Is Judge Horton, 27, Youngest Judge on Record, Or Was Judge Starbuck Younger? July 14, 1921

Youngest Judge on the Bench

Judge on the North Carolina superior court at the age of 27 years is the remarkable record made by Judge J. Lloyd Horton.

Judge Horton is the youngest man who has ever occupied a seat on the superior court bench in North Carolina, eclipsing the record made by Judge W.P. Stacy of Wilmington, who held the record until last year. Judge Stacy, having established another record for youthfulness on the North Carolina supreme court bench by his election last fall.

From The Alamance Gleaner, Graham, N.C., July 14, 1921

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The Youngest Judge

Lately mention has been made several times that Judge J. Loyd Horton is 27, the youngest Superior Court Judge the State has ever had. He held the Spring Term of Alamance Superior Court and does not look over 27.

It is recalled that in the year 1894, there was elected a very youthful young man to the Superior Court Judgeship. He hailed from the 9th Judicial district and his home was at Winston-Salem. His name was Henry R. Starbuck. In appearance he was but a stripling of a young man. In 1895 he held the Fall terms of Alamance Superior Court.

He had not had his law license very long when he was put on the Fusion ticket to fill it out. To his astonishment it was found that when the votes were counted he had won more votes than his competitor and was declared elected. In that year all political calculations were smashed. Judge Starbuck, a clever young man, was not the only political accident of that year. There were plenty of them, and plenty of them who ranked far below him.

That was nearly 27 years ago, and if Judge Starbuck is still living he is not yet an old man. It is the writer’s opinion, as he remembers the appearance of the young man, that Judge Starbuck was not over 25 when elevated to the bench. If the said Judge is not a bachelor or widower, it is not believed he would object to giving his age at the same time he took the oath of office.

An incident at the time was related, which indicated that he was not only quite youthful but very modest,--that when he heard of his election he was so much surprised and abashed that he retired to his office or his room and locked himself in.

Let some one communicate with Judge Starbuck or his people and find out how old he was, and thus settled this “Youngest Judge” question.

Lead editorial from The Alamance Gleaner, Graham, N.C., July 14, 1921, J.D. Kernodle, Editor. The newspaper article in the same issue spelled Judge Horton's first name Lloyd, but in the editorial, it is spelled Loyd. I don’t know which is correct.