Frank Murphy

Frank Murphy was a prominent American politician, lawyer, and jurist hailing from Michigan. Born on April thirteenth, nineteen hundred, he made significant contributions to the legal and political landscape of the United States. A member of the Democratic Party, Murphy's illustrious career included serving as the United States Attorney General, the thirty-fifth governor of Michigan, and the Mayor of Detroit.

Murphy's early life in 'The Thumb' region of Michigan set the stage for his future achievements. He graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in nineteen fourteen and served in the United States Army during World War I. Following his military service, he embarked on a career as a federal attorney and trial judge, eventually becoming the Mayor of Detroit from nineteen thirty to nineteen thirty-three. His tenure as mayor was so impactful that a panel of sixty-nine scholars ranked him among the ten best mayors in American history in nineteen ninety-three.

In nineteen thirty-three, Murphy was appointed as the Governor-General of the Philippine Islands, a role he held until returning to Michigan in nineteen thirty-six. He then successfully defeated the incumbent Republican governor, Frank Fitzgerald, in the nineteen thirty-six Michigan gubernatorial election, serving a single term. However, he lost re-election to Fitzgerald in nineteen thirty-eight and subsequently accepted an appointment as the United States Attorney General in nineteen thirty-nine.

In nineteen forty, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Murphy to the Supreme Court of the United States, filling a vacancy left by the death of Pierce Butler. He served on the Court until his death in nineteen forty-nine, leaving a lasting legacy. Notably, Murphy authored the Court's majority opinion in SEC v. W. J. Howey Co. and penned a dissenting opinion in the landmark case Korematsu v. United States.