CHIEF JUSTICE FRED M. VINSON

University of Kentucky Libraries officially accepted the collection of Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson at a dedication ceremony in 1977.  Former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Tom C. Clark, featured speaker at the ceremony, described Vinson as a man of deeds whose life and career could be summarized by noting his "dedication, common sense, and perseverance. He was led on by a continuous crusade to find the truth which he believed to be the only absolute."

Fred M. Vinson
National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; gift of Jean Baker Henrich

Born near Louisa, Kentucky in 1890, Vinson graduated from Centre College in 1911. President Harry Truman appointed him Chief Justice in 1946.  Truman's choice of Vinson came as no big surprise but some still questioned the qualifications of the former city attorney, commonwealth's attorney, Member of Congress, Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals, Secretary of the Treasury, and close friend of President Truman.

At the time of his nomination, the nation's highest court was being harshly criticized for the feuding among the justices and the perception of politics within the court.  In the midst of what many believed to be one of the low points in the court's history The New York Times editorialized:

         "The Supreme Court, like any human institution, has its bad moments.  It has
         lately had a good many such.  It does not stand as high in popular respect as it
         did.  Under Chief Justice Vinson it should have a chance to climb back on
         the high bench--the loftiest and most responsible judicial bench in the
         world--and resume its task of interpreting the Constitution.  Liberals and
         conservatives on the Court there will still be, but we may hope that the clash
         of their philosophies will now be dignified and fruitful.  Mr. Vinson has his     
         opportunity."

Vinson Court

The Supreme Court members at the beginning of the Brown case. Front row, left to right: Felix Frankfurter, Hugo Black, Fred Vinson, Stanley Reed, and William O. Douglas. Back row: Tom Clark, Robert Jackson, Harold Burton, and Sherman Minton. 

(Courtesy of Supreme Court of the United States) 

Vinson was unable to end all of the bickering on the court.  Moreover, his death in 1953 makes it impossible to know if Vinson could have led the court through the Brown decision in 1954,  At least one biographer argues that the unanimous decisions of the Vinson Court regarding race made the Brown decision possible.

The Fred Vinson Collection is comprised of over 400 boxes of correspondence and legal papers and over 200 photographs.  Twenty-four oral history interviews regarding Vinson's life and career are also available in the Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History.

For further information see:

James E. St. Clair and Linda C Gugin, Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson of Kentucky: A Political Biography

Kentucky Encyclopedia