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Robe, Judicial

Object number2019.28.1

Manufacturer The Macmillan Ward Inc.

OriginNew London, OH

MediumSynthetic fabric; Satin; Cotton; Plastic; Metal

Credit LineGift of Ian Coleman

DescriptionBlack synthetic fabric judicial robe. Knee-length robe with pleats along chest, shoulders, and back. Full long sleeves with internal smaller sleeves. Six metal snaps down front opening with metal hook-and-eye fastener at top. Upper back has vertical braided black cord that runs from top of collar to black plastic button at the top of the pleats with loop hanging below the button. Interior of top of torso and interior of inner sleeves are lined with black satin; top of torso area also has white cotton padded layer. DimensionsHeight x Width (Width at shoulders): 48.25 x 16.25 in. (122.6 x 41.3 cm)
InscriptionsInside back at top center, below maker label, is purple-black fabric label with yellow embroidered text "ER".
MarksInside back at top center is black fabric label with red embroidered text "The / MACMILLAN WARD INC. / NEW LONDON, OHIO"; suspended from bottom is black fabric tag with yellow embroidered text "PROFESSIONALLY / DRY CLEAN ONLY".
Historical NotesJudicial robe worn by Judge Eunice Ross. Eunice Ross was an expert in probate law and treatise writing, and was one of the first female judges on the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. Judge Ross was born October 13, 1923, in Bellevue to Richard and Eunice Latshaw. She had one brother, Richard. Her father owned a pharmacy in Emsworth and her mother’s family included lawyers and judges. Judge Ross spent her childhood listening to her father and his friends debate politics and social issues after hours at his pharmacy and reading from the family’s large collection of books kept in their home. Judge Ross attended elementary school at Emsworth Public School and high school in Ben Avon and Avonworth. She excelled in her studies and served in leadership positions in both elementary and high school. In 1941, Judge Ross started undergraduate work with a full scholarship at the University of Pittsburgh. Her freshman year she met John Ross, her future husband. At the outbreak of World War II John joined the Marines and Eunice and John married in May 1942. She remained at Pitt, visiting her husband where he was stationed at Boca Chica, Florida, during school vacations. Their daughter, Geraldine, was born in 1947 and Judge Ross began law school at the University of Pittsburgh the following year. In 1951, she graduated first in her class and received the highest grade on the Pennsylvania State bar exam. Upon graduation, Judge Ross worked in environmental and health law before clerking in the Civil Court of Allegheny County and then in Orphan’s Court. In 1972, she was among the first women to be appointed to the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. She remained until 1996 when she was appointed as senior judge to the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. She retired from there in 2004. Judge Ross published articles in law reviews, wrote the book Justice (1985), and co-authored the treatise Will Contests (1992). Judge Ross’s husband died in 1978, and her daughter in 2011. In retirement, Judge Ross enjoyed travelling to Key West, Florida as it reminded her of when her husband had been stationed nearby at Boca Chica. She died on September 30, 2018.

Previous owner Eunice Mercedes Latshaw Ross (1923 - 2018)

Related institution Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas

Related institution Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania

Related institution University of Pittsburgh

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