John Johnston Parker Papers Inventory (#3464)

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Manuscripts Department, Library of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Collection Information
block Descriptive Summary Including Abstract
block Administrative Information
block Online Catalog Terms
block Biographical Note
block Collection Overview
block Organization of Collection
plus Series Descriptions
block Related Collections
Contact Information:
Manuscripts Department
CB#3926, Wilson Library
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC 27514-8890
Phone: 919/962-1345
Fax: 919/962-3594
Email: mss@email.unc.edu
URL: http://www.lib.unc.edu/mss/
Processed by
SHC Staff
Date Completed
October 2000
Encoded by
John Foster
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Descriptive Summary Including Abstract

Title
John Johnston Parker Papers (#3464) 1920-1956
Creator
Parker, John Johnston, 1885-1958.
Extent
About 30,000 items (38.0 linear feet)
Repository
Southern Historical Collection
Abstract
John Johnston Parker (1885-1958) of Charlotte, N.C., was a judge in the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit from 1925 to 1958. Papers include correspondence and other materials relating to legal practice; to jurisprudence in general, including judicial organization and international law; to the North Carolina and national Republican parties in which Parker was influential; to Parker's unconfirmed appointment to the United States Supreme Court in 1930 and other occasions on which he was considered for the Supreme Court; to the University of North Carolina, of which he was long an active trustee; and to many other personal, political, and civic matters and organizations. There are also papers relating to official duties, including informal memoranda of cases and decisions, among them labor and racial integration cases, and reports of annual conferences of circuit judges. Other papers relate to the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials, 1945-1946, at which he was an alternate judge on the International Military Tribunal from the United States, and to study committees of the American Bar Association.
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Administrative Information

Access
No restrictions.
Usage Restrictions
Copyright is retained by the authors of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Provenance
Received from Francis I. Parker of Charlotte, N.C., and Mrs. Rufus M. Ward (Sara Parker) of Spartanburg, S.C., in February 1960. Additional materials received from Francis I. Parker in November 1998 (Acc. 98234).
Processing Note
This collection was originally arranged and described around 1962. This finding aid reflects arrangement and description produced during that period.
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Online Catalog Terms

American Bar Association--History--20th century.
Judges--United States--History--20th century.
Judges--Selection and appointment--United States.
Lawyers--North Carolina--History--20th century.
Lawyers--United States--Political activity.
Nuremberg Trial of Major German War Criminals, Nuremberg, Germany, 1945-1946.
Parker, John Johnston, 1885-1958.
Practice of law--North Carolina--History--20th century.
Republican Party (N.C.)--History--20th century.
Republican Party (United States : 1858- )--History--20th century
United States. Circuit Court (4th Circuit)--Officials and employees.
United States. Supreme Court--Officials and employees--Selection and appointment.
United States--Politics and government--1901-1953.
University of North Carolina (1793-1962)--History--20th century.
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Biographical Note

John J. Parker (1885-1958) was born in Monroe, N.C., the son of John Daniel and Frances Johnston Parker. He received the Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of North Carolina in 1907 and a Law Degree in 1908. While at the University, Parker was president of his class in his freshman and senior years, of the Student Council, of the Athletic Association, and of the Phi Beta Kappa Society. In addition, he won a number of prizes and medals.

After leaving the University, Parker practiced law in Greensboro, N.C., in 1908-1909, and then, from 1910 until 1922, he practiced law in his home town of Monroe. Parker married Maria Burgwin Maffitt of Wilmington, N.C, in 1910. In 1922, Parker moved to Charlotte and became head of the firm of Parker, Stewart, McRae, and Bobbitt. He was nominated for a number of public offices in the state by the Republican Party and ran against Cameron Morrison for governor in 1920. In 1924, he was elected Republican National committeeman from North Carolina and member of the Republican National Convention which nominated Calvin Coolidge. After serving as special assistant to the attorney general of the United States in 1923, Parker was appointed, in 1925, as one of the United States Circuit Court judges of the Fourth Circuit. He served in this capacity until his death in 1958, at which time he was senior appellate judge of the United States.

In 1930, Parker was nominated by President Herbert Hoover to the United States Supreme Court, but was defeated by one vote in the Senate as a result of political opposition. In 1945-1946, he served as an alternate judge on the International Allied Military Tribunal at Nuremberg, Germany.

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Collection Overview

Papers of John Johnston Parker, North Carolina lawyer and judge, include correspondence and other materials relating to legal practice; to jurisprudence in general, including judicial organization and international law; to the North Carolina Republican Party and national Republican Party in which Parker was influential; to Parker's unconfirmed appointment to the United States Supreme Court in 1930 and other occasions on which he was considered for the Supreme Court; to the University of North Carolina, of which he was long an active trustee; and to many other personal, political, and civic matters and organizations. There are also papers relating to official duties, including informal memoranda of cases and decisions, among them labor and racial integration cases, and reports of annual conferences of circuit judges. Other papers relate to the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials, 1945-1946, at which he was an alternate judge on the International Military Tribunal from the United States, and to study committees of the American Bar Association.

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Organization of Collection

1. Personal Papers
2. Speeches
3. Official Papers
4. Legal Memoranda
5. Judicial Conferences
6. Three Judge Court Cases
7. American Bar Association Materials
8. War Crimes Trials
9. Judicial Conference of the United States
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Series Descriptions

1. Personal Papers, 1920-1958.

About 9,000 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
For the period 1920-1927, there are approximately 1,750 items. There are almost no papers for 1928-1929. The papers representing the 1920s consist of Parker's correspondence with other North Carolina lawyers, Republican Partyleaders, members of the faculty and administrative staff of the University of North Carolinaabout University affairs; some correspondence on the business of the Episcopal Church in North Carolina; and heavy correspondence in 1924 about the appointment of a federal judge for the Eastern District of North Carolina (the appointment went to Isaac Meekins) and in 1925 following Parker's appointment by President Calvin Coolidge to the North Carolina Circuit Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit.
In addition to the those listed in the chronological analysis that follows, correspondents in the 1920s include Giles Mebane, Walter Clark, William G. Bramham, Gilliam Craig, Harry Woodburn Chase, Iredell Meares, Calvin Coolidge, Marion Butler, Mrs. Lindsay Patterson, Josiah W. Bailey, Herbert F. Seawell, Isaac M. Meekins, E. W. Timberlake, Charles A. Jonas, Claudius Dockery, Johnson J. Hayes, Lily Morehead Mebane, Brownlow Jackson, Horace Williams, Edmund Waddill, Jr., David H. Blair, and Samuel Iredell Parker.
1920-1921: Letters from Giles Mebane, Beaufort, and other North Carolina attorneys concerning Republican Party business and patronage.
1922: Correspondence with other North Carolina lawyers on legal business or on behalf of the Republican Party. Public speaking invitations. Letters from Giles Mebane, Walter Clark (chief justice, North Carolina Supreme Court), and William G. Bramham, Durham, chair of the Republican State Executive Committee.
1923: Legal correspondence. Republican Party business. A few letters from and copies of Parker's letters to Harry W. Chase, president of the University of North Carolina, concerning Parker's activities on behalf of the Law School, the Medical School, and Graham Memorial Fund.
1924: The correspondence of this year is largely concerned with the contest between Herbert F. Seawell of Carthage, N.C., and Isaac M. Meekins for the appointment as federal judge for the Eastern District, N.C., left vacant by the death of Henry Groves Connor. Also a great deal of legal correspondence, Republican Party affairs, pamphlets, and press releases. 18 June and 18 December, Calvin Coolidge.
1925: Considerable correspondence with North Carolina Republican Party leaders and with members of the Republican National Committee. Letters about the newly created North Carolina Middle District federal judgeship from Herbert F. Seawell, Johnson J. Hayes, and others. Two letters, April and May, from Mrs. B. Frank Mebane (Lily Morehead Mebane). Endorsements, May-August, on behalf of Parker for the vacancy on the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals created by the death of Judge Charles A. Woods. In October, there are hundreds of letters and telegrams congratulating Parker on his appointment.
1926: Republican Party correspondence. North Carolina Bar Association business and discussion of the bill then before Congress to raise judicial salaries. Letters from Isaac M. Meekins, Johnson J. Hayes, and Brownlow Jackson, the newly appointed chair of the Republican State Executive Committee. Gertrude Weil on the subject of the League of Women Voters.
1927: Correspondence similar to that of previous years. 9 March, Isaac M. Meekins with proposal to endorse Herbert F. Seawell for the new North Carolina Middle District judgeship. Letters from Thomas J. Harkins, Asheville attorney; Charles A. Jonas, S. A. Ashe, David H. Blair, S. I. Parker, Heriot Clarkson. In June, Parker was awarded an honorary doctor of laws degree from the University of North Carolina.
1928-1929: Five letters of September 1928.
1930: January-February, correspondence with Parker's brother, S. I. Parker, with Charles A. Jonas, Horace Williams, and with trustees and other persons connected with the University of North Carolina on the subject of the resignation of Harry W. Chase as president. Parker was one of the committee of five University trustees named to pick Chase's successor. March-June is represented by about 3,000 items, nearly all related to the great effort made on Parker's behalf to have him appointed to the United States Supreme Court as successor to Justice Sanford, to the appointment finally made by President Hoover, and to the Senate's refusal to confirm the appointment. The papers contain hundreds of endorsements and copies of letters to the president, the attorney general, and others in influential positions in Washington from attorneys, judges, bar associations, and private individuals throughout North Carolina and other states. During the week of 21 March, Parker received the presidential nomination.
Correspondence of 21 March-6 May is concerned with congratulating Parker on his nomination, but many letters of those closest to the situation in Washington reveal their realization of the enormous pressure being exerted upon members of the Senate and Senate Judiciary Committee by the American Federation of Labor and the N.A.A.C.P., and their growing concern that the appointment will not be confirmed. This period includes correspondence with North Carolina Senator Lee S. Overman and David H. Blair of Washington, D.C., both of whom, among others, kept Parker informed of the storm gathering against him. Much data on the nomination and rejection are present in the papers, including copies of the cases Parker had decided which the A.F. of L. based their case against him. The N.A.A.C.P. based its arguments against Parker on remarks which he had allegedly made in a speech when he was campaigning for governor of North Carolina in 1920.
4 April, booklet entitled "Hearing before the Subcommittee of the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate ... on the Confirmation of Hon. John J. Parker to be an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, April 5, 1930"; printed for the use of the Committee on the Judiciary by the United States Government Printing Office.
Endorsements on Parker's behalf continued to pour in during the period the Judiciary Committee was reviewing his record and hearing testimony. After Parker was passed on by the Committee and recommended to the Senate, his nomination was defeated by that body on 7 May by a vote of 41-39. Included is a booklet of newspaper clippings related to the Parker nomination and rejection for the Supreme Court bench and a separate file of letters in a cardboard binder, which are letters between Parker, Thomas W. Davis (attorney of Wilmington, N.C.), and David H. Blair of Washington, concerning their organized efforts within the ranks of the Senate in Washington for Parker's confirmation.
Parker's mail following his rejection by the Senate was heavy for many weeks, and, with a few exceptions, strongly sympathetic. By July of this year, Parker's correspondence took on a more legal and political nature and his defeat is less the topic of letters. During the last months of 1930, Parker corresponded with federal judges Elliot Northcott, W. E. Baker, Ernest F. Cochran, and William C. Coleman. Correspondence with these and many other jurists are appear until Parker's death.
Among the hundreds of correspondents for 1939 are Albert Coates, Iredell Meares, J. E. Shepard, John M. Morehead, and Herbert Hoover.
1931: Papers include the original notes of Horace Williams of the University of North Carolina. on the occasion, 4 May 1931, when John J. Parker was tapped by the Order of the Golden Fleece, an honorary student organization at the University. November, correspondence relating to the Constitutional Commission of the State of North Carolina, of which Parker was appointed a member by Governor O. Max Gardner.
1932: January-March, correspondence putting forth arguments pro and con on Senate bills 937 and 939 (72nd Congress) related to limiting federal judicial jurisdiction. 9 March, Angus W. McLean about the short ballot; 19 March, Harry Flood Byrd about the "short ballot"; 23 May, M. T. Van Hecke, dean of the University of North Carolina Law School, to Parker with attached copy of the report on taxation of the Constitutional Commission of North Carolina. Correspondence and other items for the balance of the year among members of the Constitutional Commission--Burton Craige, Michael Schenck, Charles B. Aycock, George E. Butler.
1933: A broad, general correspondence with other judges and lawyers about national problems, legal principles, federal power, and other issues. Correspondents include Hugh MacRae, Wilmington, about the gold standard and economic principles; John W. Davis, New York, about being offered the post of attorney general of the United States; Archibald Henderson and Frank Porter Graham about University of North Carolina matters, David H. Blair, Horace Williams, Haywood Parker, Asheville attorney, about the interpretation of an Article of the Constitution of the Diocese of North Carolina (Episcopal) and carbons of Parker's replies to same; Giles Mebane, J. E. Shepard, Robert W. Winston.
1934: Correspondence of a legal nature as previously. Also letters about the selection of the administrative deans for the Woman's College of the University of North Carolina and State College at Raleigh. Many letters endorsing the appointment of T. S. Johnson as administrative dean of State College and a few endorsing John W. Harrelson, who received the endorsement of O. Max Gardner and became administrative dean (chancellor) of State College. 17 June, Josephus Daniels on the appointment of the administrative dean for State College, and 19 July on the proposed revised State Constitution. 13 Sept, "Letter to the Editor" and 14 newspaper articles dealing with the revised State Constitution by John J. Parker (copies).
Correspondents include Archibald Henderson, Frank Porter Graham, Horace Williams, Clyde R. Hoey, Clarence Poe, Louis Graves, Leslie Weil, Francis F. Bradshaw.
1937: Correspondence on the proposed amendments to the revised State Constitution, on Franklin Roosevelt's Court Bill then before Congress (severely critical), and concerning the celebration of the sesquicentennial anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of the United States held on 7 September throughout North Carolina.
Correspondents include: 12, 30 January and later, Josiah W. Bailey on the judicial restraint, and copies of Parker's replies; 27 January, George Stephens, Asheville; 26 Februry and later, J. Melville Broughton, Raleigh, and copies of Parker's replies to same; Horace Williams; 9 August, Clyde Hoey, 23 August, Angus D. McLean, David H. Blair; 27 August, Sam J. Ervin. Scattered letters from Burton Craige, Winston-Salem. 8 October, David Clark, University of North Carolina trustee, on behalf of the Mecklenburg Chapter of the North Carolina State College Alumni Association concerning charges against "Doc" R. R. Sermon of the athletic staff of State College, also Clark letter on this subject in 1939.
1938: Correspondence on the subjects of the possibility of Franklin Roosevelt appointing Parker to the United States Supreme Court; the independence of the courts under the existing Supreme Court; House Bill 8892 on the limitations of the powers of the federal judiciary. Letters also include 16 March (mimeo) of Blake R. VanLeer, Dean of Engineering, North Carolina State College, enclosing copy of address "Graduate Work in Engineering and Related Sciences" by William E. Wickenden, president of the Case School of Applied Science. 8 November, Parker to James F. Byrnes concerning his son, John, Jr., who had been seriously injured in an automobile accident on 20 October, and asking Byrnes to speak to Roosevelt on his behalf (carbon copy). 9 November, Byrnes to Parker about advising Roosevelt, other matters of mutual interest. Correspondents include David H. Blair, Josiah W. Bailey, Horace Williams, and James W. Morris, assistant attorney general, concerning decisions affecting the Board of Tax Appeals, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, detailed legal issues.
1939: Correspondence with James W. Morris, as above, and with other federal judges concerning various legal problems. Other correspondents include David Clark, Charlotte, and Frank Porter Graham; 18 December, O. Max Gardner about conferring with Roosevelt; 4 August, Josephus Daniels.
1940: Mainly correspondence with other judges: Alvah M. Lumpkin, United States District Court, Columbia, S.C.; George W. McClintic, United States District Court, Charleston, West Va.; Frank K. Myers, United States District Court, Charleston, S.C.; Isaac M. Meekins, William H. Grimball, Charles Evans Hughes, Lawrence Groner. Letter from judges Myers and Lumpkin letters mainly concern a case then before the South Carolina District Court--Southern Railway vs. South Carolina Public Service Commission. Also, 9 February, George Stephens, Asheville, to Chancellor Robert B. House (cc to Parker) concerning the political activities of Ralph W. McDonald of the University of North Carolina faculty; R. E. Little, Wadesboro, about University of North Carolina trustee business; letters about Horace Williams's final illness and funeral. 18 December, O. Max Gardner about conferring with Roosevelt on behalf of Parker's receiving a Supreme Court appointment.
1941: Correspondence with other judges and attorneys about judicial and some personal matters. Items during the first months of the year about the possibility of Parker receiving an appointment to the United States Supreme Court, in the event of the resignation of Justice McReynolds. 21 January, Franklin D. Roosevelt, thank-you note; Frank Porter Graham, Judge Elliot Northcott, Fred W. Morrison of Washington, D.C., Charles Evans Hughes, Armistead M. Dobie, Frank O. Ray, S. S. Lameth, Jr., of Bedford, Va., and Z. [echariah] Chafee, Jr., professor of law at Harvard University.
1942: Legal correspondence as previously. Letters to Roosevelt (copies to Parker) endorsing Parker for the United States Supreme Court to replace James Byrnes. Also, 4 January, Chief Justice Harlan F. Stone. 16 January and 4 May, Mrs. Ben C. Hough, Jr., Lancaster, S.C., concerning representing a group of South Carolinians petitioning against the removal of the remains of William R. Davie. Correspondence with W. T. Couch, director of the University Press, Chapel Hill, and with R. W. Winston about publishing Winston's book on Horace Williams. September, O. Max Gardner about his role in having Frank. Porter Graham elected president of the University and bringing about consolidation of the Greater University of North Carolina.
1943: Legal correspondence, as previously, and letters related to Parker's work with the Advisory Board on Just Compensation. Letters from Judge Bolitha Laws, beginning this year and continuing until the year of Parker's death. A few of the correspondents were Frank O. Ray, Texas; 13 January, Wiley Rutledge, just appointed by the President to the United States Supreme Court; 27 January, Jacob Billikopf, Philadelphia, Pa., and letters also of subsequent years: Judge W. Calvin Chesnut; 30August, George W. Maxey, chief justice Supreme Court of Pennsylvania about the progress of the war; James E. Shepard, president of the North Carolina College for Negroes; 1 November, Harlan F. Stone.
1944: Correspondence with the War Shipping Administration on just compensation. Legal correspondence about court administration, on the American Bar Association, pre-trial procedure. University of North Carolina trustee business. 25 January, Josiah W. Bailey about Senator Aiken's criticism of the work of the Advisory Board on Just Compensation; judges Bolitha Laws and Learned Hand on legal and personal matters; three letters of Aubrey L. Brooks, Greensboro attorney, about his biography of Judge Clark, and Parker's replies to same. Letters from Clyde R. Hoey, Louis Round Wilson, O. Max Gardner. 13 June, Cameron Morrison about his recent defeat for the Senate; November 15, Judge Waties Waring, Charleston, S.C.
16 November, Ewing Cockrell, United States Federation of Justice, about the Dumbarton Oaks agreement and enclosing an article for publication on this subject; 20 November, John Knox, judge, United States District Court, New York, about the Dumbarton Oaks agreement and the continuance of the Permanent Court of International Justice; address, "Race Relationships," by Parker, quoted in the December 1944 issue of the Church School Herald-Journal.
1945: January-June, correspondence with the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, Washington, D.C., about pre-trial procedures; and with numerous judges and attorneys on the proposed revision of sections of the Judicial Code. 10 January, J. Melville Broughton, Raleigh, about Parker's service on the Expansion Program Committee of Shaw University. 19 February, John W. Clark, suggestions made to the Board of Trustees of the University of North Carolina relative to providing a regular income for the University. 23 February, O. Max Gardner about a recent meeting concerning the Consolidated University and other letters on the same subject. 12 May, Harry Truman, thank-you note; 14 June, Charles W. Tillett, Charlotte, concerning the Veterans Recreation Authority; letters from W. Calvin Chesnut, Louis Round Wilson, Otho B. Ross, Charlotte, about the Horace Williams Philosophical Society, which is discussed in letters scattered throughout the collection from 1940, the year of Williams's death, onward.
June-September, several hundred items related to the possibility of Parker's being appointed to a United States Supreme Court vacancy, including letters to President Truman and others in influential positions, with carbon copies of these letters to Parker. Includes letters of Willis Smith, James E. Shepard, Drew Pearson, Senator H. M. Kilgore. On 18 September, Truman appointed Senator Burton to the Supreme Court, following which Parker received many letters of sympathy on account of his failure to receive the appointment.
September-December, correspondence relative to Parker's appointment as alternate member of the Allied Military Tribunal. 1 October is the date of the first of 199 letters written by Parker to his wife while absent on his assignment with the Military Tribunal at Nuremberg. This particular letter was written just before he sailed. His letters give a personal account of his life and associates, health, expeditions about Europe, and other subjects, but do not include any particular mention of his work with the Tribunal. Other correspondence of this period from judges Elliott Northcott and D. Lawrence Groner, Frank Porter Graham about his chairing the Public Hearings Committee (federal).
1946: Parker's frequent letters to his wife. Scattered legal correspondence. 13 March, O. Max Gardner; 1 April, John Lindsay Morehead about his uncle's planetarium, distress over the domestic situation in the United States; 16 May and 7 June, Quincy Wright, University of Chicago, commenting on the Nuremberg Trials, giving also an account of a conversation with Frank Lloyd Wright; 22 May, Frank Porter Graham, with comments on the situation at University of North Carolina and the nation. Charles W. Tillett, Charlotte, several lengthy letters on subjects of mutual interest, i.e., goings-on in Charlotte, the State Bar Association, legal and political matters. Other correspondents include W. Calvin Chesnut, Jacob Billikopf, Josephus Daniels.
Parker returned to the United States in October, after a year's absence, except for a brief Christmas 1945 visit to his family in Charlotte. December (also June 1947) letters from Judge F. Donald Phillips, Allied Military Tribunal, Germany, to Parker about construing the article of the Charter on Crimes against Humanity. Scattered letters, beginning during the last months of this year and continuing for a decade from Sir Norman Birkett, Buckinghamshire, England, and copies of Parker's letters to him. Birkett had also served as judge at the Nuremberg Trials.
1947: Miscellaneous legal correspondence and items concerning the Nuremberg Trials. Letters from Leland L. Tolman, Administrative Office of the United States Courts, Washington, D.C., on the Special Committee of the American Bar Association on improving the administration of justice. Letters from John W. Harrelson, chancellor of North Carolina State College, about fiscal problems of that branch of the University, student admissions, and crowded facilities. Correspondence with friends made in England. 1 April, Clyde Hoey, brief letter on "appeasing Russia." 24 June, Julius C. Smith, Greesboro attorney, about Willis Smith's causing the application of I. Beverly Lake to the American Bar Association to be rejected. University of North Carolina Trustee business mostly related to the establishment of the University of North Carolina Medical School.
1948: Legal correspondence, as previously, concerning the administration of the United States courts and other legal matters federal in scope. 15 September, Douglas Jamieson, Edinburgh, Scotland, a former judge at the Nuremberg Trials.
1949: Legal correspondence of a federal nature. University of North Carolina trustee business connected with selecting a successor for Frank Porter Graham. Beginning in August, there is correspondence related to Parker's assignment to consult in Germany with regard to a system of courts there, including letters from the Office of the United States High Commissioner for Germany. Also paper entitled "Present Day Bavarian Justice and Civil Liberties," by Leonard J. Gause (carbon copy). Letters from Harry Golden, Charlotte, N.C.
Other individual items include letters of 2 March, Jacob Billikopf, Philadelphia, concerning the recent question of loyalty clearance for Frank Porter Graham and about the fight to keep costs down at University of North Carolina; 1 April, I. G. Greer declining to accept nomination as president of the University of North Carolina; 4 May, Judge Learned Hand; 25 October, Parker to D. L. Ward, Durham, with contribution to James E. Shepard Memorial Foundation; 29 December, Victor Shaw, mayor of Charlotte, N.C., note to Parker enclosing copy of letter to Walter Winchell on race relations and religious relations in Charlotte.
1950: Correspondence from attorneys, federal judges, and the officials of the American Bar Association on judicial administration. University of North Carolina trustee business, and letters in this connection from Kenneth S. Tanner, Spindale, N.C. (a few Tanner letters in other years of the 1940s). 6 September, William D. Carmichael, Jr., controller of University of North Carolina, about admitting African Americans to the University of North Carolina Law School. 2 October, Lord Hugh P. Macmillan, England, to Parker on the problems of democracy, universal suffrage, and government by the people 27 December, George Wharton Pepper, Devon, Pa. Letters also from Anna Forbes Liddell and Louis Round Wilson.
1951: Legal correspondence and University of North Carolina trustee business. A few items relating to the final work of the United States Courts of the Allied High Commission for Germany, including letter of 30 April from William Clark, chief justice, Court of Appeals for the United States Courts of the Allied High Commission on reducing the number of judges on his court. Letters of April-June to Parker concerning his decision in the Clarendon School District (S.C.) case.
17 July, Parker to Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson (carbon copy) about a derogatory article in Look. 1 August, George Wharton Pepper on this same subject. 10 October, Lord Hugh P. Macmillan. A few items relating to the Horace Williams Philosophical Society.
1952: Legal correspondence with individuals and representatives of the American Bar Association concerning establishing international law and an international criminal court, and with the Administrative Office of the United States Courts concerning federal courts administrative proposals and problems. Parker was strongly opposed to H.R. 287, which he viewed as unconstitutional. Correspondence with other judges on this same subject.
Small, red notebook kept by Parker on a trip to South America to visit the ambassador to Brazil Herschel V. Johnson. Also report (mimeographed copy), "Trip to Puerto Rico, South America, and Panama." Letters from judges Bolitha Laws and Learned Hand, as well as from Harry Golden, Frank Porter Graham, and William D. Carmichael.
1953: Correspondence with American Bar Association executives on the establishment of international law, admiralty rules, the Bricker Amendment. Parker strongly opposed this amendment to the Constitution, and was a leader in the fight against it. The papers for this year contain extensive correspondence with various congressmen, judges, and prominent attorneys with regard to the Bricker Amendment and the fight waged against it. Paper, "Statement of Charles W. Tillett, Charlotte, N.C., in Opposition to Proposals to Amend Constitution to Restrict Treaty-Making Power" (18 p.). Copies of letters to President Eisenhower and other government officials endorsing Parker to replace the late Chief Justice Vinson on the United States Supreme Court.
Letters concerning the appointment of Earl Warren to the position of chief justice, United States Supreme Court, and a paper on the significance of the appointment, signed by Robert N. Wilkin. Correspondents include Charles Raper Jonas.
1954: Continued correspondence about the fight against the Bricker Amendment and correspondence following its defeat with some of the principals in the fight. 1 June, Parker to Governor Luther Hodges about action of the board of trustees on University of North Carolina concerning registration of African American undergraduates. Copies of letters to President Eisenhower and others advancing Parker's name for the United States Supreme Court as successor to Justice Robert Jackson.
1, 15 November and 15 December, records of the examinations and audits of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, Judge Don Gilliam presiding; of the United States District Court for Western District of North Carolina, Judge Wilson Warlick presiding; and of the United States District Court for the Western District of South Carolina, Judge Charles C. Wyche presiding.
1955: A few letters concerning the application of the law and desegregation. Correspondence with University of North Carolina officials about University matters, including the replacement of President Gordon Gray, who had resigned to accept the federal post of secretary of the Army. Paper entitled "Race, Heredity, and Civilization" by Wesley Critz George (7 p.).
1956: Correspondence relative to selecting an acting president and later a president for the University of North Carolina. Scattered letters from solicitor general Simon Sobeloff. 26 February, Mary Alice Caudle, attached to a paper bearing testimony of Caudle, Wadesboro, N.C., 11 February 1956, concerning "the indictment in St. Louis alleging a conspiracy to defraud the Government." 29 March, Harry L. Golden to George Mitchell about citizens councils (cc to Parker).
1957: Letters concerning Parker's being presented an award by the National Conference of Christians and Jews. Correspondence relating to Governor Luther Hodges's appointing Parker as a member of the North Carolina Constitutional Commission to adopt a new state constitution.
1958: Correspondence of the North Carolina Constitutional Commission.
   Folder 1
1920-1921
   Folder 2
1922
   Folder 3-5
1923
   Folder 6-25
1924
   Folder 26-46
1925
   Folder 47-48
1926
   Folder 49-53
1927, 1928
   Folder 54-141
1930
   Folder 142-143
1931
   Folder 144-147
1932
   Folder 148-152
1933
   Folder 153-162
1934
   Folder 163-165
1936
   Folder 166-172
1937
   Folder 173-176
1938
   Folder 177-179
1939
   Folder 180-186
1940
   Folder 187-194
1941
   Folder 195-199
1942
   Folder 200-204
1943
   Folder 205-214
1944
   Folder 215-228
1945
   Folder 229-241
1946
   Folder 242-246
1947
   Folder 247-251
1948
   Folder 252-255
1949
   Folder 256-261
1950
   Folder 262-267
1951
   Folder 268-273
1952
   Folder 274-284
1953
   Folder 285-288
1954
   Folder 289-290
1955
   Folder 291-293
1956
   Folder 294-295
1957
   Folder 296
1958

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2. Speeches, 1926-1957.

About 400 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
Speeches and drafts of speeches delivered by John Johnston Parker between 1926 and 1957. The speeches were delivered to a variety of civic and academic organizations, such as the Sons of the American Revolution and the Phi Beta Kappa Society, as well as to various professional organizations, such as chapters of the American Bar Association. Included are several speeches delivered upon Parker's return from service as an alternate at the Nuremberg Tribunal on subjects relating to the trials. The bulk of the speeches relate to technical aspects of the judicial system and the impact upon it of current events.
   Folder 297a
1926-1930
   Folder 297b
1931-1932
   Folder 297c
1933
   Folder 298a
1934-1942
   Folder 298b
1946
   Folder 298c
1947
   Folder 299a
1948-1949
   Folder 299b
1953
   Folder 300
1954-1957
   Folder 301-302
Undated

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3. Official Papers, 1925-1958.

About 16,000 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
Correspondence and other items relating to legal and administrative work of John Johnston Parker in his capacity as United States Judge for the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals; correspondence consisting of legal opinions, in preparation or completed, by Parker and/or other federal judges; correspondence, ca. 1925-1930, from prominent Republicans about party matters or commenting on the political situation; miscellaneous legal correspondence with lawyers throughout the South, many of whom complimented Parker on decisions or sought advice or recommendations; correspondence relating to the duties and meetings of the University of North Carolina board of trustees, of which Parker was a member for many years; correspondence with Horace Williams, Albert Coates, and other members of the University of North Carolina faculty on both personal and University business; correspondence with English friends made in Germany during the Nuremberg Trials, including Lord Hugh P. Macmillan, Geoffrey Oaksey, Sir David Maxwell Fyfe, 1947 onward; and material on the Billy Graham Crusade in Charlotte, 1957-1958, during which Parker served as chair of the General Crusade Committee.
Among the chief correspondents are Lee S. Overman, David H. Blair, Edmund Waddill, Jr., John C. Rose, D. Lawrence Groner, Ernest F. Cochran, Isaac M. Meekins, Morris A. Soper, Elliott Northcott, Johnson J. Hayes, William E. Baker, William C. Coleman, Edwin Yates Webb, W. Calvin Chesnut, George W. McClintic, John Paul, J. Lyles Glenn, Armistead M. Dobie, Charles C. Wyche, Alfred Dickinson Barksdale, J. Waties Waring, Theron L. Caudle, Charles W. Tillett, Kenneth W. Tanner, William DeBerniere MacNider, Wesley Critz. George, George Bell Timmerman, Sterling Hutcheson, Fred M. Vinson, Robert N. Wilkin, Ashton H. Williams, Richard Hartshorne, Albert V. Bryan, and John Biggs, Jr.
   Folder 303-305
1925
   Folder 306-332
1926
   Folder 333-368
1927
   Folder 369-393
1928
   Folder 394-434
1929
   Folder 435-468
1930
   Folder 469-525
1931
   Folder 526-580
1932
   Folder 581-626
1933
   Folder 627-666
1934
   Folder 667-706
1935
   Folder 707-719
1936
   Folder 720-730
1937
   Folder 731-742
1938
   Folder 743-754
1939
   Folder 755-766
1940
   Folder 767-778
1941
   Folder 779-790
1942
   Folder 791-802
1943
   Folder 803-814
1944
   Folder 815-826
1945
   Folder 827-838
1946
   Folder 839-850
1947
   Folder 851-889
1948
   Folder 890-925
1949
   Folder 926-956
1950
   Folder 957-992
1951
   Folder 993-1020
1952
   Folder 1021-1059
1953
   Folder 1060-1090
1954
   Folder 1091-1132
1955
   Folder 1133-1170
1956
   Folder 1171-1214
1957
   Folder 1215-1223
1958

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4. Legal Memoranda.

About 2000 items.
Arrangement: by case number.
Memoranda, numbered 2341-7605 consecutively, relating to decisions made by Parker during the period he was judge of the Unites States Court of Appeals of the Fourth Circuit. They are brief synopses of cases, terminating with decision statements, in informal language and rarely more than one legal page in length.
   Folder 1224
Cases, 2341-2398
   Folder 1225
Cases, 2400-2449
   Folder 1226
Cases, 2450-2491
   Folder 1227
Cases, 2505-2548
   Folder 1228
Cases, 2550-2601
   Folder 1229
Cases, 2602-2649
   Folder 1230
Cases, 2654-2698
   Folder 1231
Cases, 2701-2742
   Folder 1232
Cases, 2750-2799
   Folder 1233
Cases, 2801-2849
   Folder 1234
Cases, 2850-2899
   Folder 1235
Cases, 2900-2999
   Folder 1236
Cases, 3001-3048
   Folder 1237
Cases, 3050-3099
   Folder 1238
Cases, 3100-3149
   Folder 1239
Cases, 3151-3198
   Folder 1240
Cases, 3201-3249
   Folder 1241
Cases, 3251-3299
   Folder 1242
Cases, 3301-3349
   Folder 1243
Cases, 3350-3398
   Folder 1244
Cases, 3400-3449
   Folder 1245
Cases, 3452-3498
   Folder 1246
Cases, 3506-3700
   Folder 1247
Cases, 3726-3898
   Folder 1248
Cases, 3901-3998
   Folder 1249
Cases, 4000-4099
   Folder 1250
Cases, 4101-4199
   Folder 1251
Cases, 4200-4291
   Folder 1252
Cases, 4300-4398
   Folder 1253
Cases, 4400-4499
   Folder 1254
Cases, 4503-4597
   Folder 1255
Cases, 4600-4699
   Folder 1256
Cases, 4700-4794
   Folder 1257
Cases, 4800-4896
   Folder 1258
Cases, 4901-5003
   Folder 1259
Cases, 5005-5099
   Folder 1260
Cases, 5102-5199
   Folder 1261
Cases, 5200-5298
   Folder 1262
Cases, 5300-5498
   Folder 1263
Cases, 5500-5599
   Folder 1264
Cases, 5600-5698
   Folder 1265
Cases, 5701-5799
   Folder 1266
Cases, 5800-5899
   Folder 1267
Cases, 5900-5999
   Folder 1268
Cases, 6000-6098
   Folder 1269
Cases, 6101-6183
   Folder 1270
Cases, 6202-6299
   Folder 1271
Cases, 6301-6399
   Folder 1272
Cases, 6402-6499
   Folder 1273
Cases, 6502-6599
   Folder 1274
Cases, 6600-6699
   Folder 1275
Cases, 6700-6799
   Folder 1276
Cases, 6800-6898
   Folder 1277
Cases, 6909-6998
   Folder 1278
Cases, 7000-7092
   Folder 1279
Cases, 7102-7196
   Folder 1280
Cases, 7202-7299
   Folder 1281
Cases, 7300-7397
   Folder 1282
Cases, 7400-7496
   Folder 1283
Cases,7505-8390

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5. Judicial Conferences, 1924-1958.

About 1,200 items.
Arrangement: chronological
Correspondence and reports that grew out of the annual conferences of the judges of the United States Circuit Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, to discuss the business and general conditions within the Circuit.
   Folder 1284
1924
   Folder 1285
1925
   Folder 1286
1926
   Folder 1287
1927
   Folder 1288
1928
   Folder 1289
1929
   Folder 1290
1930
   Folder 1291
1931
   Folder 1292
1932
   Folder 1293
1933
   Folder 1294
1934
   Folder 1295
1935
   Folder 1296
1936
   Folder 1297
1937
   Folder 1298
1938
   Folder 1299
1939
   Folder 1300-1301
1940
   Folder 1302
1941
   Folder 1303
1942
   Folder 1304-1306
1943
   Folder 1307
1943
   Folder 1308
1944
   Folder 1309
1945
   Folder 1310
1946
   Folder 1311
1947
   Folder 1312
1948
   Folder 1313
1949
   Folder 1314
1950
   Folder 1315
1951
   Folder 1316
1952
   Folder 1317
1953
   Folder 1318
1954
   Folder 1319
1955
   Folder 1320
1956
   Folder 1321
1957
   Folder 1322
1958

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6. Three-Judge Court Cases, 1926-1957.

About 400 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
Briefs and opinions of three-judge courts of appeals in 17 major civil cases, several on public school integration. The judges on these three-judge district cases were John Johnston Parker and two of the following: Wilson Warlick, Don Gilliam, George Bell Timmerman, Ashton H. Williams, Waties Waring, Sterling Hutcheson, Albert V. Bryan, Elliot Northcott, and Morris A. Soper.
   Folder 1323a
Grambling v. Maxwell
   Folder 1323b
Schwab Capex Motor Line v. United States
   Folder 1323c
Kelleher v. Schoeue and Kelleher v. French, 1926-1927
   Folder 1324a
Seaboard Air Line Railway v. Lee, 1926
   Folder 1324b
Southern Railway Co. v. Shealey, 1927
   Folder 1324c
Southern Railway Co. v. Query, 1927
   Folder 1325a
Anchor Coal Co. v. United States, 1928
   Folder 1325b
Gloucester Seafood Workers Association v. Houston, 1929
   Folder 1325b2
Brady v. I.C.C., 1930
   Folder 1325c
Graniteville Manufacturing Co. v. Query, 1930
   Folder 1326a
Eastern Air Transport v. South Carolina Tax Commission, 1931
   Folder 1326b
Buckland v. Lee, 1931
   Folder 1326c
Atlantic Coast Line Railroad v. United States, 1931
   Folder 1327a
Broad-Grace Arcade Co. v. Bright, 1931
   Folder 1327b
A and P Tea Co. v. Morrisette, 1931]
   Folder 1327c
United States v. Appalachian Coals, 1932
   Folder 1328a
Piedmont and Northern Railway Co. v. Query, 1932
   Folder 1328b
Southern Grocery Stores v. South Carolina Tax Commission, 1932
   Folder 1328c
Nutt v. Ellerbee, 1932
   Folder 1329a
South Carolina Power Co. v. South Carolina Tax Commission, 1932
   Folder 1329b
Standard Oil Co. of N.J. v. Daniel, 1933
   Folder 1329c
Norfolk-Roanoke Island Transportation Co. v. Self, 1933
   Folder 1330a
Via v. Virginia State Commission on Conservation and Development, 1935
   Folder 1330b
B and O Railroad v. Board of Public Works, 1936
   Folder 1330c
National Fertilizer Association v. Bradley, 1936
   Folder 1331a
Barrett and Haywood v. Maxwell, 1937
   Folder 1331b
Barnwell Bros. v. South Carolina State Highway Department, 1937
   Folder 1331c
Ritholz v. North Carolina State Board of Examiners in Optometry, 1937
   Folder 1332a
United States Rubber Co. v. Query, 1937
   Folder 1332b
Park McLain v. Hoey, 1937
   Folder 1332c
Southern Railway Co. v. South Carolina Public Service Commission, 1940
   Folder 1333a
B and O Railroad Co. Reorganization, 1940
   Folder 1333b
Carolina Freight Carriers v. United States, 1941
   Folder 1333c
Bondurant v. United States, 1943
   Folder 1334a
Wright v. United States, 1943
   Folder 1334b
Turner v. United States, 1944
   Folder 1334c
Bush Transfer v. United States, 1944
   Folder 1335a
Carter v. Bowles, 1944
   Folder 1335b
Mullmax v. Bowles, 1944
   Folder 1335c
Carolina Scenic Coach Lines v. United States, 1944-1945
   Folder 1336a
State of North Carolina v. United States, 1944
   Folder 1336b
Toomer v. Witsell, 1947
   Folder 1336c
Beard-Laney, Inc. v. United States et. al., 1949
   Folder 1337a
Shiter, et. al. v. Anderson, et. al., 1950
   Folder 1337b
Briggs v. Elliott, 1951
   Folder 1337c
Briggs, et. al. v. Elliott, et. al., 1952
   Folder 1338a
Briggs, et. al. v. Elliott, et. al., 1955
   Folder 1338b
Hughes Transport Co. v. United States, 1953
   Folder 1338c
State of North Carolina v. United States, 1954
   Folder 1339a
State of North Carolina v. United States and Interstate Commerce Commission, 1955
   Folder 1339b
Rheman v. United States, 1955
   Folder 1340
The Darlington v. Federal Housing Commission, 1955
   Folder 1341
State of South Carolina v. United States and Interstate Commerce Commission, 1956
   Folder 1342
Davis, et. al. v. School Board of Prince Edward Cty., Virginia, 1956
   Folder 1343
Bryan v. Austin, 1957
   Folder 1344
Lassiter v. Taylor, 1957

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7. American Bar Association Materials, 1940-1949.

About 1,500 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
Correspondence and reports of various committees of the American Bar Association on which John J. Parker served between 1940 and 1949, including the Special Committee on Improving the Administration of Justice; the Committee on Motion Pictures, Radio Broadcasting, and Comic Strips in Relation to the Administration of Justice of the Section of Criminal Law of the American Bar Association; the Pre-Trial Committee, and others.
   Folder 1345-1350
1940
   Folder 1351-1364
1941
   Folder 1365-1378
1942
   Folder 1379-1391
1943
   Folder 1392-1398
1944
   Folder 1399-1401
1945
   Folder 1402
1946
   Folder 1403-1408
1947
   Folder 1409-1410
1948
   Folder 1411
1949, undated

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8. War Crimes Trials, 1946.

About 900 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
Carbon copies of typed papers attached inside folders. About two-thirds of the papers relate to the first proceedings of the War Crimes Tribunal and are Parker's own copies of the Law of the Charter, the First General Judgment, reports, statement to the press, and other papers concerned with the history of the Nazi Party and the establishment of its guilt, corporately and individually, and the codification of the international laws under which the Tribunal could function and which defined its jurisdiction. Crimes for which war criminals could be tried were defined: crimes against peace, war crimes, and crimes against humanity.
The remaining third of the papers concern defining the principals and terms of authority of the Tribunal; minutes of meetings between the judges; memoranda on the individual prisoners; brief histories of the SS and SD, published material, and other items.
   Folder 1412-1445
War crimes trials materials

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9. Judicial Conference of the United States, 1941-1953.

About 800 items.
Arrangement: chronological.
Materials relating to committees of the Judicial Conference of the United States, on which Parker served: Committee on Federal Correction Act, 1941-1949; Committee on Punishment for Crime, 1951; Committee on Venue and Jurisdiction, 1950-1952; Committee on the Administration of the Criminal Law, 1953-1958; Committee on the Public Defender System, 1953-1958; Committee on Change of Rule 71A (Rules of Civil Procedure) 1947-1956; Committee on Appeals from Interlocutory Orders, 1952-1953.
   Folder 1446-1449
Committee on the Federal Corrections Act, 1941-1949
   Folder 1450-1451
Committee on Punishment for Crime, 1950-1951
   Folder 1452-1454
Committee on Venue and Jurisdiction, 1950-1952
   Folder 1455-1461
Committee on the Administration of the Criminal Law, 1953-1958
   Folder 1462
Committee on the Public Defender System
   Folder 1463-1473
Committee on the Change of Rule 71A, 1947-1956
   Folder 1474-1478
Committee on Appeals from Interlocutory Orders, 1952-1953

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Related Collections

John Johnston Parker, Nuremberg War Crimes Trials Records (#3566).
Richard Dillon Dixon, Nuremberg War Crimes Trials Records (#3567).