U.S. Chief Justices Trivia Quiz

Answer: John Roberts

Roberts entered Harvard University as a Sophomore, and worked at a steel mill to help pay for his schooling. He became Principal Deputy Solicitor General in 1989, where he argued 39 cases before the Supreme Court, prevailing in 25. In July 2005 President Bush nominated Roberts to fill the impending vacancy that was to be created by the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, but Bush changed the nomination to Chief Justice following the death of Rehnquist in August.

Answer: Frederick M. Vinson

Remember, we are looking for Chief Justices. Bill Clinton appointed Stephen Breyer in 1994, but not as Chief Justice. While he was serving in the House of Representatives, Vinson made friends with a Senator from Missouri named Harry Truman. In 1946 President Truman nominated him to fill the vacant Chief Justice position in a deeply divided Supreme Court. (Some Justices would not even speak to one another.) His final public appearance came when he read the decision of the court not to review the conviction and death sentence of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg.

Answer: Melville Fuller

Plessy v. Ferguson upheld a Louisiana law that required separate train cars for blacks and whites. Mark Twain was once mistaken for Fuller, and the person asked for the Chief Justice's autograph. It is said that Twain wrote: It is delicious to be full, but it is heavenly to be Fuller. I am cordially yours, Melville W. Fuller.

Answer: John Jay

John Jay had only served for 6 years when he was elected Governor of New York State. At the end of his term as Governor, President Adams nominated him to once again serve on the Supreme Court. But even though he was quickly confirmed by the Senate, he declined due to health reasons

Answer: Roger Taney

Taney first gained notoriety in 1833, when President Jackson appointed him Secretary of the Treasury and had him withdraw the federal government's deposits from the Bank of the United States. The Senate responded by rejecting his nomination, the first time they had ever rejected a cabinet nomination. By 1836 the makeup of the Senate had changed enough to allow Taney to be appointed as the 5th Chief Justice.

In his court's most famous, or actually infamous, decision, Taney wrote the decision that fundamentally changed the balance of legal power to the Slaveholders.

He wrote that no Negroes could ever become citizens of the United States, because they were, "beings of an inferior order," and were not granted rights in the Constitution. He died during the final months of the Civil War, on the same day (October 12th) that his home state of Maryland abolished slavery.

Answer: John Rutledge and Oliver Ellsworth

John Rutledge was so outspoken against Jay's Treaty with England, that the Senate rejected his appointment. (It is also said that he had some bouts with mental illness.) Oliver Ellsworth served on the Committee of Five that prepared the first draft of the Constitution, and looked to be a solid choice for Chief Justice after the Senate refused to confirm Rutledge. Ellsworth served for 21 months, and then unexpectedly retired from public life and returned to Connecticut.

Answer: Salmon Chase

Bill Clinton was not the first President to be impeached. That honor lies with Andrew Johnson in 1868. Chase, who was appointed Chief Justice by Lincoln in 1864, made an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic Party nomination for president in 1872. He died in 1873, so he wouldn't have been President long.

Answer: Edward Douglas White

White served as a Lieutenant in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, and was appointed Associate Supreme Court Justice in 1894. In 1910, following the death of Chief Justice Fuller, President Taft, a Republican, appointed White, a Democrat, to be Chief Justice.

Some people feel that Taft chose White because he hoped that White, who was 65 at the time, would die soon, opening the opportunity for Taft to hold the office...

Answer: William Howard Taft

...Which is exactly what happened. Taft was hand-picked by Teddy Roosevelt to be his successor as President in 1908. He only served one term, being defeated by Woodrow Wilson in 1912. President Warren G. Harding nominated Taft to be Chief Justice, the only office in the Government that he ever really aspired to, in 1921.

When he died in 1930 he became the first President to be buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Answer: John Marshall

John Marshall greatly shaped the development of the American political system in his 34 years as Chief Justice. Arguably his most important contribution was the idea that federal law trumped state law. Marbury v. Madison - established Judicial Review. McCulloch v. Maryland - forbids states from taxing federal institutions. Cohens v. Virginia - allows the federal judiciary to hear appeals of decisions of state courts.

Answer: Earl Warren

Warren was on the ticket with Thomas Dewey as Vice-President in the election of 1948, but they were defeated by Truman and Barkley. President Eisenhower appointed Warren to the Chief Justice position in 1953. When Warren turned out to be more liberal than expected, Eisenhower commented that nominating Warren "was the biggest damned fool mistake I've ever made in my life". Against his better judgment, Warren agreed to head the commission investigating the assassination of JFK in 1963.

Answer: Morrison Waite

The Enforcement Act, which made it illegal to interfere with the constitutional rights of another, was aimed at stopping the Ku Klux Klan's terror in the South. Waite argued that is was the responsibility of the States to protect the rights of the people, not the federal government.

The other justices on the court called Waite "an experiment no President has a right to make with our court".

Answer: Warren Earl Burger

US News and World Report printed a speech by Burger that greatly impressed President Nixon. Burger's speeches at this time were very critical of then Chief Justice Earl Warren, who in turn swore in Burger as Chief Justice in 1969. The most controversial ruling during his term was Roe v. Wade, which ruled that laws prohibiting abortion were unconstitutional.

He also ruled against Nixon in his bid to keep memos and tapes relating to the Watergate scandal private.

Answer: Charles Hughes and Harlan Stone

Hughes was an Associate Justice before he ran against Wilson in 1916. As Chief Justice he led the fight against FDR's court packing scheme. Interestingly, while Hughes was serving as Chief Justice, his son had been appointed Solicitor General, and argued cases before his father. Harlan Stone was appointed Associate Justice by President Coolidge, who he had served as Attorney General under as well.

In 1941 he was elevated to Chief Justice by FDR.

Answer: William Rehnquist

His name was originally William Doanld Rehnquist, but he changed his middle name to Hubbs, his grandmother's maiden name, during high school. Rehnquist was mentioned for years as a possibility for the source known as Deep Throat, but Bob Woodward's admission in 2005 that W. Mark Felt was Deep Throat ended these speculations.

In 1995 he added four gold stripes to his robe after watching a performance of Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe, and being inspired by the costume of the Lord Chancellor. In 2004 it was revealed that Rehquist was suffering from thyroid cancer, which led to his death in 2005.