Sherry Allen, age 14, of Billings, Mont., for her question:

WHAT WAS A CIRCUIT RIDER?

A circuit rider was an important figure in pioneer times in America. There were two kinds of circuit riders. One was a religious man who rode a circuit, or regular route, conducting services. The other was a judge who rode a circuit hearing cases.

Both the religious and legal circuit riders often covered great distances.

Preachers, often called backwoods preachers, began riding circuits in what is now the United States during th 1760s. John Wesley, founder of the Methodist movement in Great Britain, sent several lay preachers to preach the gospel in America. A lay preacher is a person not ordained as a minister.

Judges began riding circuits in 1790. Congress divided the 13 states into three circuits, with two Supreme Court justices appointed to hear cases in each circuit. This system was changed when more states joined the union and the Supreme Court had more work to do.

Many state judges also rode circuits. Lawyers usually traveled with the judges and would argue cases brought to court. Abraham Lincoln spent several years riding circuits as a lawyer in Illinois.