John M. Woolsey Jr.

Who was John M. Woolsey Jr.?

John M. Woolsey, Jr. was an American attorney in Boston, Massachusetts.

Woolsey graduated from Yale College in 1938 and Yale Law School in 1941. During World War II he was a Lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve, where he served in the Office of Naval Intelligence in Washington, 1942-1945. He was assigned by the Navy to Justice Robert H. Jackson's staff at the Nuremberg Trials prosecuting Nazi war criminals. At the trial, he worked on the prosecution brief regarding aggressive war against Czechoslovakia and Poland, work for which he received Czechoslovakia's Order of the White Lion. He then joined the Boston law firm of Herrick, Smith, Donald, Farley & Ketchum. He remained at Herrick & Smith for all of his active professional career. After his retirement in 1984, he became 'of counsel' for the Boston law firm of Palmer & Dodge LLC.

He participated in many community organizations in the Boston area and was a lifelong conservationist. From 1950 on, he was involved with The Trustees of Reservations, for which he served as President 1977-1980. He also worked with the Massachusetts Audubon Society and several land trusts. He was a member of the American Antiquarian Society.