Morris Sheppard "Buzz" Arnold was born on October 8, 1941, in Texarkana, Miller County, Arkansas.
After receiving a B.A. in electrical engineering from the University of Arkansas, Arnold remained in Fayetteville to earn his J.D. degree and then went to Harvard for his LL.M. and S.J.D. degrees.
He taught at numerous law schools, including Indiana University, the University of Pennsylvania, and Stanford. In 1985 Arnold was appointed to a federal judgeship in the US District Court, and in 1992 he transferred to the US Court of Appeals. From 2008 to 2013, Arnold served on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review.
In addition to his legal career, Arnold is a respected historian who has authored several books, including The Rumble of a Distant Drum: The Quapaws and Old World Newcomers, 1673-1804 and Unequal Laws unto a Savage Race: European Legal Traditions in Arkansas, 1686-1836. He worked with the French to bring the robe of the three villages to an exhibit at the Historic Arkansas Museum. For his scholarship, Arnold received a medal from the Ordre des Palmes Académiques.
#1: Composite image of early photo of Morris Arnold and still frame from Pryor Center video interview
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#2: Temperance Lucinda Arnold, great-grandmother of Morris Arnold, at age 17; 1856
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#3: W. H. Arnold residence in Texarkana
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#4: Lucy, Jodie (or William Jr.), and Ruth Arnold in horse-drawn buggy, Texarkana; ca. 1895
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#5: William H. Arnold, grandfather of Morris Arnold, at age 10; ca. 1870
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#6: William H. Arnold, grandfather of Morris Arnold, ca. 1890
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#7: Childhood portrait of Richard Lewis Arnold, father of Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#8: Portrait of Katherine Lewis Arnold and her son, Richard Lewis Arnold, the grandmother and father of Morris Arnold; 1923
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#9: Portrait of Richard Lewis Arnold with his mother, Katherine Lewis Arnold, the father and grandmother of Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#10: Southern Club, Richard Lewis Arnold, 3rd row from bottom, next to last, ca. 1924-25
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#11: Richard Lewis Arnold, father of Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#12: Richard and sister, Lucy Arnold, ca. 1925
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#13: Arnold law firm: Richard, William Jr., David, and William Sr., ca. 1923
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#14: Kate Arnold, wife of W. H. Arnold and grandmother of Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#15: William H. Arnold, grandfather of Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#16: William H. and Kate Arnold, grandparents of Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#17: Noah P. Sanderson and family in 1912 Rambler; new family home in Texarkana in background
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#18: Sanderson brothers, back row: Jim, Alex, Morris, front row: Hiram, Noah, Jeff; maternal great-grandfather and uncles of Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#19: Four generations: baby, Janet Sheppard; mother, Lucille Sanderson Sheppard; grandmother, Susan Ferguson Sanderson; great-grandfather, William Thomas Ferguson; ca. 1911
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#20: Four generations: baby, Janet Sheppard, mother, Lucille Sanderson Sheppard, grandfather, Noah Phillips Sanderson, great-grandmother, Martha Elizabeth Phillips Sanderson; ca. 1911
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#21: Lucille Sanderson Sheppard and daughter, Janet Sheppard, grandmother and mother of Morris Arnold, ca. 1913
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#22: Portrait of sisters Janet, Lucille, and Susan Sheppard, mother and aunts of Morris Arnold, ca. 1920
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#23: Lucille Sanderson Sheppard and daughter, Janet Sheppard Arnold, grandmother and mother of Morris Arnold, ca. 1935
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#24: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signing the country's first peacetime selective service act, Sept. 16, 1940; from left: Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson, Rep. A. J. May of Kentucky, US Army Chief of Staff George C. Marshall, Senator Morris Sheppard of Texas
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#25: Information on back of photo: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signing the country's first peacetime selective service act, Sept. 16, 1940; from left: Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson, Rep. A. J. May of Kentucky, US Army Chief of Staff George C. Marshall, Senator Morris Sheppard of Texas
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#26: Janet Sheppard Arnold with sons, Morris and Richard; Texarkana, ca. 1946
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#27: Richard, Janet, and Morris Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#28: Jane Sheppard Arnold, ca. 1950
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#29: Morris Sheppard Arnold as young boy
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#30: Morris Arnold, age 16, behind camera at KCMC-TV in Shreveport, Louisiana; ca. 1958
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#31: Morris Arnold, age 19, building control board for film projection system at KTAL-TV; ca. 1961
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#32: Photo of Morris "Buzz" Arnold, 1965 Razorback yearbook
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#33: Portrait of Morris "Buzz" Arnold, 1965 Razorback yearbook
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#34: Morris Arnold in Harvard office
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#35: Professor Morris Arnold with guitar
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#36: Morris Arnold with racehorse and unidentified couple
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#37: Morris Arnold with Prince Philip at the centenary celebration of the Selden Society; Gray's Inn, London; ca. 1988
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#38: Morris Arnold, state chairman of the Republican Party of Arkansas, shaking hands with President Ronald Reagan, ca. 1983
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#39: Judge Richard S. Arnold, Judge Theodore McMillian, and Judge Morris S. Arnold on the bench of 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, ca. 1986
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#40: Judge Morris "Buzz" Arnold with President George H. W. Bush
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#41: Gail and Morris Arnold in judge's chambers
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#42: Portrait of Judge Morris S. Arnold
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#43: From left: Richard Arnold, Richard's granddaughter, and Morris Arnold, 1988
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#44: Portrait of Judge Morris Arnold, 2008
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
#45: Morris Arnold giving speech at Fulbright College graduation, ca. 1994
© Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History, University of Arkansas
