E. DELOS MAGEE
E. DeLos Magee, member of the California bar
over a quarter of a century, has handled a wide range of important cases and
other professional work at San Francisco. He represents not only the scholarship
and ability of his profession, but some of the other Scotch elements of
intellect and character.
Mr. Magee is a member of an old and distinguished American family. He was
born in Prairie City, Illinois, November 11, 1871. The Magees were Scotch-Irish
and his great-grandfather, Charles Magee, was an American soldier in a
Pennsylvania regiment during the Revolutionary war. He was one of the soldiers
who crossed the Delaware on ice at the Battle of Trenton.
For over forty years an honored physician in
San Diego, California has been Dr. Thomas L. Magee, father of DeLos, the San
Francisco attorney. Dr. Thomas L. Magee was born in Southern Ohio, October 14,
1836, and is now past eighty-seven years of age. He grew up in Peoria,
Illinois, and was educated in medicine in Chicago and Nashville, Tennessee,
graduating in June, 1863. In the meantime, in 1862, he became first assistant
surgeon of the Fifty-first Illinois Infantry, and in May, 1863, was
commissioned surgeon of that regiment, serving to the end of the war. For a
time he was brigade surgeon in charge of the general field hospital. He took
part in every battle fought by the Army of the Cumberland except that of
Missionary Ridge. He was one of the surgeons left on the field at Chickamauga,
and was taken to Libby Prison, remain there three months before he was
exchanged. After the siege of Atlanta he returned with Thomas to Nashville,
Tennessee. Doctor Magee after the war practiced at Prairie City, Illinois,
until 1883, when he came to California, first locating at Riverside, and in
May, 1885, established his office at San Diego, where he has continued a member
of his profession ever since. He has been president of the San Diego County
Medical Society, local surgeon for the Santa Fe Railway, health officer of San
Diego, secretary of the United States Extension Examining Board at San Diego,
and active in republican politics. He is a past commander of the Grand Army of
the Republic at San Diego, a surgeon with the rank of major in the National Guard
of California, San Diego regiment, a Mason and a member of the First Baptist
Church. Dr. Thomas Magee married in 1866, Sarah E. Sanford. She was born in New
York State, of Holland-Dutch, ancestry. She died in 1904, the mother of three
sons: Chester L., E. DeLos and A. Claude.
Chester L. Magee, now practicing medicine at
San Gabriel, California, carried a distinguished record as a medical officer in
the World war. He was assistant in charge of one of the hospitals at Coblenz.
Germany, after the armistice, and received the commission of major in the
Medical Corps. The youngest son, A. Claude Magee, likewise took up the medical
profession, served with the rank of major in the Medical Corps in this country
during the World war, and died August 12,1923.
E. DeLos Magee was about thirteen years of
age when his parents established their home at San Diego. He completed his
public school education there, and graduated Bachelor of Arts from Stanford
University with the class of 1895. He took his law course at Cornell University
at Ithaca, New York, graduating Bachelor of Laws in 1897. In this connection it
is of interest to note that his graduating thesis was upon the subject, “Is
There a Federal Common Law?” This was the first time that this subject had been
written on to any extent, and this thesis was the ground for much favorable
comment outside of the law school, and incidentally it may be noted that it
gained the first prize award. On his return to California Mr. Magee was
associated for a year and a half with William J. Hunsaker at Los Angeles. Since
then his home and activities have been in San Francisco. He had some valuable
training for his own career, and contributed some work to the literature of his
profession while working under A. C. Freeman, editor in chief of the American State
Reports. Mr. Magee for three years wrote, on graphic notes for that series and
he also did considerable work on the state code commission of which Mr. Freeman
was also chairman. Since 1905 Mr. Magee has been engaged in law practice, and
in November, 1906, formed a partnership with J.V. de Laveaga. Their law firm is
now one of long and honorable standing, and while handling a general law
practice, specializes in corporation law, probate practice, landlord and tenant
and receivership in corporation law, probate practice, landlord and tenant and
receivership law. He also represents some extensive interests operating in
Mexico.
Mr. Magee was one of the attorneys for
Edward J. LeBreton, the first receiver of the California Safe Deposit & Trust
Company, acted in a similar capacity for his successor, Frank J. Symmes, and
upon the death of Mr. Symmes, Mr. Magee was appointed receiver, handling that
office until the final liquidation of the insolvent bank. He is attorney for
and director of the Yosemite Portland Cement Company at Merced, a plant
recently put into operation with a daily capacity of 2,000 barrels.
Mr. Magee is president of the California
Society of the Sons of the American Revolution. He is also president of the
National Progress Club, is a member of the college fraternity Beta Theta Pi and
the legal fraternity Phi Delta Phi and in politics is a republican. However, he
has satisfied his ambition fully by a successful practice as a lawyer rather
than in politics.
Louise E. Shoemaker, Transcriber, March 30th 2004