SHERMAN MINTON
Sherman Minton was born October 20, 1890 in Indiana, son of John Evan Minton and
Emma (Livers) Minton. He was a United States Senator from 1934 to 1940. He was also an
administrative assistant to President Franklin Roosevelt and an associate Justice of
the
Supreme Court.
A Democrat, Minton was elected to the United States Senate in 1934. While a senator,
he was a
staunch supporter of Roosevelt's New Deal legislation, including the president's plan
to "pack" the
Supreme Court in order to obtain more favorable decisions. After being defeated for
reelection in
1940, Minton became an administrative assistant to the president before being
appointed to the
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in 1941.
President Harry Truman appointed Minton to serve on the Supreme Court in 1949. His
seven years
on the court occurred during the height of the Cold War as well as the early stages of
the push to end
racial discrimination. Minton consistently supported government programs enacted in
the name of
national security, which limited civil liberties and individual rights. He was,
however, a staunch
supporter of equal rights and proclaimed that the Brown v. Board of Education ruling
in 1954,
ending segregation in public schools, was the most important decision during his
tenure on the court.
Minton retired from the court in 1956. He died on April 9, 1965, in New Albany, Ind.