HARLAN, JOHN MARSHALL
John Marshall Harlan served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1877 to 1911. Harlan, a native of Kentucky, is best
remembered for his dissenting opinions in
cases that upheld restrictions on the CIVIL
RIGHTS of African Americans, most notably in
PLESSY V. FERGUSON, 163 U.S. 537, 16 S. Ct.
1138, 41 L. Ed. 256 (1896). Harlan’s dissents
served to enlarge his judicial reputation as
attitudes and laws changed concerning state-
mandated SEGREGATION.
Harlan was born in Boyle County, Kentucky,
on June 1, 1833. The son of a prominent lawyer
and politician, Harlan graduated from Centre
College and then studied law at Transylvania
University, both located in Kentucky. He was
admitted to the Kentucky bar in 1853. As a
young man, Harlan sought his own political
career. He was elected a county judge in 1858,
but relocated to Louisville in 1861 to establish a
successful law practice.
With the beginning of the Civil War in 1861,
Harlan joined the Union army as a lieutenant
colonel and commanded a company of infantry
volunteers. Upon the death of his father, he
resigned his commission and returned to his law
practice in Louisville. There, he became an
active member of the REPUBLICAN PARTY.He
made two unsuccessful efforts at getting himself
elected governor of Kentucky, but proved more
successful at helping others, securing the presi-
dential nomination of RUTHERFORD B. HAYES at
the 1876 Republican National Convention.
Hayes took office in 1877, after a difficult
election. One of his first acts was to appoint
Harlan to the U.S. Supreme Court. Harlan, at
age forty-four, joined a Court that, for the
length of his tenure, was economically conserva-
tive and philosophically opposed to the enlarge-
ment of federal power. In addition, the Court
deferred to the policies of southern states on
racial segregation.
During his long tenure on the bench,Harlan
gained prominence as a frequent dissenter.With
a temperament that was better suited to leading
than following, Harlan did not have the ability
to negotiate compromise. Instead, he relied on
188 HARLAN, JOHN MARSHALL
WEST’S ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AMERICAN LAW, 2nd Edition
¡ ¡
¡ ¡ John Marshall Harlan 1833–1911
1825 1825 1875 1875 1900 1900 1925 1925 1850 1850
?
1833 Born, Boyle
County, Ky.
?
1853 Admitted
to Ky. bar
?
1858
Elected to
county
judgeship
?
1861 Relocated to Louisville,
Ky.; joined Union Army
1861–65
U.S. Civil War
?
1876 Helped
Rutherford B.
Hayes secure
Republican
presidential
nomination
1883 Wrote
dissenting
opinion in
Civil
Rights
cases
?
1877–1911 Served as associate
justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
?
1895 Wrote
dissenting
opinion in
Pollock v.
Farmers’ Loan
& Trust Co.
?
1896 Wrote
dissenting
opinion in
Plessy v.
Ferguson
?
1911 Died,
