Oscar Knutson

Who was Oscar Knutson?

Oscar R. Knutson was an American lawyer and judge from Minnesota. He was born in Superior, Wisconsin. He graduated from Warren, Minnesota High School in 1920 and attended St. Olaf College and the Northwestern School of Agriculture, graduating from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1927. Knutson practiced law in Warren with Julius J. Olson, who also became a Minnesota Supreme Court justice.

Knutson ran unsuccessfully for Marshall County, Minnesota attorney in 1930. He was elected mayor of Warren in 1936 and was re-elected twice, resigning when he was appointed a district court judge in 1941 by Governor Harold Stassen. He won election to the post in 1942. On May 7, 1948, he was appointed to the Minnesota Supreme Court by Governor Luther Youngdahl, succeeding Olson. He won election later that year and was re-elected in 1954 and 1960. On January 25, 1962, he was appointed Chief Justice by Governor Elmer L. Andersen and was elected in 1964 and re-elected in 1970. He retired in 1973.

While mayor of Warren, Knutson and two partners purchased the Warren Telephone Company, which they operated until 1949. Knutson married Louise Halvorson of Warren in 1934, and they had three children. She died in 1955. In 1968, Knutson married Katherine Anderson. After retiring from the Court, Knutson lost his eyesight as a result of a stroke. He died in 1981.