United States Supreme Court Associate Justice. An outspoken judicial activist for liberal causes and underdog individuals, he maintained a much higher public profile than most members of the Court. He did not hesitate to publicly debate his critics on and off the Court, including some highly unconventional forums such as "Playboy" magazine. Born in Maine, Minnesota, he grew up in Estrella, California, and Cleveland, Washington. His mother moved the family to Yakima, Washington. He was stricken with polio as a child and took up hiking in the mountains to strengthen his weak legs. This activity gave rise to his love of the natural environment. Douglas graduated from Yakima High School as the valedictorian of the Class of 1916. He won a partial scholarship to attend Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington where he graduated (1920) Phi Beta Kappa. He returned to Yakima where he taught Latin and English at the local high school for two years. He attended Columbia University (1923-1925) where he received his law degree (1925). After graduation, he joined the Wall Street law firm known today as Cravath, Swaine & Moore where he practiced corporate law (1925-1926) and taught part-time at Columbia Law School. He returned to Yakima, Washington (1926) where he practiced law on his own before returning to New York City (1927) where he taught full-time at Columbia Law School. He joined the faculty at Yale Law School where he taught from 1928-1934. While at Yale he became known for his work in bankruptcy law. He accepted a position with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)(1934) and was appointed SEC Commissioner (1936). He became Chairman of the SEC (1937-1939), replacing Joseph P. Kennedy after he became Ambassador to Great Britain. President Franklin Roosevelt appointed Douglas to the Supreme Court (1939) to replace Justice Louis D. Brandeis. Many thought that Douglas would be pro-business but, instead, he became a strong individualist and an activist interpreter of the guarantees of the Bill of Rights. He opposed censorship in any form and maintained a powerful distrust of government power. Douglas supported unpopular political causes and maintained an unconventional lifestyle, including four marriages and three divorces: to Mildred Riddle from 1923 to 1953, Mercedes Hester Davidson from 1954 to 1963, Joan Martin from 1963 to 1965, and Cathleen Hefferman from 1965 until his death. Roosevelt came close to picking Douglas as his running mate in the 1944 election, which would have made Douglas president upon Roosevelt's death in 1945. In 1952 he refused to run for the Democratic presidential nomination. As Supreme Court Justice, Douglas wrote many dissenting opinions. During his stay on the bench, he often faced critics who demanded his impeachment. The first came in 1952 when he granted a stay of execution to Julius and Ethel Rosenberg who had been found guilty of passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union. In 1954, Douglas organized a 189-mile hike along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal towpath to protest a proposed highway into the area. Thanks to his efforts the highway plans were abandoned. Four years later, Douglas organized a hike along a secluded section of beach in Olympic National Park to protest a roadway planned for the area. The roadway plans were later abandoned. There were more calls for his impeachment in the late 1960s because of his criticism of the Vietnam War and his marriage to a woman 40 years his junior. In 1970, Congressman (later President) Gerald R. Ford organized yet another attempt to impeach Douglas, which also failed. On December 31, 1974, Douglas suffered a stroke at his home and was rushed to Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. After months of convalescing, he returned to the Supreme Court but his health was fragile at best. Recognizing that he was no longer up to doing his job, Douglas retired on November 12, 1975, after 36 years, 6 months, and 25 days of service on the Supreme Court, a record not likely soon, if ever, to be broken. William O. Douglas died on January 19, 1980, at Walter Reed Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, at age 81. The William O. Douglas Wilderness in Washington State was named for him and honors him for his role in Federal Wilderness legislation and environmental issues, as well as his dedication and love for the Cougar Lakes region (now part of the Wilderness).
United States Supreme Court Associate Justice. An outspoken judicial activist for liberal causes and underdog individuals, he maintained a much higher public profile than most members of the Court. He did not hesitate to publicly debate his critics on and off the Court, including some highly unconventional forums such as "Playboy" magazine. Born in Maine, Minnesota, he grew up in Estrella, California, and Cleveland, Washington. His mother moved the family to Yakima, Washington. He was stricken with polio as a child and took up hiking in the mountains to strengthen his weak legs. This activity gave rise to his love of the natural environment. Douglas graduated from Yakima High School as the valedictorian of the Class of 1916. He won a partial scholarship to attend Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington where he graduated (1920) Phi Beta Kappa. He returned to Yakima where he taught Latin and English at the local high school for two years. He attended Columbia University (1923-1925) where he received his law degree (1925). After graduation, he joined the Wall Street law firm known today as Cravath, Swaine & Moore where he practiced corporate law (1925-1926) and taught part-time at Columbia Law School. He returned to Yakima, Washington (1926) where he practiced law on his own before returning to New York City (1927) where he taught full-time at Columbia Law School. He joined the faculty at Yale Law School where he taught from 1928-1934. While at Yale he became known for his work in bankruptcy law. He accepted a position with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)(1934) and was appointed SEC Commissioner (1936). He became Chairman of the SEC (1937-1939), replacing Joseph P. Kennedy after he became Ambassador to Great Britain. President Franklin Roosevelt appointed Douglas to the Supreme Court (1939) to replace Justice Louis D. Brandeis. Many thought that Douglas would be pro-business but, instead, he became a strong individualist and an activist interpreter of the guarantees of the Bill of Rights. He opposed censorship in any form and maintained a powerful distrust of government power. Douglas supported unpopular political causes and maintained an unconventional lifestyle, including four marriages and three divorces: to Mildred Riddle from 1923 to 1953, Mercedes Hester Davidson from 1954 to 1963, Joan Martin from 1963 to 1965, and Cathleen Hefferman from 1965 until his death. Roosevelt came close to picking Douglas as his running mate in the 1944 election, which would have made Douglas president upon Roosevelt's death in 1945. In 1952 he refused to run for the Democratic presidential nomination. As Supreme Court Justice, Douglas wrote many dissenting opinions. During his stay on the bench, he often faced critics who demanded his impeachment. The first came in 1952 when he granted a stay of execution to Julius and Ethel Rosenberg who had been found guilty of passing atomic secrets to the Soviet Union. In 1954, Douglas organized a 189-mile hike along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal towpath to protest a proposed highway into the area. Thanks to his efforts the highway plans were abandoned. Four years later, Douglas organized a hike along a secluded section of beach in Olympic National Park to protest a roadway planned for the area. The roadway plans were later abandoned. There were more calls for his impeachment in the late 1960s because of his criticism of the Vietnam War and his marriage to a woman 40 years his junior. In 1970, Congressman (later President) Gerald R. Ford organized yet another attempt to impeach Douglas, which also failed. On December 31, 1974, Douglas suffered a stroke at his home and was rushed to Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. After months of convalescing, he returned to the Supreme Court but his health was fragile at best. Recognizing that he was no longer up to doing his job, Douglas retired on November 12, 1975, after 36 years, 6 months, and 25 days of service on the Supreme Court, a record not likely soon, if ever, to be broken. William O. Douglas died on January 19, 1980, at Walter Reed Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, at age 81. The William O. Douglas Wilderness in Washington State was named for him and honors him for his role in Federal Wilderness legislation and environmental issues, as well as his dedication and love for the Cougar Lakes region (now part of the Wilderness).
Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/296/william_o-douglas: accessed
), memorial page for William O. Douglas (16 Oct 1898–19 Jan 1980), Find a Grave Memorial ID 296, citing Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington,
Arlington County,
Virginia,
USA;
Maintained by Find a Grave.
Add Photos for William O. Douglas
Fulfill Photo Request for William O. Douglas
Photo Request Fulfilled
Thank you for fulfilling this photo request. An email has been sent to the person who requested the photo informing them that you have fulfilled their request
There is an open photo request for this memorial
Are you adding a grave photo that will fulfill this request?
Oops, some error occurred while uploading your photo(s).
Oops, something didn't work. Close this window, and upload the photo(s) again.
Make sure that the file is a photo. Photos larger than 8Mb will be reduced.
All photos uploaded successfully, click on the <b>Done button</b> to see the photos in the gallery.
General photo guidelines:
Photos larger than 8.0 MB will be optimized and reduced.
Each contributor can upload a maximum of 5 photos for a memorial.
A memorial can have a maximum of 20 photos from all contributors.
The sponsor of a memorial may add an additional 10 photos (for a total of 30 on the memorial).
Include gps location with grave photos where possible.
No animated GIFs, photos with additional graphics (borders, embellishments.)
You are only allowed to leave one flower per day for any given memorial.
Memorial Photos
This is a carousel with slides. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate, or jump to a slide with the slide dots. Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel.
Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried.
Show Map
If the memorial includes GPS coordinates, simply click 'Show Map' to view the gravesite location within the cemetery. If no GPS coordinates are available, you can contribute by adding them if you know the precise location.
Photos
For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab.
Photos Tab
All photos appear on this tab and here you can update the sort order of photos on memorials you manage. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer.
Flowers
Flowers added to the memorial appear on the bottom of the memorial or here on the Flowers tab. To add a flower, click the Leave a Flower button.
Family Members
Family members linked to this person will appear here.
Related searches
Use the links under See more… to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc.
Sponsor This Memorial
Remove advertising from a memorial by sponsoring it for just $5. Previously sponsored memorials or famous memorials will not have this option.
Share
Share this memorial using social media sites or email.
Save to
Save to an Ancestry Tree, a virtual cemetery, your clipboard for pasting or Print.
Edit or Suggest Edit
Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager.
Have Feedback
Thanks for using Find a Grave, if you have any feedback we would love to hear from you.
You may not upload any more photos to this memorial
"Unsupported file type"
Uploading...
Waiting...
Success
Failed
This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has photos
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded photos to this memorial
This photo was not uploaded because this memorial already has photos
This photo was not uploaded because you have already uploaded photos to this memorial
Invalid File Type
Uploading 1 Photo
Uploading 2 Photos
1 Photo Uploaded
2 Photos Uploaded
Added by
GREAT NEWS! There is 1 volunteer for this cemetery.
Sorry! There are no volunteers for this cemetery. Continuing with this request will add an alert to the cemetery page and any new volunteers will have the opportunity to fulfill your request.
Enter numeric value
Enter memorial Id
Year should not be greater than current year
Invalid memorial
Duplicate entry for memorial
You have chosen this person to be their own family member.
Reported!
This relationship is not possible based on lifespan dates.
0% Complete
Saved
Sign in or Register
Sign in to Find a Grave
Sign-in to link to existing account
There is a problem with your email/password.
There is a problem with your email/password.
There is a problem with your email/password.
We encountered an unknown problem. Please wait a few minutes and try again. If the problem persists contact Find a Grave.
We’ve updated the security on the site. Please reset your password.
Your account has been locked for 30 minutes due to too many failed sign in attempts. Please contact Find a Grave at [email protected] if you need help resetting your password.
This account has been disabled. If you have questions, please contact [email protected]
This account has been disabled. If you have questions, please contact [email protected]
Email not found
Please complete the captcha to let us know you are a real person.
Sign in to your existing Find a Grave account. You’ll only have to do this once—after your accounts are connected, you can sign in using your Ancestry sign in or your Find a Grave sign in.
We found an existing Find a Grave account associated with your email address. Sign in below with your Find a Grave credentials to link your Ancestry account. After your accounts are connected you can sign in using either account.
Please enter your email to sign in.
Please enter your password to sign in.
Please enter your email and password to sign in.
There is a problem with your email/password.
A system error has occurred. Please try again later.
A password reset email has been sent to EmailID. If you don't see an email, please check your spam folder.
We encountered an unknown problem. Please wait a few minutes and try again. If the problem persists contact Find a Grave.
Password Reset
Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code.
Registration Options
Welcome to Find a Grave
Create your free account by choosing an option below.
or
Ancestry account link
To create your account, Ancestry will share your name and email address with Find a Grave. To continue choose an option below.
or
If you already have a Find a Grave account, please sign in to link to Ancestry®.
New Member Registration
Email is mandatory
Email and Password are mandatory
This account already exists, but the email address still needs to be confirmed. Resend Activation Email
Your password is not strong enough
Invalid Email
You must agree to Terms and Conditions
Account already exists
Please check the I'm not a robot checkbox
Internal Server error occurred
If you want to be a Photo Volunteer you must enter a ZIP Code or select your location on the map
You must select an email preference
We have sent you an activation email
Your new password must contain one or more uppercase and lowercase letters, and one or more numbers or special characters.
We just emailed an activation code to
Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account.
cemeteries found in will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
cemeteries found within miles of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
cemeteries found within kilometers of your location will be saved to your photo volunteer list.
Within 5 miles of your location.
Within 5 kilometers of your location.
0 cemeteries found in .
0 cemeteries found.
Add a cemetery to fulfill photo requests
You can customize the cemeteries you volunteer for by selecting or deselecting below.
Search above to list available cemeteries.
Getting location…
Loading...
Loading...
No cemeteries found
Find a Grave Video Tutorials
Default Language
Translation on Find a Grave is an ongoing project. If you notice a problem with the translation, please send a message to [email protected] and include a link to the page and details about the problem. Thanks for your help!
Preferred Language
We have set your language to based on information from your browser.