Interview with Stanley Forman Reed, Jr., May 13, 1981

Interview Summary

Stanley Reed Jr. begins by talking about his parents' political activities. Stanley Reed Sr. was asked to be on the Federal Farm Board counsel for the Bank of Maysville, the State National Bank, and two other county banks. He also worked with the Burley Tobacco Association. Governor William Fields offered him a position on the Kentucky Court of Appeals, but he declined it. Mrs. Reed was involved with the Al Smith campaign and several local organizations. Reed Jr. goes on to discuss his father's work as Solicitor General, trying New Deal cases before the Supreme Court. He recalls Reed Sr. fainting during one of the cases. Then he describes his father's relationships with Tommy "The Cork" Corcoran and Ben Cohen, who worked with him on the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. Finally, he discusses his father's appointment to the Supreme Court and describes Justice Reed's relationships with William Douglas, Hugo Black, Robert Jackson, Fred Vinson, Harold Burton, Felix Frankfurter, and the law clerks. Other topics mentioned in the interview include civil liberties and civil rights, Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Reed Sr.'s farms in Kentucky, his retirement, the position of Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Reed Sr.'s support of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Reed Sr.'s rice diet.

Interview Keyword

Earl Warren Franklin D. Roosevelt Childhood Ben Cohen Burley Tobacco Association Vinson, Fred M., 1890-1953 Chief Justice Vinson Circuit Court Duke University Federal Farm Board Felix Frankfurther Harvard Law School Homer Cummings Hoover Administration J. Crawford Biggs Jesse Jones Jim Finch Jim Stone Law offices Le Wright Browning Log houses Maysville (Ky.) Nutigate Farm Ohio Railroad Ohio River Rice diets Robert Jackson Solictor General Tommy Corcoran William Douglas Women in politics Families Education

Interview LC Subject

Judges--United States Reed, Stanley Forman, Jr. Reed, Stanley Forman, Jr.--Interviews United States--Politics and government United States. Supreme Court Politics Elections Reed, Stanley Forman, 1884-1980 United States Capitol (Washington, D.C.) Democratic Party (U.S.) New Deal, 1933-1939 Kentucky--Politics and government Politicians--Kentucky Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945

Interview Rights

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Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.