John Johnston Parker papers

Collection

Identifier: MS0251

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection is comprised largely of speeches given by Judge Parker. In addition to drafts of speeches, there are copies of lectures given to law students, some book reviews and correspondence, and copies of articles published in law journals. This collection does not represent his complete judicial or personal files.

Dates

1928 - 1957

Creator

Parker, John Johnston (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Some material may be copyrighted or restricted. It is the patron's obligation to determine and satisfy copyright or other case restrictions when publishing or otherwise distributing materials found in the collections.

Biographical / Historical

John Johnston Parker was born in Monroe, N.C. on November 20, 1885 to John Daniel Parker, an independent grocer, and Frances Ann Johnston. Through his mother's family, Judge Parker descended from a line of early North Carolina governors and Associate Justice James Iredell of the U.S. Supreme Court (1790-99). Parker received an A.B. degree in 1907 and the L. L. B. in 1908 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He worked as a lawyer in Monroe until 1922 when he moved to Charlotte. There he headed the firm of Parker, Stewart, McRae, and Bobbitt. President Coolidge gave Parker a recess appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit on October 3, 1925 and a lifetime appointment on December 14, 1925. President Hoover appointed Judge Parker to the U.S. Supreme Court on March 21, 1930, but the U.S. Senate blocked his confirmation. Following World War II, President Truman appointed Parker an alternate member for the United States for the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg, Germany (1945-46). He presided as Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals Fourth Circuit until his death on March 17, 1958. Parker married Maria Burgwin Maffitt on November 23, 1910 and they had three children.

Extent

1 Linear Feet (circa 1,800 items)

Language

English

Additional Description

Overview

Speeches and a few offprints of articles by a judge of the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and alternate judge at the Nuremberg Trial. This collection does not contain any material related to Parker's rejection as an U.S. Supreme Court nominee in 1930.

[NOTE: the majority of Judge Parker's papers are on file at the Southern Historical Collection, Manuscripts Department, UNC at Chapel Hill.]

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into three series with several files that do not belong to any series. The three series are: Published Articles (1943-1954), Newspapers and Speeches (1928-1956).

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift of Francis I. Parker, 1998.

Related Materials

Harry Golden Papers (UNC Charlotte Manuscript 20). John Johnston Parker Papers, UNC-Chapel Hill (SHC #3464). John Johnston Parker, Records of Nuremberg Trial of Major German War Criminals, UNC Chapel Hill (SHC #3466).

Separated Materials

"Lincoln in Springfield: a guide to the places in Springfield which were associated with the life of Abraham Lincoln" / Paul M. Angle, sketches by Virginia Stuart Brown. Lincoln Centennial Association, 1927 (RARE E457.35 .A64 1927).