Judge John Boswell, a retired Hanover Special Justice, passed away recently at his home in Hanover.

Born in New York City, Boswell grew up in Woodstock, New York. He later attended the Putney School in Vermont where his family says the school’s focus on progressive education influenced him. He attended the University of Virginia and then graduated from the University of Virginia Law School.

Beginning his law career at Webster & Sheffield in New York City, Boswell worked a great deal on Civil Rights issues, joining the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, which was established by President Lyndon Johnson to investigate the causes of the 1967 race riots in the United States.

In 1971, Boswell and his family moved to Hanover, where he established a private practice and was appointed Special Justice of the Hanover District Court by Gov. Hugh Gallen in 1979.

He was an avid fisherman and a member of the Lake Mitchell Trout Club and The Angler’s Club.

Boswell is survived by his wife Anne; their two sons, Charlie and Thomas; a daughter, Frances; and five grandchildren.