Photograph of Sandra Day O'Connor being sworn in a Supreme Court Justice by Chief Justice Warren Burger, her husband John O'Connor looks on., 1981

In 1981, Sandra Day O’Connor became the first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
She served as an Associate Justice from 1981 to 2006. Prior to serving on the court, O'Connor was an elected official and judge in Arizona. She served as the Republican leader in the Arizona Senate, making her the first female Majority Leader in the United States. In 2009, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States.