POTTER STEWART was born in Jackson, Michigan, on January 23, 1915. He was graduated from Yale College in 1937. After one year of postgraduate study at Cambridge University, England, he enrolled in Yale Law School. Following graduation in 1941, Stewart worked in a New York law firm. Stewart’s legal career had just begun when the United States entered World War II. He served as an officer in the United States Navy and occasionally performed legal services in courts-martial. After the War he practiced law in New York but soon returned to Cincinnati and joined a law firm there. Stewart practiced law in Cincinnati until 1954. He was twice elected to the City Counsel and served as Vice Mayor from 1952 to 1953. President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Stewart to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in 1954, where he served for four years. On October 14, 1958, President Eisenhower gave Stewart a recess appointment to the Supreme Court of the United States. On January 17, 1959, Stewart was formally nominated to the Court, and the Senate confirmed the appointment on May 5, 1959. Stewart retired from the Supreme Court on July 3, 1981, after twenty-three years of service. He died on December 7, 1985, at the age of seventy.
Members support the Society’s efforts to increase awareness of the Court’s contributions to our nation’s constitutional heritage. Benefits include: Court history publications, special event invitations, discounts.
SCHS sponsored events cover Supreme Court history themes, from early landmark figures and cases such as McCullough, to civics, labor, women’s rights, immigration, Constitutional controversies.
Documentaries covering landmark points on the timeline of Supreme Court history, including: FDR’s court packing controversy, the contested 1876 election + John Marshall & Marbury v. Madison.
Visit the Supreme Court Historical Society’s CIVICS website to learn about the history and cases of the Supreme Court of the United States and gain insights into key figures associated with the Court.
A timeline of Supreme Court history, including the Marshall and Warren Courts + landmark cases: West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, and significant rulings in women’s rights court cases.