1937

Articles from 1937

FDR’s ”Pack The Court” Proposal (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937)

Attached is a break-down of President Roosevelt’s proposed legislation to rid the Supreme Court of six ornery justices by imposing a mandatory retirement age for the whole of the Federal Government. Failing that, FDR’s legislation would have granted the President power to appoint an additional Justice to the U.S. Supreme Court, up to a maximum of six, for every member of the court over the age of 70, in order to assure passage of all New Deal legislation.

FDR’s ”Pack The Court” Proposal (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937) Read More »

Justice George Sutherland (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937)

Justice George Sutherland (1862 – 1942) was consistently on the reactionary side in votes against New Deal legislation. It was he who wrote the decisions invalidating the Guffey coal-control act and the powers of the SEC to interrogate witnesses. His NRA and the Municipal Bankruptcy Act, railroad pensions and hot oil legislation. He voted in favor of the TVA and old-age pensions.

Justice George Sutherland (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937) Read More »

Justice Louis D. Brandeis (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937)

Part of the personal tragedy inherent in President Roosevelt’s suggestion to rid the Supreme Court of men over 70, part of the uncertainty with which liberals greet his plan, must arise from consideration of Louis Demblitz Brandeis. At 80, Brandeis is the oldest of the nine justices… Liberals cherish him, conservatives respect him and the [FDR] administration is grateful to him.

Justice Louis D. Brandeis (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937) Read More »

Trying to Understand Learning Disabilities (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937)

The kids who are discussed in this article would be called LD today – you don’t want to know how they were referred to in the early Twenties. Back then there were no Federally-funded commissions thronging with sympathetic PhD candidates to ramble on about convergence issues, processing concerns, the-classroom-learning-environment and the Learning Disabled. There were only frustrated kids, frustrated teachers and broken-hearted parents. This 1937 news article reports on the pioneering teachers at Seward Park High School in New York City and the earliest attempts to address the needs of students who suffered from language processing disorders, dyscalculia, dyslexia, dysgraphia and America’s favorite – good ol’ ADHD.

Trying to Understand Learning Disabilities (Pathfinder Magazine, 1937) Read More »

Andrew Mellon’s Gift (Art Digest, 1937)

A 1937 news column announced the very generous gift to Washington, D.C. and the nation made by billionaire philanthropist Andrew W. Mellon (1855 — 1937): The National Gallery of Art:

A long, low, classic structure, tailored in lines that harmonize with the neighboring white Beaux-Arts buildings, will house the new National Gallery made possible for the nation’s capital by Andrew W. Mellon. The plans, designed by John Russell Popestyle=border:none have already been accepted by the Fine Arts Commission and construction… will get underway as soon as congressional authorization is made… The cost of the building, which will be borne entirely by Mr. Mellon, is estimated at $9,000,000.


(The cost was actually $10,000,000)


Click here to read additional articles from the Twenties and Thirties about art.

Andrew Mellon’s Gift (Art Digest, 1937) Read More »

Eleanor Roosevelt and Her Many Firsts (The Literary Digest, 1937)

This magazine article explains what a unique force in presidential history Eleanor Roosevelt was. She defied convention in so many ways and to illustrate this point, this anonymous journalist went to some length listing fifteen firsts that this most tireless of all First Ladies had racked-up through the years.


Those councilors who advised FDR and the First Lady on all matters African-American were popularly known as the Black Brain Trust…

Eleanor Roosevelt and Her Many Firsts (The Literary Digest, 1937) Read More »