Harold H. Burton

Harold H. Burton
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States
In office
October 1, 1945 – October 13, 1958
Nominated byHarry Truman
Preceded byOwen Roberts
Succeeded byPotter Stewart
Secretary of the Senate Republican Conference
In office
February 25, 1944 – September 30, 1945
LeaderWallace White
Preceded byWallace White
Succeeded byChandler Gurney
United States Senator
from Ohio
In office
January 3, 1941 – September 30, 1945
Preceded byVic Donahey
Succeeded byJames Huffman
45th Mayor of Cleveland
In office
1936–1940
Preceded byHarry Davis
Succeeded byEdward Blythin
Personal details
Born(1888-06-22)June 22, 1888
Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedOctober 28, 1964(1964-10-28) (aged 76)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse
Selma Smith
(m. 1912)
Children4
EducationBowdoin College (AB)
Harvard University (LLB)
Signature

Harold Hitz Burton (June 22, 1888 – October 28, 1964) was an American politician and lawyer. He served as the 45th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio, as a U.S. Senator from Ohio, and as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States.

Born in Boston, Burton practiced law in Cleveland after graduating from Harvard Law School. After serving in the United States Army during World War I, Burton became active in Republican Party politics and won election to the Ohio House of Representatives. After serving as the mayor of Cleveland, Burton won election to the United States Senate in 1940. After the retirement of Associate Justice Owen J. Roberts, President Harry S. Truman successfully nominated Burton to the Supreme Court. Burton served on the Court until 1958, when he was succeeded by Potter Stewart.

Burton was known as a dispassionate, pragmatic, somewhat plodding jurist who preferred to rule on technical and procedural rather than constitutional grounds. He was also seen as an affable justice who helped ease tension on the court during an extremely acrimonious time. He wrote the majority opinion in Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee Committee v. McGrath (1951) and Lorain Journal Co. v. United States (1951). He also helped shape the Court's unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education (1954).