Harold Hitz Burton

Harold Hitz Burton
source
Name	Harold Hitz Burton
Caption	Official portrait, c. 1945
Office	Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
Nominator	Harry S. Truman
Termstart	October 1, 1945
Termend	October 13, 1958
Office1	United States Senator from Ohio
Termstart1	January 3, 1941
Termend1	September 30, 1945
Predecessor1	A. Victor Donahey
Successor1	James W. Huffman
Office2	45th Mayor of Cleveland
Termstart2	1936
Termend2	1940
Predecessor2	Harry L. Davis
Successor2	Edward Blythin
Birth date	22 June 1888
Birth place	Jamaica Plain, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Death date	28 October 1964
Death place	Washington, D.C., U.S.
Party	Republican
Education	Bowdoin College (BA), Harvard University (LLB)
Spouse	Selma Florence Smith

Harold Hitz Burton was an American politician and jurist who served as a United States Senator from Ohio and later as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Appointed to the Supreme Court by President Harry S. Truman in 1945, he served during a period of significant legal transition following World War II. His judicial career was noted for a pragmatic, centrist approach, and he played a key role in the unanimous ''Brown v. Board of Education'' decision. Before the bench, he had a distinguished career in Cleveland politics, serving as the city's mayor.

Early life and education

Harold Hitz Burton was born in Jamaica Plain, a neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts. His father, Alfred E. Burton, was a dean at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and his mother, Gertrude Hitz, came from a prominent Swiss family. He attended Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa and was a member of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He then pursued legal studies at Harvard Law School, earning his Bachelor of Laws degree in 1912. During his time at Harvard University, he was a classmate of future Secretary of State Dean Acheson.

Early legal and political career

After law school, Burton moved to Cleveland, Ohio, and began practicing law with the firm of Gustin, McCreary, Slabaugh & Seiple. His legal career was interrupted by service in World War I, where he served as a captain in the United States Army's 332nd Infantry Regiment. Following the war, he returned to his legal practice and entered public service, teaching at Western Reserve University Law School. He was elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 1928, serving one term. His political ascent continued with his election to the Cleveland City Council, and he later served as the city's law director before being elected Mayor of Cleveland in 1935.

U.S. Senator from Ohio

Elected as a Republican to the United States Senate in 1940, Burton served during the critical years of World War II. He sat on several important committees, including the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Truman Committee, officially the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program. He gained a reputation as a diligent and honest investigator of war contract fraud and inefficiency. His work on the Truman Committee brought him into close contact with then-Senator Harry S. Truman, forging a bipartisan relationship that would later prove significant.

Supreme Court service

In September 1945, President Harry S. Truman nominated Burton to the Supreme Court of the United States, filling the vacancy left by the retirement of Justice Owen Roberts. His confirmation by the United States Senate was swift and unanimous. On the Warren Court, Burton was generally considered a moderate conservative, often aligning with Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson and Justice Sherman Minton. He is best remembered for his role in securing unanimity in the landmark 1954 case Brown v. Board of Education, working behind the scenes to persuade hesitant justices. He also wrote the majority opinion in Tot v. United States and dissented in the ''Youngstown'' case concerning President Truman's seizure of steel mills.

Later life and death

Suffering from Parkinson's disease, Burton retired from the Supreme Court on October 13, 1958. He was succeeded by Justice Potter Stewart, another Ohioan. In retirement, he served as a visiting judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Harold Hitz Burton died in Washington, D.C. in 1964 and was interred at Highland Park Cemetery in Cleveland. His papers are held at the Library of Congress and the Supreme Court's archival collection.

Category:1888 births Category:1964 deaths Category:Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States Category:United States Senators from Ohio Category:Mayors of Cleveland