Martin Dewey Follett
Martin Dewey Follett (October 8, 1826 – August 22, 1911) was an American politician and judge from Ohio. A Democrat, he served on the Ohio Supreme Court from 1883 to 1887.
He was born in Enosburg, Vermont, and moved with his family to Licking County, Ohio, in 1836. Follett taught school and then attended Marietta College, earning a BA in 1853 and an MA in 1856. He taught high school for a year in Newark and two years at Marietta, and he was the superintendent of schools there from 1856 to 1858. He was admitted to the bar in 1858.
Follett was active in the Democratic Party. He was a delegate to the 1864 Democratic National Convention that nominated George B. McClellan. He ran for Congress in 1866 and again in 1868 but lost both times.
In 1883, Follett was elected to the Ohio Supreme Court, defeating Republican William H. Upson, and he took office in December 1883. He sought re-election in 1886 but lost to Marshall Jay Williams, finishing his term in February 1887.
He was a life member of the Ohio Archaeological and Historical Society and served as a trustee for ten years starting in 1895. Follett died in Marietta, Ohio, in 1911 at age 84 and was buried in Mound Cemetery.
Personal life: He married Harriet L. Shipman in 1856, and they had four children. In 1875 he married Abbie M. Bailey, and they had one child.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 11:08 (CET).