Washington County Judge Eskine C. Rogers, as he would have appeared in his Judicial robes, circa the 1920’s.
2015 marks the 100th anniversary of the Hulett Hotel fire, which I chronicled in my book, The Hulett Hotel Fire on Lake George. After the fire, there was a trial which I also detail in the book.
The Judge who presided over that trial was Washington County Judge Eskine C. Rogers. In my book, I shared two pictures of the judge, both of which were hard to come by. On page 82, I have a picture of the judge as a young man graduating from high school, which I obtained from the Old Fort House Museum/Fort Edward Historical Association. On page 137, I presented a picture from his obituary, which was reproduced from a newspaper microfilm printout. Neither picture was ideal, but they were the best I had when the book went to print.
Shortly after the final edits were done on the book, I was able to speak to Judge Roger’s grandson, an attorney in Florida. He had a picture of his grandfather on his mantel and snapped the above picture on his mobile phone (which you can see the reflection of in the lower left of the photo.) It was too late to include this picture in the book, but I share it here because it captures what the judge would have looked like as he presided over the trial.
Rogers was described as hardworking, earnest and of good judicial temperament. I think the picture above captures all of that and more. What I see is a determined man who looks eminently fair in his demeanor. In my opinion, he looks like an excellent judge. The ornate, carved, high-backed chair adds to the prestige of the photograph.
My conversation with his grandson gave me additional insights into who Judge Rogers was. While I document in the last chapter of the book how Judge Rogers continued his distinguished career after the trial ended, he died unexpectedly in 1940. His grandson told me his grandfather’s sudden death was an extreme blow to his family and one which was difficult for them to overcome. His grandson was happy to share the above photo. I share it here for history’s sake in light of the 100th anniversary of the Hulett Hotel fire.
(Click on the picture to see full-scale.)