Did You Know...

Following in his Grandfather’s Footsteps

Born in 1899, the second John Marshall Harlan was named after his grandfather who was a sitting Justice on the Supreme Court. Like his father, John Maynard Harlan, he made the law his career. In 1954, President Dwight D. Eisenhower nominated Harlan to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and one year later, to the Supreme Court of the United States, 78 years after his grandfather’s Supreme Court appointment. Confirmed in a 71–11 vote, Justice Harlan took his oaths of office and joined the Court in March 1955. On the day of his Investiture, Justice Harlan sported his grandfather’s gold pocket watch set, which he wore throughout his 16 years on the Bench.