Rehnquist-O'Connor Marriage Proposal Revealed

Law clerk William Rehnquist wrote from Washington D.C., "Sandy, will you marry me this summer?" But Sandra Day had already moved on to another Stanford Law School classmate, John Jay O'Connor:

NPR

"Some personal secrets are so well-kept that even family and friends are oblivious. So it is with the story of the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist's marriage proposal to a Stanford Law School classmate in the early 1950s."

"The reveal comes in a new book entitled First by author Evan Thomas, set to be published in March 2019. Thomas, while doing his research, found the Rehnquist letters among [Sandra Day] O'Connor's correspondence."

"When 19-year-old Sandra Day entered Stanford Law School in 1949, her frequent seatmate was 26-year-old Bill Rehnquist, attending Stanford on the GI Bill. The two shared their equally meticulous class notes and eventually were dating regularly. But by December of their second year, she broke up with him while somehow retaining what she called their 'study buddy' relationship"

"it appears that neither friends, colleagues nor family knew of the marriage proposal — until now. O'Connor's son, Jay, says that he and his siblings were "surprised," though they knew their mother and Rehnquist had dated."

"O'Connor and Rehnquist remained close personal friends. They both ended up living in Phoenix, socialized together often and even were neighbors, according to Jay....'Not only did they have a wonderful working relationship for over 25 years on the court, they had a wonderful friendship their entire life.'"

"Rehnquist is said to have been one of those who privately suggested O'Connor to President Reagan as a potential Supreme Court nominee in 1981."