Harry S. Truman Supreme Court candidates
Encyclopedia
During his two terms in office, President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...

appointed four members of the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...

: Chief Justice
Chief Justice of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...

 Fred M. Vinson
Fred M. Vinson
Frederick Moore Vinson served the United States in all three branches of government and was the most prominent member of the Vinson political family. In the legislative branch, he was an elected member of the United States House of Representatives from Louisa, Kentucky, for twelve years...

, and Associate Justices
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States are the members of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the Chief Justice of the United States...

 Harold Burton
Harold Hitz Burton
Harold Hitz Burton was an American politician and lawyer.He served as the 45th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, as a U.S. Senator from Ohio, and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was known as a dispassionate jurist who prized equal justice under the law.-Biography:He...

, Tom C. Clark
Tom C. Clark
Thomas Campbell Clark was United States Attorney General from 1945 to 1949 and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States .- Early life and career :...

, and Sherman Minton
Sherman Minton
Sherman "Shay" Minton was a Democratic United States Senator from Indiana and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was the most educated justice during his time on the Supreme Court, having attended Indiana University, Yale and the Sorbonne...

.

Harold Burton nomination

When Supreme Court Associate Justice Owen J. Roberts retired in 1944, Truman decided to appoint a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 as a bipartisan gesture. Truman had first met Harold Hitz Burton
Harold Hitz Burton
Harold Hitz Burton was an American politician and lawyer.He served as the 45th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, as a U.S. Senator from Ohio, and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was known as a dispassionate jurist who prized equal justice under the law.-Biography:He...

 in 1941, when Burton was elected to the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

, where Truman was then serving. Burton served with Truman on the Senate investigative committee that oversaw the U.S. war effort during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, and the two got along well.

On September 19, 1945, Truman nominated Burton, who was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 on the same day by voice vote
Voice vote
A voice vote is a voting method used by deliberative assemblies in which a vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding verbally....

, without hearing or debate.

Fred Vinson nomination

Chief Justice
Chief Justice of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...

 Harlan Fiske Stone died in office on April 2, 1946. Rumors that Truman would appoint Robert H. Jackson
Robert H. Jackson
Robert Houghwout Jackson was United States Attorney General and an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court . He was also the chief United States prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trials...

 as Stone's successor led several newspapers to investigate and report on a controversy between Justice Roberts and Justice Hugo Black
Hugo Black
Hugo Lafayette Black was an American politician and jurist. A member of the Democratic Party, Black represented Alabama in the United States Senate from 1927 to 1937, and served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1937 to 1971. Black was nominated to the Supreme...

 arising from Black's refusal to recuse himself in Jewell Ridge Coal Corp. v. Local 6167, United Mine Workers (1945). Black and Douglas allegedly leaked to newspapers that they would resign if Jackson were appointed Chief Justice. On June 6, 1946, Truman nominated Fred M. Vinson
Fred M. Vinson
Frederick Moore Vinson served the United States in all three branches of government and was the most prominent member of the Vinson political family. In the legislative branch, he was an elected member of the United States House of Representatives from Louisa, Kentucky, for twelve years...

, an old friend, as Stone's replacement. Vinson was confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 on June 20, 1946 by voice vote.

Tom Clark nomination

The next vacancy occurred with the death of Justice Frank Murphy
Frank Murphy
William Francis Murphy was a politician and jurist from Michigan. He served as First Assistant U.S. District Attorney, Eastern Michigan District , Recorder's Court Judge, Detroit . Mayor of Detroit , the last Governor-General of the Philippines , U.S...

 on July 19, 1949. On August 2, 1949, Truman nominated Tom C. Clark
Tom C. Clark
Thomas Campbell Clark was United States Attorney General from 1945 to 1949 and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States .- Early life and career :...

. The New York Times called Clark "a personal and political friend [of Truman's] with no judicial experience and few demonstrated qualifications." Nevertheless, Clark was confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 on August 18, 1949 by a vote of 73-8.

Sherman Minton nomination

Truman's final opportunity to shape the Court came with the death of Wiley Blount Rutledge
Wiley Blount Rutledge
Wiley Blount Rutledge, Jr. was an American educator, lawyer, and justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.-Early life:...

, also in 1949. Sherman Minton
Sherman Minton
Sherman "Shay" Minton was a Democratic United States Senator from Indiana and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was the most educated justice during his time on the Supreme Court, having attended Indiana University, Yale and the Sorbonne...

 had previously served alongside Truman in the United States Senate, where the two had developed a close friendship. After Minton's 1940 Senate re-election bid had failed, President Roosevelt appointed him as a federal judge to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:* Central District of Illinois* Northern District of Illinois...

. On September 15, 1949, Truman nominated Minton to the Supreme Court, and the nomination was confirmed by the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 on October 4, 1949 by a vote of 48-16.

Names mentioned

Following is a list of individuals who were mentioned in various news accounts and books as having been considered by Truman for a Supreme Court appointment:

United States Courts of Appeals

  • Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
    The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Maine* District of Massachusetts...

    • Peter Woodbury
      Peter Woodbury
      Peter Woodbury was a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.Woodbury attended both Columbia and Harvard Law Schools...

       (born 1899)

  • Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
    The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals...

    • Harrie B. Chase
      Harrie B. Chase
      Harrie Brigham Chase was a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.A native and resident of Vermont, Chase attended Dartmouth College, where he was a member of the Chi Phi Fraternity. He also attended Boston University School of Law. He was a state's attorney of...

       (born 1889)

  • Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
    The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts for the following districts:* District of Delaware* District of New Jersey...

    • Herbert F. Goodrich
      Herbert Funk Goodrich
      Herbert Funk Goodrich was a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit...

       (born 1889)

  • Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
    The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* Eastern District of Kentucky* Western District of Kentucky...

    • Florence Ellinwood Allen
      Florence Ellinwood Allen
      Florence Ellinwood Allen was an American judge. She was the first woman to serve on a state supreme court and one of the first two women to serve as a federal judge.-Early life:...

       (born 1884)

  • Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
    The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:* Central District of Illinois* Northern District of Illinois...

    • Sherman Minton
      Sherman Minton
      Sherman "Shay" Minton was a Democratic United States Senator from Indiana and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was the most educated justice during his time on the Supreme Court, having attended Indiana University, Yale and the Sorbonne...

      (born 1890) - Former Senator from Indiana (Nominated and Confirmed)

  • Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
    United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
    The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Colorado* District of Kansas...

    • Sam G. Bratton
      Sam G. Bratton
      Sam Gilbert Bratton was a Democratic Party politician from the state of New Mexico who served in the United States Senate from 1925 until 1933....

       (born 1888)
    • Orie L. Phillips
      Orie Leon Phillips
      Orie Leon Phillips was a United States federal judge and the first chief judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.-Early years:...

       (born 1885)

United States District Courts

  • John W. Delehant
    John Wayne Delehant
    John Wayne Delehant was a United States federal judge.Born in Goodland, Kansas, Delehant received an A.B. from Creighton University in 1910, an A.M. from Creighton University in 1911, and an LL.B. from Creighton University School of Law in 1913...

     (born 1890) - Judge, United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
    United States District Court for the District of Nebraska
    The United States District Court for the District of Nebraska is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction is the state of Nebraska. Court offices are in Omaha, Lincoln, and North Platte....

  • Raymond W. Starr
    Raymond Wesley Starr
    Raymond Wesley Starr was a United States federal judge.Born in Harbor Springs, Michigan, Starr received an LL.B. from the University of Michigan Law School in 1910...

     (born 1888) - Judge, United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan
    United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan
    The United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan is the Federal district court with jurisdiction over of the western portion of the state of Michigan, including the entire Upper Peninsula....


State Supreme Courts

  • Paul Farthing (born 1887) - Chief Justice, Illinois Supreme Court
    Supreme Court of Illinois
    The Supreme Court of Illinois is the state supreme court of Illinois. The court's authority is granted in Article VI of the current Illinois Constitution, which provides for seven justices elected from the five appellate judicial districts of the state: Three justices from the First District and...


Executive Branch officials

  • Tom C. Clark
    Tom C. Clark
    Thomas Campbell Clark was United States Attorney General from 1945 to 1949 and an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States .- Early life and career :...

    (born 1899) - United States Attorney General
    United States Attorney General
    The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...

     (Nominated and Confirmed)
  • Charles H. Fahy
    Charles H. Fahy
    Charles Fahy served as Solicitor General of the United States and later as a United States federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit....

     (born 1892) - Former United States Solicitor General
    United States Solicitor General
    The United States Solicitor General is the person appointed to represent the federal government of the United States before the Supreme Court of the United States. The current Solicitor General, Donald B. Verrilli, Jr. was confirmed by the United States Senate on June 6, 2011 and sworn in on June...

     under Roosevelt
  • Robert P. Patterson
    Robert P. Patterson
    Robert Porter Patterson was the United States Under Secretary of War under President Franklin Roosevelt and the United States Secretary of War under President Harry S. Truman from September 27, 1945 to July 18, 1947....

     (born 1891) - United States Secretary of War
    United States Secretary of War
    The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...

  • Lewis B. Schwellenbach
    Lewis B. Schwellenbach
    Lewis Baxter Schwellenbach , was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. He was born in Superior, Wisconsin.-Early life:When Schwellenbach was eight years old, his family moved to Spokane, Washington...

     (born 1894) - United States Secretary of Labor
    United States Secretary of Labor
    The United States Secretary of Labor is the head of the Department of Labor who exercises control over the department and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all other issues involving any form of business-person controversies....

  • Fred M. Vinson
    Fred M. Vinson
    Frederick Moore Vinson served the United States in all three branches of government and was the most prominent member of the Vinson political family. In the legislative branch, he was an elected member of the United States House of Representatives from Louisa, Kentucky, for twelve years...

    (born 1890) - United States Secretary of the Treasury
    United States Secretary of the Treasury
    The Secretary of the Treasury of the United States is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, which is concerned with financial and monetary matters, and, until 2003, also with some issues of national security and defense. This position in the Federal Government of the United...

     (Nominated and Confirmed)

United States Senators

  • Harold H. Burton
    Harold Hitz Burton
    Harold Hitz Burton was an American politician and lawyer.He served as the 45th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, as a U.S. Senator from Ohio, and as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. He was known as a dispassionate jurist who prized equal justice under the law.-Biography:He...

    (born 1888) - Senator from Ohio (Nominated and Confirmed)
  • J. Howard McGrath
    J. Howard McGrath
    James Howard McGrath was an American politician and attorney from the U.S. state of Rhode Island.McGrath, a Democrat, served as U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island before becoming Governor, U.S. Solicitor General, U.S...

     (born 1903) - Senator from Rhode Island

Other backgrounds

  • Joseph B. Keenan (born 1888) - Chief Prosecutor, Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal
    International Military Tribunal for the Far East
    The International Military Tribunal for the Far East , also known as the Tokyo Trials, the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal, or simply the Tribunal, was convened on April 29, 1946, to try the leaders of the Empire of Japan for three types of crimes: "Class A" crimes were reserved for those who...

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