VII. The Warren Court
1953–1969
The constitutional revolution: Brown, Miranda, one person one vote — the most transformative era in the Court's modern history.
Earl Warren
Presided over the most transformative era in the Court's modern history — Brown, Miranda, Reynolds v. Sims, Loving. Eisenhower called the appointment "the biggest damn-fool mistake I ever made."
John Marshall Harlan II
Grandson of the first Justice Harlan and the intellectual counterweight to the Warren Court's activism. His careful, process-oriented jurisprudence earned respect across the ideological spectrum.
William J. Brennan Jr.
The Warren Court's master strategist and coalition builder — his ability to craft majorities made him arguably the most influential associate justice of the 20th century.
Charles E. Whittaker
Suffered a nervous breakdown from the stress of the Court's contentious decisions — the first justice of the modern era to resign for health reasons.
Potter Stewart
Known for his immortal definition of obscenity — "I know it when I see it" — Stewart was a moderate Ohioan who resisted both liberal and conservative extremes.
Byron R. White
The only NFL player to serve on the Supreme Court — "Whizzer" White led the league in rushing before Yale Law. A centrist Democrat who defied ideological categorization for 31 years.
Arthur J. Goldberg
Resigned at LBJ's urging to become UN Ambassador — a decision he later called the greatest mistake of his life.
Abe Fortas
LBJ's closest judicial confidant. Resigned under an ethics cloud — the only justice in the 20th century forced from the Court under threat of impeachment.
Thurgood Marshall
The first African American justice — who had already changed America as the NAACP attorney who argued and won Brown v. Board of Education.