Morton Shelley Bailey was born in 1855 in Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, and earned a Bachelor of Arts from Lafayette College in 1880. He was admitted to the Colorado Bar in 1882 and later served in the Colorado Senate from 1891 to 1893. Bailey also held judicial positions, serving as a judge of the Eleventh Judicial District of Colorado from 1892 to 1908 and as an Associate Justice of the Colorado Supreme Court from 1909 to 1922. He passed away in 1922 in Denver.

Morton Shelley Bailey's political career reveals an intriguing blend of judicial rigor and progressive policy alignments, particularly in environmental regulations. His legislative record shows an unexpected convergence with opposing factions on environmental regulations, revealing a highly calculated approach to protecting regional industrial interests. Bailey's rhetorical style consistently emphasizes community welfare over partisan divides, often framing issues through a lens of moral imperative rather than political expediency. This juxtaposition of traditional judicial conservatism with forward-thinking environmental advocacy makes his political identity both unique and thought-provoking.