ABSTRACT
As mayor of Cleveland, US senator, and an associate justice of the US Supreme Court, Harold H. Burton made a number of important contributions in the area of civil rights and liberties. He was born in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, where his father was a civil engineering professor and dean of the faculty at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In Cleveland, Burton set his sights on a career in politics. He began working with his wife's uncle, not only in Cleveland but also in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Boise, Idaho, where he became a successful attorney for power companies. In 1945, President Harry S Truman appointed Burton to the US Supreme Court. Truman had served with Burton on the Senate Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense and remembered his former colleague when it was suggested that he nominate a Republican. Burton's moderate conservatism made him an ideal choice, and the Senate easily confirmed him.
