Melville Fuller
✓ Source-basedfallingChief justice of the United States from 1888 to 1910
Melville Weston Fuller was an American politician, attorney, and jurist who served as the eighth chief justice of the United States from 1888 until his death in 1910.
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Advertisement for Fuller's law practice, printed in the Chicago Tribune, May 4, 1860
Fuller's chief justice nomination as signed by Grover Cleveland
Chief Justice Fuller (left) administering the oath to William McKinley (center) as president on March 4, 1897. Outgoing president Grover Cleveland stands to the right.
In this 1895 political cartoon, Fuller is depicted placing a dunce cap with the words "INCOME TAX DECISION" on President Cleveland, who had signed the tax into law. The cartoon appeared in the Judge magazine; it was accompanied by a quotation from Senator David B. Hill praising the Court's decision.
Fuller in his Supreme Court chambers, circa 1899
The Fuller Court in 1899
Fuller's grave at Graceland CemeteryPoliticians from United States 6
About this person
Melville Weston Fuller was an American politician, attorney, and jurist who served as the eighth chief justice of the United States from 1888 until his death in 1910. Staunch conservatism marked his tenure on the Supreme Court, exhibited by his tendency to support unfettered free enterprise and to oppose broad federal power. He wrote major opinions on the federal income tax, the Commerce Clause, and citizenship law, and he took part in important decisions about racial segregation and the liberty of contract. Those rulings often faced criticism in the decades during and after Fuller's tenure, and many were later overruled or abrogated. The legal academy has generally viewed Fuller negatively, although a revisionist minority has taken a more favorable view of his jurisprudence.
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