The Waite Court

SCOTUS
Cases by term
	2025-2026 term2024-2025 term2023-2024 term2022-2023 term2021-2022 term2020-2021 term2019-2020 term2018-2019 term2017-2018 term2016-2017 term2015-2016 termSubmit
Judgeships
	Posts: 9
	Judges: 9
Judges
	Chief: John Roberts
	Active: Samuel Alito, Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch, Ketanji Brown Jackson, Elena Kagan, Brett Kavanaugh, John Roberts, Sonia Sotomayor, Clarence Thomas

The Waite Court lasted from January 1874 to March 1888, during the presidencies of Ulysses S. Grant (R), Rutherford B. Hayes (R), James Garfield (R), Chester A. Arthur (R), and Grover Cleveland (D).

Morrison Waite was nominated to become chief justice of the United States Supreme Court by President Ulysses S. Grant on January 19, 1874. He was confirmed by the Senate on January 21, 1874, and received his commission on the same day. He served until his death on March 23, 1888.^[1]

Associate justices

The justices in this table served during the Waite Court.

Tenure	Justice	Nominated By
01/21/1858 - 07/25/1881	Nathan Clifford	James Buchanan
07/21/1862 - 10/13/1890	Samuel Freeman Miller	Abraham Lincoln
12/10/1862 - 03/04/1877	David Davis	Abraham Lincoln
01/27/1862 - 01/24/1881	Noah Haynes Swayne	Abraham Lincoln
05/20/1863 - 12/01/1897	Stephen Johnson Field	Abraham Lincoln
03/14/1870 - 12/14/1880	William Strong	Ulysses S. Grant
03/23/1870 - 01/22/1892	Joseph Bradley	Ulysses S. Grant
1/9/1873 - 01/27/1882	Ward Hunt	Ulysses S. Grant
12/10/1877 - 10/14/1911	John Harlan I	Rutherford B. Hayes
1/5/1881 - 05/14/1887	William Burnham Woods	Rutherford B. Hayes
05/17/1881 - 03/22/1889	Stanley Matthews	James Garfield
04/3/1882 - 07/07/1893	Samuel Blatchford	Chester A. Arthur
1/9/1882 - 09/15/1902	Horace Gray	Chester A. Arthur
01/18/1888 - 01/23/1893	Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar	Grover Cleveland

Major cases

Minor v. Happersett (1875)

On March 29, 1875, the Supreme Court unanimously upheld a previous decision that stated the Fourteenth Amendment did not apply to women. Virginia Minor was considered a citizen of the United States, but because she was a woman, she was not permitted to vote.^[2]

United States v. Cruikshank (1876)

On April 13, 1873, three white men in Louisiana allegedly took part in the murders of approximately one hundred Black freedmen in an event referred to as the Colfax massacre. The men were indicted and charged under the Enforcement Act of 1870. On appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court found the indictment to be faulty and ruled in favor of the three men.

Ruling on the Enforcement Act of 1870 (1876)

Election officials Hiram Reese and Matthew Foushee refused to allow Black man William Garner to vote, claiming that he owed money in taxes. Garner had attempted to pay his taxes, however the tax collector would not accept the money. Garner was given a legal document stating that he tried to pay his taxes. Reese and Foushee refused to accept the document. The two were charged in accordance with the Enforcement Act of 1870. On appeal to the Circuit Court of the United States for the District of Kentucky, the indictment was overturned. The Supreme Court decided on March 27, 1876, that the Act did not have the appropriate language to qualify for enforcement under the Fifteenth Amendment.^[3]

Polygamy is not legal (1879)

George Reynolds was a member of the Mormon Church and secretary to church leader Brigham Young. He challenged the State of Utah's ban on polygamy. Each court reviewing the case found that polygamy was illegal and subject to penalty. The Supreme Court unanimously affirmed the previous rulings, writing that the decision did not prohibit the freedom of religion, only the criminal activity of polygamy.^[4]

United States v. Harris (1883)

Sheriff Harris led an armed mob to capture four Black men imprisoned in a Tennessee jail. One of the imprisoned men was killed. The United States brought charges against Harris and the mob, citing Section 2 of the Force Act of 1871, prohibiting two or more people from trying to deprive others of equal protection of the law. The Supreme Court ruled that the Force Act was unconstitutional.^[5]

Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad (1886)

Southern Pacific Railroad Company owned fences in the State of California. The state tried to tax the fences, but Southern Pacific argued that it could only tax "the franchise, roadway roadbed, rails, and rolling stock." Southern Pacific also argued that the state failed to properly assess its taxes by subtracting outstanding mortgages. The company refused to pay the fence tax and the difference in taxes assessed by the state. Santa Clara County sued the company, arguing that if it could tax the land that included the fences, then it could tax the increased value as a result of the fences. John Harlan delivered the unanimous opinion for the Supreme Court, holding that the state had wrongly imposed the taxes and had not followed the proper procedures for reassessing the land value after the fences were added.^[6]

About the court

See also: Supreme Court of the United States

The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the country and leads the judicial branch of the federal government. It is often referred to by the acronym SCOTUS.^[7]

The Supreme Court consists of nine justices: the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices. The justices are nominated by the president and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the United States Senate per Article II of the United States Constitution. As federal judges, the justices serve during "good behavior," which means that justices have tenure for life unless they are removed by impeachment and subsequent conviction.^[8]

On January 27, 2022, Justice Stephen Breyer officially announced he would retire at the start of the court's summer recess.^[9]^[10] Breyer assumed senior status on June 30, 2022.^[11] Ketanji Brown Jackson was confirmed to fill the vacancy by the Senate in a 53-47 vote on April 7, 2022.^[12] Click here to read more.

The Supreme Court is the only court established by the United States Constitution (in Article III); all other federal courts are created by Congress.

The Supreme Court meets in Washington, D.C., in the United States Supreme Court building. The Supreme Court's yearly term begins on the first Monday in October and lasts until the first Monday in October the following year. The court generally releases the majority of its decisions in mid-June.^[8]

Number of seats on the Supreme Court over time

See also: History of the Supreme Court

Number of Justices	Set by	Change
Chief Justice + 5 Associate Justices	Judiciary Act of 1789
Chief Justice + 4 Associate Justices	Judiciary Act of 1801 (later repealed)	-1
Chief Justice + 6 Associate Justices	Seventh Circuit Act of 1807	+2
Chief Justice + 8 Associate Justices	Eighth and Ninth Circuits Act of 1837	+2
Chief Justice + 9 Associate Justices	Tenth Circuit Act of 1863	+1
Chief Justice + 6 Associate Justices	Judicial Circuits Act of 1866	-3
Chief Justice + 8 Associate Justices	Judiciary Act of 1869	+2