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On September 25, 1981, Sandra Day O’Connor became the first woman to be sworn in as a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. 

President Reagan had nominated O’Connor earlier that summer, and he wrote in his White House diary, “Called Judge O’Connor in  Ariz. and told her she was my nominee for Supreme Ct. Already the flack is starting and from my own supporters… I think she’ll make a good Justice.”

O’Connor helped inspire a generation of women to pursue careers in law—when she was appointed,  thirty-six percent of law school students were women; by the time she retired from the court in 2006 that percentage had risen to forty-eight percent.

Last year, O’Connor spoke to a group of high school students at the Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley and told them:

“It was exciting to be the first, but I did not want to be the last.”

Photo: Sandra Day O’Connor being sworn in as Supreme Court Justice by Chief Justice Warren Burger.  Her husband, John O’Connor looks on.  9/25/81.

September 25, 1789: The Bill of Rights is Passed

On this day in 1789, Congress approved twelve amendments to the United States Constitution. These amendments were known as the Bill of Rights and were designed to protect the basic rights of all Americans.

The Bill of Rights guaranteed the freedom of speech, press, assembly and exercise of religion, the right to fair legal procedure and to bear arms, and that powers not delegated to the federal government were reserved for the states and the people.

In December 1791, Virginia became the tenth of fourteen states to approve ten of the twelve amendments. This marked the two-thirds majority of state ratification to legalize the Bill of Rights.

To read all twelve amendments approved by Congress and presented to the states, explore this Chronicles of the Revolution page.

Happy birthday, Stephen King (September 21, 1947)