# Julius J. Olson *Minnesota lawyer and justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court (1875–1955)* Julius J. Olson (February 22, 1875 – May 22, 1955) practiced law in Minnesota and later sat as a justice on the [[Minnesota Supreme Court]].[^1] He was a Norwegian-born immigrant who practiced law in Warren, Minnesota, and served as a district court judge before joining the state's highest court.[^2] He was appointed to the Supreme Court on March 5, 1934. Voters elected him to the seat that year and returned him in 1940 and 1946. He left the court in 1948, and his former law associate [[Oscar Knutson]] took the seat.[^2] The sources cited here are secondary. They do not include the commission or election records for his judicial offices.[^1] ## Biography Olson was born Julius Johann Olson on Dønna, an island in Norway's Nordland county. His family brought him to Lake Park, Minnesota, when he was eight.[^2] He finished high school in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, in 1897. In 1900 he completed his legal studies at the [[University of Minnesota Law School]].[^2] He entered practice in Warren, Minnesota, as a partner of Andrew Grindeland, who became a district court judge in 1903.[^2] Knutson joined Olson's practice as an associate in 1927. Knutson later followed him onto the district court and then onto the Supreme Court.[^2] When Grindeland retired in 1930, Governor [[Theodore Christianson]] named Olson to fill the district court vacancy. Olson then won election to that judgeship in 1930.[^2] Governor [[Floyd B. Olson]] appointed him to the Supreme Court on March 5, 1934. He won election to the seat later in 1934 and was re-elected in 1940 and again in 1946.[^2] He retired in 1948, and Knutson succeeded him.[^2] Olson was one of Minnesota's delegates to the 1916 Democratic National Convention.[^2] He founded the Marshall County Agricultural Association and was its first secretary.[^2] On July 14, 1909, in [[Becker County, Minnesota]], he married Caroline L. Sletten.[^2] Two of the couple's children became lawyers as adults. Another child, Julius Johan Olson, died at the age of four.[^2] ### Memorial On May 15, 1956, the Minnesota Supreme Court held memorial proceedings for Olson, which are recorded in *Minnesota Reports*, volume 246. The same proceedings also memorialized Chief Justice [[Samuel B. Wilson]] and associate justices [[Clifford L. Hilton]] and Theodore Christianson. The memorial was presented by Justice Knutson.[^3] A 1956 local history of the Warren area, *Warren Plains to Plenty: A History of 75 Eventful Years*, edited by Lloyd George Melgard, is also listed as a source on Olson.[^3] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Julius J. Olson was a lawyer, a district court judge and a justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court.[^1] - Oscar Knutson, once his law associate, succeeded him on both the district court and the Supreme Court.[^2] ### When - Born February 22, 1875; died May 22, 1955.[^1] - Graduated from high school in 1897 and from law school in 1900.[^2] - District court: appointed and elected in 1930.[^2] - Supreme Court: appointed March 5, 1934; elected 1934; re-elected 1940 and 1946; retired 1948.[^2] ### Where - Born on Dønna, Nordland county, Norway; grew up in Lake Park, Minnesota.[^2] - Practiced law in Warren, Minnesota; married in Becker County, Minnesota.[^2] ### How - Reached the district court in 1930 by appointment from Governor Theodore Christianson, followed by election.[^2] - Reached the Supreme Court in 1934 by appointment from Governor Floyd B. Olson, followed by election.[^2] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Julius J. Olson*, lead section (revision 1381053441, retrieved 2026-10-26) — life dates; lawyer and Minnesota Supreme Court justice. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_J._Olson [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Julius J. Olson*, "Biography" section (revision 1381053441, retrieved 2026-10-26) — birth, emigration, education, law practice, 1930 district court appointment and election, March 5, 1934 Supreme Court appointment, 1934/1940/1946 elections, 1948 retirement, 1916 convention delegation, agricultural association, marriage and children. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_J._Olson [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *Julius J. Olson*, "Other sources" section (revision 1381053441, retrieved 2026-10-26) — lists the Minnesota Supreme Court's *Proceedings In Memory Of Chief Justice Samuel B. Wilson And Associate Justices Clifford L. Hilton, Julius J. Olson, And Theodore Christianson* (Knutson, May 15, 1956, *Minnesota Reports* vol. 246) and Melgard, ed., *Warren Plains to Plenty* (Warren Sheaf, 1956). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_J._Olson