Constitutional Places
A Bottle of Ollie’s World’s Best Bar-B-Q Sauce for the Winner of FantasySCOTUS.net
Apr 24th
I just received 6 bottles of Ollie’s World’s Best Bar-B-Q Sauce. If that isn’t ringing a bell, remember Katzenbach v. McClung? Ollie’s World Famous B-B-Q refused to comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Supreme Court found that their discriminatory practices had an effect on interestate commerce, and Congress could regulate them.
Although Ollie’s closed down a few years ago, bottles of the BBQ sauce are still available. In the word’s of Professor Adam Winkler, “[O]llies’ BBQ sauce. Spicy with a tinge of racism.” I’m still searching for some Carolene Products Filled Milk. I have a few leads 
And the Chief Justice of FantasySCOTUS.net League will receive a bottle of Alabama’s finest. Good luck!
Note how the logo on the bottle matches the logo on the sign in front of the restaurant. Authentic.
Want some Ollie’s BBQ Sauce? Katzenbach v. McClung mementos FTW!
Apr 19th
While researching our book, Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces, I’ve located a site that sells bottles of Ollie’s BBQ Sauce. If that isn’t ringing a bell, remember Katzenbach v. McClung? Ollie’s World Famous B-B-Q refused to comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Supreme Court found that their discriminatory practices had an effect on interestate commerce, and Congress could regulate them.
Now you can own a special memento. Although Ollie’s closed down a few years ago, bottles of the BBQ sauce are still available.
Order now from Pilleteri.com. 6 bottles is only $26.04.
And here are some other Ollie related images:
Bleg: Know any literary agents who may be interested in Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces?
Feb 16th
I would like to tap the collective wisdom of the crowds that read this blog (and there are quite a lot of you), and bleg a bit.
If anyone knows any literary agents who may be interested in our new book, Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces, please drop me a line at jblackman@harlaninstitute.org. Here is a brief description of the Project:
Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces will bring the Constitution to life by shining a light on the faces and places that gave rise to famous Supreme Court cases, and telling their stories. All too often, law school and legal practice reduce the Constitution to nothing more than a series of rules, holdings, and three-part tests, neglecting the human disputes that sparked the very cases articulating those rules. Behind all constitutional cases are stories, stories of actual people who are affected by the rule of law. This volume will take the reader through a visual tour of some of the most famous cases in constitutional law history. Along this journey, the reader will see some rare archived photos of the people and places involved; hear the facts of the cases retold from a human perspective; and most importantly, learn the history and see photographs of what happened to those people and places after the Supreme Court decided their fates. This collection highlights the places and faces of constitutional law in order to illuminate the text, history, and modern-day relevance of our Constitution.
We have a full proposal, annotated table of contents, sample chapters, and other materials available upon request. I have already made contact with a number of agents, and am trying to spread the net as broadly as possible.
JoshCast of Constitutional Voices: Interview with Robert Corbin, Prosecutor in Miranda v. Arizona
Feb 10th
This is a very special JoshCast. As part of my research for Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces, I have been in touch with many of the people involved in some of the most famous Supreme Court opinions. In addition to obtaining images of Constitutional Places and Constitutional Faces, we are now conducting interviews as part of a new feature series called Constitutional Voices. Constitutional Voices will be a series of audio interviews with individuals associated with each case — including the lawyers involved, the parties themselves, or even descendants of those parties — and will form a living-history compendium of constitutional stories.
I did an interview this morning with Bob Corbin. Bob was the county prosecutor in Phoenix, Arizona in 1966 when the Supreme Court threw out Miranda’s Conviction. Later, Bob became the Attorney General of Arizona. Bob relayed some amazing stories of how they managed to convict Miranda, even without the confession. Also, interesting to note, is the officers did advise Miranda that anything he said could be used against him in a court of law, though they did not advise him of his right to counsel. Enjoy.
H/T Dave Hardy for putting me in touch with Robert.
Constitutional Places Unearthed Document: Advertisement for Lochner’s Home Bakery
Feb 8th
This image, obtained from the archives of the Oneida County Clerk is a reproduction of an advertisement for Joseph F. Lochner’s bakery in Utica, New York. I have spent a lot of time look at Lochner photos, and I have NEVER before seen this image. I think the Harlan Institute unearthed it form the bellows of the archives in Utica. I am just ecstatic. This advertisement will form the centerpiece of our chapter on Economic Liberties in the forthcoming book, Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces. We are just ecstatic at this amazing find.
According to the ad, Lochner’s Home Bakery “is one of the oldest and most reliable bakeries in Central New York. We pride ourself on Uniformity, Purity, Cleanliness.” If you ask me, I bet they made some real “healthful” bread. But I wonder what their hours were like?
Treasures from the National Archives: Great Pictures of Supreme Court Opinions
Feb 6th
One of the best parts of developing Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces has been the research. The National Archives maintains a site call Our Documents, and they have a collection of 100 Milestone Documents.
Here are some of the coolest pics.
Federalist Papers, No. 10 & No. 51 (1787-1788)
Constitutional Places – Draft Layouts of Kelo v. New London and Katzenbach v. McClung
Feb 5th
My co-author Yaakov Roth and I just finished drafts for the first two pieces in our forthcoming book, Constitutional Places, Constitutional Faces. We chose Kelo v. City of New London and Katzenbach v. McClung. I am feeling really pumped. This book is going to be pretty cool. To check out more photographs, check out our Photo Album and www.ConstitutionalPlaces.com. Anyone interested in contributing photographs? Please send them to jblackman@harlaninstitute.org. Stay tuned for more.
For those of you who like a challenge, take a look at the curlicue below the case name. Where did I copy that symbol from? Hint: It’s too late to apologize.
Kelo v. City of New London (High Resolution PDF)
Kelo v. City of New London (Low Resolution PDF)
Katzenbach v. McClung (High Resolution PDF)
Katzenbach v. McClung (Low Resolution PDF)
Thanks to Corinna Cohn for optimizing these PDFs.
Constitutional Places Loaded Onto Google Earth
Jan 17th
Last week, I introduced a new project called Constitutional Places. A book with photographs of the places behind famous constitutional law cases. We are keeping a liveblog of the book on Google Earth. Check it out below. And if you have any additional places you’d like to photograph, send them to jblackman@harlaninstitute.org As we get more places, we’ll add them to the map.
Many thanks to Ilya Somin at Volokh for linking to our project.
View Constitutional Places in a larger map
Constitutional Places: A New Coffee Table Book from the Harlan Institute for Constitutional Studies.
Jan 12th
The Harlan Institute for Constitutional Studies is currently assembling a Coffee Table book for aficionados of the United States Supreme Court, titled Constitutional Places. My co-founder, Yaakov Roth, and I are assembling modern photographs of some of the more famous locations in constitutional law history. All profits will go towards supporting our growing organization.
What became of Lochner’s bakery? What about the school from Brown v. Board? With pictures of each location, we will provide a brief blurb of the history of the case, and perhaps most interestingly, the fallout of the SCOTUS opinion, and what happened after the case. Seeing the places, and the people affected, makes the Constitution come alive.
In keeping with the mission of the Harlan Institute, which seeks to utilize the power of Web 2.0 to make the Constitution more accessible, we are asking (blegging in the cyber lingo) bloggers across the Nation to help us out, and submit photographs. You will be credited in the ultimate production. If you live in any of these areas, we will find the exact location, and help you track it down. If you are interested in participating in this worthwhile and fun project, please send photographs to jblackman@harlaninstitute.org.
Here are some of the places we are considering, but of course, we are open to any other cool places. There are an infinite number of possibilities and we encourage you to be creative.
1. Lochner v. New York, 198 U.S. 45 (1905): Lochner’s Home Bakery in Utica, NY
2. Erie Railroad v. Tompkins, 304 U.S. 64 (1938): the Erie Railroad near Hughestown, PA
3. Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954): Schoolhouse in Topeka, KS
4. Plessy v. Ferguson, 163 U.S. 537 (1896): old rail car somewhere in LA
5. Kelo v. City of New London, 545 U.S. 469 (2005): the former site of Kelo’s house in New London, CT
6. Griswold v. Connecticut, 381 U.S. 479 (1965): the Planned Parenthood League in New Haven, CT
7. Nebbia v. New York, 291 U.S. 502 (1934): Nebbia’s grocery store in Rochester, NY
8. A.L.A. Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States, 295 U.S. 495 (1935): chicken slaughterhouse in Brooklyn, NY
9. West Coast Hotel v. Parrish, 300 U.S. 379 (1937): Cascadian Hotel in Wenatchee, WA
10. Bush v. Gore, 531 U.S. 98 (2000): polling place in Broward County, FL
11. Yick-Wo v. Hopkins, 118 U.S. 356 (1886): the laundry shop in San Francisco, CA
12. United States v. Cruickshank, 92 U.S. 542 (1875): site of Colfax Massacre in Colfax, LA
13. Gonzales v. Raich, 545 U.S. 1 (2005): Angel Raich’s marijuana “farm” in Oakland, CA
14. United States v. Lopez, 514 U.S. 549 (1995): Edison High School in San Antonio, TX
15. Printz v. United States, 521 U.S. 898 (1997): sheriff’s office in Ravalli County, MT; or perhaps a gun shop
16. Barnes v. Glen Theatre, Inc., 501 U.S. 560 (1991): (exterior of) Glen Theatre or Kitty Kat Lounge in South Bend, IN
17. Van Orden v. Perry, 545 U.S. 677 (2005): Ten Commandments on Capitol grounds in Austin, TX
18. Pleasant Grove City v. Summum (2009): Pioneer Park in Pleasant Grove, UT
19. Salazar v. Buono (2010): Cross in Mojave National Preserve near San Bernardino, CA
20. United States v. Nixon, 418 U.S. 683 (1974): the Watergate Hotel
21. District of Columbia v. Heller, 554 U.S. _ (2008): Dick Heller’s home in Washington, DC
22. Katz v. United States, 389 U.S. 347 (1967): site of “reasonable expectation of privacy” phone booth in Los Angeles, CA
23. Kyllo v. United States, 533 U.S. 27 (2001): house searched by infrared technology, a triplex on Rhododendron Drive in Florence, OR.
24. Boumediene v. Bush, 553 U.S. __ (2008): Camp X-Ray, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
25. Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee, 14 U.S. 304 (1816): land in Fairfax, VA
26. Berman v. Parker, 348 U.S. 26 (1954): former site of department store in Project Area B in Southwest Washington, DC
27. Williamson v. Lee Optical Co., 348 U.S. 483 (1955): site of optician somewhere in OK
28. Wickard v. Filburn, 317 U.S. 111 (1942): site of Filburn’s farm in Montgomery County, OH
29. Rosenberger v. Univ. of Virginia, 515 U.S. 819 (1995): student activities office (or similar), Charlottesville, VA
30. McCulloch v. Maryland, 17 U.S. 316 (1819): site of Second Bank of the United States in Baltimore, MD
31. Gibbons v. Ogden, 22 U.S. 1 (1824): port in Elizabethtown, NJ or New York City, NY
32. Dartmouth College v. Woodward, 17 U.S. 518 (1817): old building at Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH
33. Board of Education of Kiryas Joel Village v. Grumet, 512 U.S. 687 (1994): Satmar religious school in Kiryas Joel, NY
34. Larkin v. Grendel’s Den, Inc., 459 U.S. 116 (1982): the Grendel’s Den pub in Cambridge, MA
35. Missouri v. Jenkins, 515 U.S. 70 (1995): the extremely well-funded public schools in the Kansas City, Missouri, School District in Kansas City, MO
36. Stenberg v. Carhart, 530 U.S. 914 (2000): Carhart’s abortion clinic in Omaha, NE
37. South Dakota v. Dole, 483 U.S. 203 (1987): any highway in SD
38. Tinker v. Des Moines Ind. Community School District, 393 U.S. 503 (1969): high school in Des Moines, IA
39. Grutter v. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 306 (2003) and Gratz v. Bollinger: admissions office of University of Michigan Law School / undergraduate, Ann Arbor, MI
40. Shelley v. Kraemer, 334 U.S. 1 (1948): house subject to racial covenant, Labadie Ave between Taylor and Cora Aves., in St. Louis, MO
41. Chicago, Burlington & Quincy R.R. v. City of Chicago, 166 U.S. 226 (1897): condemned railroad right of way on Rockwell Street, Chicago, IL
42. Ward v. Rock Against Racism, 491 U.S. 781 (1989): concert area in Central Park, NY
43. United States v. Carolene Prods., Inc., : Litchfield Creamery Co. plant in Litchfield, IL,
44. Burton v. Wilmington Parking Authority, 365 U.S. 715 (1961): parking lot (outside and in, if there is still a coffee shop), at 9th St & Shipley St, Wilmington, DE
45. Corfield v. Coryell, 6 Fed. Cas. 546 (C.C.E.D.Pa. 1823): privileges and immunities clause, raking clams and oysters, Maurice River, Cumberland, County, NJ
Also, if anyone has any experience forming 501(c)(3) organizations, please contact me as well. We are going through the process now, and appreciate any advice.
Update We have posted a few constitutional places to this Google Map.
View Constitutional Places in a larger map
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