# William R. Day *American diplomat and jurist; associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, 1903–1922* William Rufus Day (April 17, 1849 – July 9, 1923) was an American jurist and diplomat. He sat as an associate justice of the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] from 1903 until 1922.[^1] Before joining the Court he was Secretary of State under President William McKinley, and he then sat as a federal appellate judge in the Sixth Circuit.[^1][^4] President Theodore Roosevelt nominated Day to the Court in 1903.[^5] Over his tenure Day wrote 439 opinions.[^6] They include the Court's opinion in *Weeks v. United States* (1914), which barred the use in federal prosecutions of documents seized from a home without a warrant.[^6] They also include *Hammer v. Dagenhart* (1918), which held that Congress's commerce power does not reach the regulation of child labor.[^8] ## Early life and career Day was born in Ravenna, Ohio, on April 17, 1849. His parents were Emily (née Spaulding) and Luther Day, a judge of the Ohio Supreme Court.[^2] His maternal grandfather, Rufus P. Spalding, had also sat on that court.[^2] Day earned a Bachelor of Science at the University of Michigan in 1870.[^2] He then read law for a year with George F. Robinson, an attorney and judge, and spent a further year at the University of Michigan Law School.[^2] He was admitted to the bar on July 5, 1872. He settled in Canton, Ohio, and practiced there in partnership with William A. Lynch.[^2] For some twenty-five years he worked in Canton as a criminal defense and corporate lawyer and took part in Republican politics.[^2] In those years Day became a friend of William McKinley. He advised McKinley on legal and political matters through McKinley's campaigns for Congress, for governor of Ohio, and for president.[^3] Once McKinley was president, he named Day Assistant Secretary of State under Secretary John Sherman. In 1898 McKinley made Day Secretary of State in Sherman's place.[^3] Five months later Day left the cabinet to lead the United States Peace Commission, which was convened to negotiate an end to the Spanish–American War.[^3] After war was declared, Day had argued that Spain's colonies other than Cuba should be returned to it.[^3] McKinley instead decided that the United States would take control of the Philippines, Puerto Rico and Guam from Spain, and Day negotiated the peace on those terms.[^3] ## Court of Appeals and Circuit Courts service On May 24, 1889, President Benjamin Harrison gave Day a recess appointment to the federal district court for the Northern District of Ohio. Day did not accept it.[^4] On February 25, 1899, McKinley nominated Day to a newly created joint seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and the United States Circuit Courts for the Sixth Circuit. The seat was authorized by 30 Stat. 803.[^4] The [[United States Senate]] confirmed him on February 28, 1899, and his commission issued that day.[^4] He left the seat on February 23, 1903, when he was elevated to the Supreme Court.[^4] ## Supreme Court service Roosevelt nominated Day to the Supreme Court on February 19, 1903, to fill the seat of [[George Shiras Jr.]][^5] Roosevelt had first offered that seat to [[William Howard Taft]]. Taft turned it down so that he could stay on as governor of the Philippines.[^5] The Senate confirmed Day on February 23, 1903, and he was sworn in on March 2, 1903.[^5] As circuit justice he was assigned to the Seventh Circuit from March 9, 1903, through March 17, 1912. He was then assigned to the Sixth Circuit from March 18, 1912, through November 13, 1922.[^5] ### Notable cases Day wrote 439 opinions during his years on the Court, and 18 of them were dissents.[^6] In antitrust cases he voted with the majority throughout his tenure.[^6] He sided with the government in the Standard Oil, American Tobacco and Union Pacific cases of 1911 and 1912, and again in the Southern Pacific case of 1922.[^6] Day wrote for the Court in *Weeks v. United States*, 232 U.S. 383 (1914).[^6][^8] The Court held that seizing documents from a private home without a warrant violated the Fourth Amendment's bar on unreasonable searches and seizures.[^6][^8] It further held that evidence taken that way may not be used in federal criminal prosecutions.[^6][^8] Other opinions Day authored include:[^8] - *Ware & Leland v. Mobile County*, 209 U.S. 405 (1908): contracts selling cotton for future delivery that do not require interstate shipment are not interstate commerce.[^8] - *Bobbs-Merrill Co. v. Straus*, 210 U.S. 339 (1908): helped establish the first-sale doctrine in United States copyright law.[^8] - *Muskrat v. United States*, 219 U.S. 346 (1911): federal courts have jurisdiction only over an actual controversy between parties.[^8] - *Flint v. Stone Tracy Co.*, 220 U.S. 107 (1911): the privilege of operating in corporate form justifies an income tax.[^8] - *Bauer & Cie. v. O'Donnell*, 229 U.S. 1 (1913): a patent holder cannot extend patent rights through a licensing agreement.[^8] - *Buchanan v. Warley*, 245 U.S. 60 (1917): municipal ordinances segregating neighborhoods are unconstitutional.[^8] - *Hammer v. Dagenhart*, 247 U.S. 251 (1918): laws regulating child labor lie outside Congress's power under the commerce clause.[^8] - *Hawke v. Smith*, 253 U.S. 221 (1920): once a federal constitutional amendment has passed, a state referendum cannot rescind the legislature's ratification of it.[^8] After Chief Justice [[Edward Douglass White]] died, Day made a proposal to President Warren G. Harding, a fellow Ohioan.[^7] Harding would appoint Day chief justice, and after six months Day would retire so that former president Taft could take the post.[^7] Harding considered the plan. When Taft learned of it, he took the view that a short-term appointment would not serve the office well.[^7] ## Retirement and death Day left the Court on November 13, 1922.[^9] For a short time afterward he acted as Umpire of the Mixed Claims Commission to Adjudicate War Claims against Germany.[^9] He died at age 74 on July 9, 1923, at his home on Mackinac Island, Michigan, known as the Annex and now named Day Cottage.[^9] He was buried in West Lawn Cemetery in Canton.[^9] ## Personal life On August 24, 1875, Day married Mary Elizabeth Schaefer of Canton, the daughter of Louis Schaefer. They remained married until her death in 1912.[^10] Their four sons were William L., Rufus S., Stephen A. and Luther. All four were appellate lawyers who litigated cases before the Supreme Court.[^10] Through his son Luther, Day is the great-great-grandfather of the actress Anna Gunn.[^10] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125, retrieved 2026-10-26), lead section — establishes dates of life, Supreme Court tenure 1903–1922, and service as Secretary of State and Sixth Circuit judge. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Early life and career" — establishes birth, family, education, bar admission, and Canton law practice. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Early life and career" — establishes the McKinley association, State Department posts, and Peace Commission service. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^4]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Court of Appeals and Circuit Courts service" — establishes the 1889 recess appointment, the 1899 nomination under 30 Stat. 803, confirmation and commission, and the 1903 end of service. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^5]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Supreme Court service" — establishes the 1903 nomination, Senate confirmation, oath, and circuit-justice assignments. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^6]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Supreme Court service: Notable cases" — establishes the opinion and dissent counts, antitrust votes, and *Weeks v. United States*. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^7]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Supreme Court service: Notable cases" — establishes Day's proposal to Harding concerning the chief justiceship and Taft's view of it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^8]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Selected opinions authored by Day" — establishes case citations and holdings. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^9]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Retirement and death" — establishes the retirement date, Mixed Claims Commission service, death, and burial. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day [^10]: Wikipedia contributors, *William R. Day* (revision 1351784125), "Personal life" — establishes the marriage, the sons, and their descendants. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_R._Day