Born in Winston County, Alabama, in 1918, Frank M. Johnson, Jr. rose above the prejudices of his time to become one of the great jurists in American history. He married his Winston County sweetheart, Ruth Jenkins, in 1938, served in the infantry under General Patton during World War II, was twice wounded, and returned to Alabama in 1946 to practice law. In 1955, President Eisenhower appointed him federal district judge for the Middle District of Alabama, and in 1979 President Carter elevated him to the United States Court of Appeals. In war and peace, he enforced the rights of forgotten segments of society and refused to yield to social and political pressure to uphold entrenched traditions of oppression and neglect. His landmark decisions in desegregation, voting rights, civil liberties, mental health, and prison reform inspired the nation and transformed its understanding of the United States Constitution. True to his "Free State of Winston" roots, he gave full meaning to the principle of equality under the law, and though his service as a federal judge kept him in Montgomery, his heart remained in Winston County.