Florence Ellinwood Allen - Later Years

Later Years

In early March 1934, President Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Allen to the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, succeeding Smith Hickenlooper, who had died. It was widely reported that Allen was the first woman federal judge, but in 1928, Genevieve R. Cline had been named to the federal judiciary by President Calvin Coolidge; Cline served on the bench of the Customs Court. Allen was, however, the first woman to serve on an Article III federal court. Her nomination to the prestigious position received widespread praise. Newspaper articles describer Allen as "an able jurist" and a "profound student" of the law.

Allen continued her ongoing advocacy for women's rights. She was a member of the National Association of Business and Professional Women, and spoke at several of their conventions, and was a member of the National Association of Women Lawyers. Allen continued to advocate for an end to wars. In 1935, she was one of ten "outstanding American women", with Eleanor Roosevelt and feminist leader Carrie Chapman Catt, to contribute to Why Wars Must Cease. In her essay, Allen asserted that wars "unleash demoralizing instincts" such as "callousness, cynicism, and greed." She said they also contribute to numerous social problems, including the break-up of families, and increases in crime.

The press continued to speculate on Allen as a possible Supreme Court nominee. In early 1939, when Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis was about to retire, some of Allen's supporters tried to persuade President Roosevelt that it was time to name a woman, and they reminded the president that Judge Allen was extremely qualified. Chief among advocates on her behalf was Lillian D. Rock, former vice president of the National Association of Women Lawyers and chair of a newly created committee whose purpose was to encourage the appointment of more women to important positions in government. Allen was not named to the Supreme Court, however, and it was another male judge, William O. Douglas, who replaced Justice Brandeis. For the next few years, every time a vacancy occurred, Allen's supporters would again suggest her, but to no avail.

Despite not being named to the Supreme Court, Judge Allen had plenty to occupy her time. On the Circuit Court, Sixth Circuit, she heard cases from Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee. In 1940, she wrote This Constitution of Ours. Even after World War II broke out, Allen remained steadfast in her determination to work for peace. She continued speaking and gave talks both in person and on radio. In 1944, the National Association of Women lawyers put her name forth as someone who should be involved in international peace negotiations. When the war ended, she continued to speak to civic groups, especially women's clubs. Her message was that relying on the United Nations would not prevent the next war. It was essential for individual citizens to keep demanding that each country—whether large or small—have respect for the rule of law. "To secure peace, there must be justice," she told 3,000 attendees at a conference of the National Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs. "There cannot be justice unless there is a rebirth of moral principle among the nations. There cannot be a rebirth of moral principle unless the conscience of the peoples becomes articulate." Allen herself remained a very articulate spokeswoman on the issues she cared about. She was regarded as such a credible figure that in 1947, the American Academy of Political and Social Science asked her to do a study of women's voting patterns, to offer her assessment of whether women were in fact using the franchise, and whether they were active in the political process. In later talks, Allen expressed the opinion that while many women were in fact voting and speaking out on issues, there was a generational shift taking place. The dynamic women leaders who had fought for suffrage and brought about greater participation for women in other areas of public life were now deceased, and they had not yet been replaced. She expressed concern about this lack of new and dynamic leadership, and hoped new leaders would emerge.

Allen's supporters again sought to have her appointed to the United States Supreme Court during Harry S. Truman's presidency, but Truman seemed to be opposed to having a woman sitting on the highest court of the land. Allen was later told that Truman's reluctance to appoint her had to do with his belief that having a woman around would make the male judges uncomfortable. "They say they couldn't sit around with their robes off and their feet up and discuss the problems." Truman's reluctance to appoint a woman extended to other venues. When there were more than 20 Federal court vacancies, his original list of nominees was all male; only after some influential women politicians protested, the president named one woman, Burnita Shelton Matthews, to the Federal District Court bench in 1949. Judge Allen was not chosen for any further promotions until 1958. At that time, she became the first woman to serve as chief judge of a United States Court of Appeals. In 1959, she retired, but maintained the title of Senior Judge of the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, available to step in and hear a case if needed. After her retirement, she continued to do speaking engagements and began working on her autobiography. It was called To Do Justly, and was published in the autumn of 1965.

In declining health after falling and breaking her hip, she died on September 13, 1966 in Mentor, Ohio, where she had been living with a distant cousin since her retirement. She was 82.