William Lee Knous (February 2, 1889 - December 11, 1959) was a Colorado state legislator, Supreme Court justice and governor, and a US district judge.
re-election in 1948, he carried every county in the state but one.
Knous was appointed a US district judge in 1950. Nominated by Harry S Truman on March 1, 1950, to a seat vacated by John Foster Symes; Confirmed by the Senate on April 4, 1950, he received his commission on April 7, 1950. Knous served as chief judge, 1954-1959. His service was terminated on December 12, 1959, due to death. According to the Colorado state archives, "He became the only man in the state ever to have occupied the highest seat in the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government."
His son, Robert Lee Knous, was subsequently a lieutenant governor of Colorado from 1959 to 1967.
William Lee Knous
Two Koshares entertain Governor Knous at the 1949 Governor's Convention
