Justice Black autographs a Supreme Court chambers card without dating it. The photograph of the Court en banc tells us that it was taken after Justice Black became the longest serving associate Justice on the court.

Justice Hugo Black #76 (1886-1971) black was from Alabama and served as a State Senator for a decade. It could be said Black was predictable in how he addressed every constitutional question considered by him. He believed the framers saw with clarity the words written into the Constitution so he interpreted that document literally.

Hugo Black was Franklin Roosevelts first selection to go to the Supreme Court. A State Senator and he had been so for 10 years. He supported Roosevelts “New Dear” It wasn’t an easy selection but the fight realized a successful result. Out of the skirmish a strict constructionist was born and, in that manner, Black earned the respect of all that second guessed him and predicted his performance.

Hugo was the first appointment for Franklin Delano Roosevelt so he picked a difficult passage. However, it turned out not to be all that difficult as Black passed muster 63/16. The block on Black was expected to come from the fact back had been a member of the Klan, but since he was from the south everyone knew that to be elected to any office it had to have a Klan Member or no election’ Black himself candidly acknowledged without Klan membership he would never have become a Senator. Alabama is the deep south..