examiners for two years. Preferring to practice law, she found a job in Buffalo, New York, while visiting her sister. She had already passed the California bar exam and then passed the New York bar exam in 1933 (Matsuda). Rhoda Lewis practiced law with a Buffalo firm for three years, an experience she labeled as "valuable in later life" (Matsuda).

A Return to Hawaii

Rhoda Lewis returned to Hawaii in 1936. A friend of the family arranged several interviews for her with law firms in Honolulu, but none would hire  her. Graduating at the top of her law school class and having a few years of practice under her belt wasn't enough. Many women in this position turn to government work because male attorneys generally avoid government work unless they are planning a political career.

After passing the Hawaii bar exam in 1937, Rhoda Lewis worked for six months in the public prosecutor's office writing briefs and then moved to the attorney general's office as deputy attorney general (Matsuda). She remained in the attorney general's office as a deputy or assistant attorney general for many years until 1959, during the period when Hawaii was a Territory and later a State.

Pearl Harbor Memories

In the book, Called From Within: Early Women Lawyers of Hawai'i, Rhoda Lewis's biography is featured prominently. A quote within her biography tells her experiences from December 7, 1941, while Pearl Harbor was under attack.

"I was in the midst of a wholesale oil tank district, in an area where I had gone with the Acting Attorney General [Ernest Kai] to consult with an engineer about the compensation that should be paid for installing a grade crossing over a railroad. This engineer had been listening to the radio; we had not. In fact, we had remarked on the 'target practice' as we drove along. When we got the news on arrival at the railroad site all I could say was, 'Let's get out of here!' We returned to Iolani Palace, where the Attorney General's office was housed. As we drove up the appointed Director of Civil Defense, attired in his uniform, ran down the palace steps and cowered by the car, yelling 'shrapnel!' I went in to await the governor's arrival. When I learned that the wife of an attorney I knew had been killed, the reality of it swept over me." Ernest Kai left Lewis at the palace and returned home to make sure that his wife and baby had not been injured. He then hurried back to the palace and spent most of the following days and nights there, as did the rest of the attorney general's staff.

Rhoda Lewis quickly drafted the Hawaii Defense Act, which gave sweeping powers to the Governor of the Territory over people and property in the event of an emergency, while safeguarding basic civil liberties. The same day as the attack, the Governor then took command, declaring martial law and requesting that the Army take over only until the emergency had ended. Even though it was clear that by the Battle of Midway in June, 1942, Hawaii would not be invaded, the Army retained power until October 24, 1944, when martial law was terminated and the civil courts could fully function once again.

Rhoda Lewis was the mainstay of the Attorney General's office during World War II. She was very involved in helping to administer the government of the Territory under the Hawaii Defense Act. "History should show that her contribution was out of proportion to every other deputy or person in that office.... [Finally, regarding] the restoration of our civil government and civil rights following the war, the people of this Territory, and now State, owe her a tremendous debt" (Matsuda). 

Her Work in the Attorney General's Office

Basically, the Attorney General's Office provides legal advice and representation to the departments of state (or territorial) government and drafts and reviews legislation. Written opinions are given for complex or controversial issues. Between 1940 and 1958, the years Rhoda Lewis worked in that office, she wrote 54 opinions and hundreds of memoranda.

Rhoda Lewis's specialties were land and tax law. In addition to giving opinions, much of her time was spent "drafting legislation relating to the independence of the judiciary and much of the tax and land legislation" (Matsuda). In addition, Rhoda Lewis co-wrote the Hawaii State Constitution. She traveled several times to Washington, D.C., working for Hawaii's statehood. She prepared testimony for others on tax and land issues during congressional hearings. As a result, she was admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court of the United States in 1950. 

"Lewis was meticulous, knowledgeable, and concerned about detail. When Lewis had an issue she would 'worry it' for some time until she worked out the particulars and that, because she had such wide-ranging knowledge and was so careful, the legislation she wrote rarely generated litigation over its meaning" (Matsuda).

Appointment as Supreme Court Justice

In 1959, after Hawaii became a state, Rhoda Lewis became the first female appointed as a justice of the Hawaii State Supreme Court. During her tenure on the court, a period of eight years, Justice Lewis wrote forty-three opinions, eight joint opinions, eight concurring opinions, and nine dissents. 

Rhoda Lewis's term expired in 1967. She was not reappointed, much to her disappointment. The general explanation was that the Governor was of a different political party and wanted his own supporters on the supreme court. She continued to serve as a substitute justice when appointed, finally retiring in 1977. It took another 34 years before another woman was appointed to that position.

In the following article, Rhoda Lewis speaks on the opportunities women practicing law have in Hawaii.

News article, Hawaiian Advertiser, 1959

Legacy

Rhoda Lewis died September 12, 1991, in Honolulu. Her legacy is the work she did for the State of Hawaii. In remembrance, each year the Hawaii Women's Legal Foundation presents the Rhoda Lewis Award to a woman attorney who has devoted her career to public service.

References:

Hawaii Women's Legal Foundation, http://www.hwlf.org/mission/.

Hayes, Anna R., Without Precedent: The Life of Susie Marshall Sharp, University of North Carolina Press, 2009.

Library of Hawaii, Biography file on Rhoda Lewis, "Women Have Chance Here, Court Nominee Lewis Declares," Hawaiian Advertiser, 3 Sep 1959.

Matsuda, Mari J. (ed.), Called From Within: Early Women Lawyers of Hawai'i, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 1992.

Norman Sidney Spitzer

Norman Sidney Spitzer was the son of Sidney Spitzer and Hazel Durenberger Spitzer. The following is the excellent obituary his family provided, which has been edited by me to remove personal names of living family members to protect their privacy.

Norman Sidney Spitzer

Norman Sidney Spitzer, resident of Berkeley, born January 5, 1919, in Honolulu, Hawaii, deceased January 14, 2007, in Berkeley, California. A resident of Berkeley for 84 years, graduated from A-Zed High School in 1937. He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, class of 1946, BA US History, after he had, as he put it, "an extended overseas break" while he served in the United States Air Corps during World War II.

While visiting his family in Honolulu during the summer of 1941, Norman enlisted in Army Air Corps Cadet training and received his pilot's license in Hawaii at the end of the summer of 1941 at the age of twenty-one. Although he returned to Berkeley for Fall Quarter, during Thanksgiving of 1941, he returned to Hawaii and took Basic Training at Schofield Barracks.

The morning of December 7, 1941, Norman heard explosions, recognized the attacking enemy aircraft, and immediately reported for duty at Schofield Barracks after the first strike. He remained in the pineapple fields in charge of a number of troops for several days awaiting an anticipated invasion. He was then based at Sand Island in Honolulu Harbor.

Norman became an Instrument Instructor for aviation cadets in Douglas, Arizona. In 1944, he requested overseas duty, joining the Army Air Corps Ferry Command, China, Burma, and India Theater. Norman completed 98 round trips/679 combat hours, on the "Rockpile Express," ferrying supplies and troops over the Himalayan Mountains ("The Hump"). As the Captain of a C46, he survived three forced landings. Norman was twice awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, as well as the Asiatic Pacific Medal with Bronze Star. He also received an award from the Government of Taiwan for exceptional service rendered flying the Hump.

After World War II, Norman remained in the Air Force Reserve. During the Korean War, Norman served at Hamilton Air Force Base, California, and Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho as a flight instructor for C119s, C47s, and B29s. He retired as a Major in the United States Air Force in 1961.

From 1946 to 1950, Norman was a co-pilot/navigator in China and the Pacific for Pan American Airways. While flying for Pan Am, he met his wife, a Pan Am purser on a blind date. They were married in Carmel in 1949.

With his WWII mustering out pay, Norman bought a beautiful lot in the Berkeley Hills and designed and built their dream home. Although [the home was] destroyed by fire in 1991, Norman and his wife were among the first to return to the devastated hillside and rebuild their home.

Norman's love of flying continued throughout his life. He logged over 11,000 flying hours in his lifetime and flew private planes at Buchanan Field in Concord. He built one of the first Burt Rutan designed home built aircraft, the "Varieze" in 1977. He and his wife traveled extensively, visiting over 50 countries and flew their homebuilt Glassair throughout the U.S. His love of flying took his family to every U.S. state, Mexico and Central America.

Norman enjoyed duck hunting at the "Spoony" and "Family" clubs in the Suisun Marsh. Norm and his wife also spent many summers exploring the inland Passage of Canada on their boat the "VariEze." Norman, an avid skier, built a cabin in Squaw Valley in 1955. He continued to ski and fly fish in the Truckee River and Lake Tahoe region through his later years.

Norman and his wife were also longtime Bear Backers, and cheered the football team every fall from their 50-yard line seats. Norman built his first radio at age nine and was a Ham Radio operator since 1935.

Norman was a member of the Pearl Harbor Survivor's Association, the Air Transport Command, The Hump Pilot's Association, The Experimental Aircraft Association, The Alumni Association of the University of California-Berkeley Life Member, the Ham Radio Operator Association, the AOPA, and Aviation Historical Society.

Norman's final words reminded his family that he had reached his 88th birthday, which in Ham language means "hugs and kisses." Norman is survived by his wife of 57 years, whose love of travel and adventure equaled Norman's. Her dedicated care of Norman during a prolonged illness exemplifies true love and is admired by all her family and friends. He is also survived by two daughters, three grandchildren, a son-in-law, and "Boomer," his Golden Bear of a dog. His was a life well and fully lived, surrounded by those who loved him dearly.

Published in East Bay Times on Feb. 8, 2007.


References:

Obituary found at www.legacy.com.

Josephine Valentine Spitzer Lewis

Josephine Valentine Spitzer was the eldest daughter of Joseph S. Spitzer and Eda Rubinstein Spitzer. She was born in Chicago on Valentine's Day in 1880 and went by the name of Valentine or Valle (pronounced valley) for short.

Valentine Spitzer is standing in the back on the left. She is pictured with her brother, sister and uncle in the back and her parents and grandparents in the front (see Nov. 10, 2015 post).

According to one of her daughters, Valle Spitzer moved to Honolulu in 1898. She had finished normal school and taught in the Hawaii schools for a couple of years.

Honolulu directory, 1902

J. Vallentine Spitzer married Charles Tobias Lewis in Chicago on June 17, 1902, and the couple settled in Chicago. In 1911, when daughter Helen was eight, and daughter Rhoda was five, the family traveled to Hawaii to visit their relatives. Charles and Valle Lewis then decided to stay in Hawaii. Valle's father died shortly thereafter in 1913 in Hawaii.

Charles Lewis was a mechanical engineer and became a technical consultant for the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association. He also worked for awhile in the early 1920's (and possibly late 1910's) for the sugar industry in Talisay, Negros Occidental, Philippines, south of Manila.

In early 1920, Valle Spitzer Lewis is found on the census with her two daughters, ages 16 and 13, living in Berkeley, California, at 2214 Dana Street. Rhoda Lewis reported she had attended Berkeley High School.

Here is the passport of Josephine V. S. Lewis and her daughters who were planning a trip in July, 1920 to Japan, China, and Hong Kong. I assume they also stayed for awhile in the Philippines, where the daughters reported being enrolled in the American European School of Manila.

1920 passport, page 1

1920 passport, page 2

In 1923, Valentine Lewis applied for a new passport to visit Japan, China and Hong Kong on her own. In this passport, her husband is shown as residing in Talisay, Negros Occidental, Philippines.

1923 passport, page 1

1923 passport, page 2

And in the 1930 census, Charles, Valle, and daughter Rhoda, age 23, lived in San Francisco, California. Daughter Helen had already married and daughter Rhoda had already graduated from Stanford Law School and was working in San Francisco while living with her parents. Ship passenger records and city directories indicated Valentine Lewis resided in Honolulu in 1925, 1928, and 1957.

Daughter Helen Lewis, born July 2, 1903, in Chicago, attended Stanford University before marrying Myron Leroy Hyman, a sales manager in the salt industry. The couple settled in Buffalo, New York. They had two sons. Helen Lewis Hyman's residence during World War II was in Pasadena, California. After the war, she returned to live in Hawaii. She obtained a M.A. degree from the University of Hawaii, where she was on the faculty before retiring early.

The second daughter, Rhoda Lewis, was an attorney and appointed as the first female justice of the Hawaii Supreme Court in 1959. She is the subject of an upcoming blog.

Charles Tobias Lewis died in Honolulu on June 1, 1931. Josephine Valentine Spitzer Lewis outlived her husband by almost forty years, dying in Honolulu on September 29, 1970. Helen Lewis Hyman died on April 15, 1992, and her sister, Rhoda Lewis, died on September 12, 1991, both in Honolulu.


References:

California Passenger and Crew Lists, 1882-1957, Ancestry.com.

Honolulu, Hawaii, Passenger and Crew Lists, 1900-1959, Ancestry.com.

Husted's 1902 Directory of Honolulu, p. 402.

1920 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com.

1930 United States Federal Census, Ancestry.com.

U.S. City Directories, 1820-1989, Ancestry.com.

U.S., Marriages performed by three Rabbis in Boston, Chicago and Massachusetts, 1861-1956, Ancestry.com.

U.S. Passport Applications, Ancestry.com.