Famous Supremes Trivia Quiz

Answer:

John Marshall was the 4th Chief Justice, serving from 1801 to 1835. During his tenure, the Court established many principles of the new U.S. government, including the landmark 1803 case of Marbury v. Madison that established that courts could strike down federal and state laws that were deemed unconstitutional.

Earl Warren was Chief Justice from 1953-1969 and decided landmark cases concerning voting and civil rights. He may be better known as head of the Warren Commission that investigated the assassination of President Kennedy, a post that Warren held while continuing his duties as Chief Justice.

Thurgood Marshall was the first African American Justice, serving from 1967-1991. Before his appointment to the bench, Marshall was a successful civil rights attorney. He appeared before the Supreme Court in 1954 arguing and winning the famous case Brown v. Board of Education that prohibited racial segregation in public schools.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was appointed an Associate Justice in 1993 and served until her death in 2020. Popularly known as "RBG", she was a strong advocate for equal rights for women and other minority groups. RBG's strong actions to obtain and secure personal freedoms and her iconic decorative collars she wore with her judicial robes made her a cultural icon.

Sandra Day O'Connor served as an Associate Justice, from 1981-2006, and was the first woman on the Court, and only woman until RBG joined in 1993. A moderate conservative, O'Connor voted more with the liberal wing of the Court after staunch conservatives Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas joined the court.

William H. Taft was the 27th President of the U.S. from 1909-1913. After his defeat in the Presidential election of 1912, he served as a law professor at Yale University from 1913 to 1921. In 1920, newly-elected President Harding offered Taft a seat on the Court, but Taft felt he could only serve as Chief Justice, since he had appointed some of the other sitting Justices and had opposed the appointment of others then sitting on the Court. Harding acquiesced and Taft was confirmed as Chief Justice, serving from 1921-1930.

Clarence Thomas was nominated by President G.H.W. Bush to replace the retiring Thurgood Marshall in 1991. Thomas had a particularly contentious confirmation process in the U.S. Senate with former colleagues, most notably Anita Hill, accusing Thomas of sexual misconduct. After an unusually long 99-day process, Thomas was confirmed by a vote of 52-48, the narrowest margin for approval in more than 100 years.

Roger Taney served as the 5th Chief Justice from 1836 until his death in 1864. Taney was the first Catholic to serve on the Court. Taney is infamous for the decision in the 1857 case of Dred Scott v. Sandford, where he wrote that slaves could not have rights as American citizens and that Congress could not outlaw slavery in the states.

Sonia Sotomayor was the first of two Supreme Court appointments made by President Obama. She was confirmed in 2009 and became the first Hispanic member of the Court.

Potter Stewart served as Associate Justice from 1958-1981. Although he served in the heady times of civil rights and voting reforms, Stewart may be more popularly known for his opinion in a 1964 case about a pornographic movie. Justice Stewart wrote that "hard core pornography" was hard to define, but "I know it when I see it, and the motion picture involved in this case is not that".