Funeral arrangements for Judge Sharp

UPDATE:  Judge Allen Sharp's funeral will be held at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, July 15 at the Welsheimer Family Funeral Home in South Bend. Friends may call from 4 to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, July 14th at the funeral home.

The Welsheimer Family Funeral home is located at 17033 Cleveland Road, South Bend.

United States District Judge Allen Sharp passed away at his home on Friday, according to Steve Ludwig, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Indiana.

Judge Sharp was appointed to the U.S. District Court for Northern Indiana on October 11, 1973 and took the bench on November 1, 1973. He served as chief judge of his court from 1981 to 1996. When Judge Sharp took senior status on November 1, 2007, he was the fourth longest serving active district judge in the United States. He continued to serve the court and the district as a senior judge until his death. During his years on the bench, Judge Sharp presided over jury trials in four different U.S. districts and sat with three federal courts of appeal.

“Judge Sharp was a fine judge and marvelous colleague. All of us at the court mourn his loss," Chief Judge Robert L. Miller Jr. said.

Judge Sharp was born in Washington, D.C. and grew up in Brown County, Indiana. He earned his undergraduate degree from George Washington University in 1954, his law degree from Indiana University in 1957, and his Masters Degree in History from Butler University in 1986. He was awarded an honorary doctor of civil laws by Indiana State University. Judge Sharp practiced law in Williamsport, Indiana from 1957 to 1968 before serving on
the Indiana Appellate Court from 1969 to 1973. He served in the United States Air Force Reserve from 1957 to 1984, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Judge Sharp was an avid student of history as well as a judge. He taught at Butler University, Indiana University at South Bend, and Milligan College in Milligan, Tennessee. He also wrote a variety of articles on law and history that were published in books and magazines.

Judge Sharp is survived by two daughters, Crystal Catholyn Sharp Bauer and Scarlet Frances Thomas, and three grandchildren.