The Fool of the Family: Nativism and the Ku Klux Klan in Oregon's 1922 Election
Loading...
Date
2014-06
Authors
Pellegrini, Emily
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of Oregon
Abstract
This thesis examines the intersection of national nativist trends with local peculiarities in
Oregon's 1922 election. A surge of nativism in the United States during the post World War I period
aided in the rapid expansion of the Second Ku Klux Klan, which came to be the prevailing political force
in Oregon in the early 1920s. The KKK did not bring nativism to Oregon; rather, the state's unique social
and political culture, coupled with the refusal of sitting Governor, Ben W. Olcott to recognize the Klan as
a threat to social harmony, aided in the achievement of unprecedented Klan success in Oregon. The scope
of this success is witnessed in the 1922 election, which resulted in a victory for a Klan backed governor,
Walter M. Pierce, and the passage of the nation's first Compulsory Education Bill. To understand the
prevailing sentiments before, during, and after the election this thesis analyzes the correspondence and
speeches of both governors, as well as contemporary newspapers. As Oregon attempted to answer
questions of the relationship between state and identity plaguing the nation it took actions that retain
significance not only for Oregonians, but all Americans.
Description
77 pages. A thesis presented to the Department of History and the Clark Honors College of the University of Oregon in partial fulfillment of the requirements for degree of Bachelor of Arts, Spring 2014.
Keywords
Elections, Ku Klux Klan, Nativism, Ben W. Olcott, Walter M. Pierce, C.C. Chapman, 1922