Harlem Park was an amusement park and Chautauqua site in Rockford, Illinois that operated from 1891 to 1928. It was located on 47 wooded acres (0.2 km) east of Harlem Blvd. on the west bank of the Rock River on Rockford's north side. The main entrance was located between Harper and Brown Avenues.
105-460: Harlem Park was known for its roller coaster, "The Famous Switchback Railway - Cars Run 1100 Feet In 26 Seconds". The park also featured: Steam Merry Go Around (later Electric Carousel), Three Way Figure Eight Scenic Railway, Shoot the Chutes, Giant Flying Circle Swing, Maze, The Old Mill (Tunnel of Love), Laughing Gallery Fun House, boat rentals, picnic grounds, a 5000-seat auditorium, a dance pavilion,
210-543: A party platform that repudiated Cleveland, attacked the conservative rulings of the Supreme Court, and called the gold standard "not only un-American but anti-American". Conservative Democrats demanded a debate on the party platform, and on the third day of the convention, each side put forth speakers to debate free silver and the gold standard. Bryan and Senator Benjamin Tillman of South Carolina were chosen as
315-507: A 2,000-foot seawall was built on the river bank and the land behind it was built up by as much as six feet with material dredged from the river. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 brought the project to a standstill and it was 1948 before the first home was built in the Rock Terrace subdivision. William Jennings Bryan William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860 – July 26, 1925) was an American lawyer, orator, and politician. He
420-421: A Missouri senator whose career had been almost wholly unremarkable. Bryan's motivation was not any belief that Cockrell could defeat Roosevelt in the election, but rather that he would lose decisively, thus paving the way for Bryan to be re-nominated in 1908. However, the possibility of Hearst getting the nomination alarmed the party's moderates enough that they moved to support Parker, who was narrowly nominated on
525-532: A cabinet consisting largely of conservative Democrats like Morton, who became Cleveland's secretary of agriculture . Shortly after Cleveland had taken office, a series of bank closures brought on the Panic of 1893 , a major economic crisis. In response, Cleveland called a special session of Congress to call for the repeal of the 1890 Sherman Silver Purchase Act , which required the federal government to purchase several million ounces of silver every month. Bryan mounted
630-591: A campaign to save the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, but a coalition of Republicans and Democrats successfully repealed it. Bryan, however, was successful in passing an amendment that provided for the establishment of the first peacetime federal income tax. As the economy declined after 1893, the reforms favored by Bryan and the Populists became more popular among many voters. Rather than running for re-election in 1894, Bryan sought election to
735-463: A cross of gold. By 1896, free silver forces were ascendant within the party. Though many Democratic leaders were not as enthusiastic about free silver as Bryan was, most recognized the need to distance the party from the unpopular policies of the Cleveland administration. By the start of the 1896 Democratic National Convention , Representative Richard P. Bland , a long-time champion of free silver,
840-578: A fierce opponent of American imperialism , and much of his campaign centered on that issue. In the election, McKinley again defeated Bryan and won several Western states that Bryan had won in 1896. Bryan's influence in the party weakened after the 1900 election, and the Democrats nominated the conservative Alton B. Parker in the 1904 presidential election . Bryan regained his stature in the party after Parker's resounding defeat by Theodore Roosevelt and voters from both parties increasingly embraced some of
945-488: A general indication that the candidate will soon conclude his speech. An example of this comes from New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller , who would constantly use the phrase "the brotherhood of man, under the fatherhood of God" toward the end of his speeches during his multiple bids for the Republican presidential nomination. Reporters covering Rockefeller came to abbreviate the expression as BOMFOG . An example
1050-690: A large crowd upon his return to the United States in 1906 and was widely seen as the likely 1908 Democratic presidential nominee. Partly due to the efforts of muckraking journalists, voters had become increasingly open to progressive ideas since 1904. President Roosevelt himself had moved to the left, favoring federal regulation of railroad rates and meatpacking plants. However, Bryan continued to favor more far-reaching reforms, including federal regulation of banks and securities , protections for union organizers and federal spending on highway construction and education. Bryan also briefly expressed support for
1155-649: A last resort, appeal to force". At Governor Silas A. Holcomb 's request, Bryan recruited a 2000-man regiment for the Nebraska National Guard and the soldiers of the regiment elected Bryan as their leader. Under Colonel Bryan's command, the regiment was transported to Camp Cuba Libre in Florida , but the fighting between Spain and the United States ended before the regiment had been deployed to Cuba. Bryan's regiment remained in Florida for months after
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#17327977013071260-921: A major blow to the cause of American neutrality. The May 1915 sinking of RMS Lusitania by another German U-boat further galvanized anti-German sentiment in the United States, as 128 Americans died in the incident. In response, Bryan argued that the Allied blockade of Germany was as offensive as the German U-boat Campaign , and maintained that by traveling on British vessels "an American citizen can, by putting his own business above his regard for this country, assume for his own advantage unnecessary risks and thus involve his country in international complications". After Wilson sent an official message of protest to Germany and refused to warn Americans publicly not to travel on British ships, Bryan delivered his letter of resignation to Wilson on June 8, 1915. During
1365-642: A mansion located in Lincoln; Bryan referred to the house as the " Monticello of the West", and frequently invited politicians and diplomats to visit. Bryan's defeat in 1900 cost him his status as the clear leader of the Democratic Party and conservatives such as David B. Hill and Arthur Pue Gorman moved to re-establish their control over the party and return it to the policies of the Cleveland era. Meanwhile, Roosevelt succeeded McKinley as president after
1470-546: A minute, he turned out 63,000 words a day, enough to fill 52 columns of a newspaper. The Republican Party's superior organization and finances boosted McKinley's candidacy and, as in the previous campaign, most major newspapers favored McKinley. Bryan also had to contend with the Republican vice presidential nominee, Theodore Roosevelt , who had emerged a national celebrity in the Spanish–American War and proved to be
1575-400: A nationwide speaking tour designed to boost free silver, move his party away from the conservative policies of the Cleveland administration, lure Populists and free silver Republicans into the Democratic Party, and raise Bryan's public profile before the next election. Speaking fees allowed Bryan to give up his legal practice and devote himself full-time to oratory. If they dare to come out in
1680-455: A nearby general store , and began courting her. Bryan and Mary Elizabeth married on October 1, 1884. Mary Elizabeth would emerge as an important part of Bryan's career by managing his correspondence and helping him prepare speeches and articles. Bryan then studied law in Chicago at Union Law College (now Northwestern University School of Law ). While attending law school, Bryan worked for
1785-654: A negotiated end to the war, but the leaders of both the Entente and the Central Powers were ultimately uninterested in American mediation. Bryan remained firmly committed to neutrality, but Wilson and others within the administration became increasingly sympathetic to the Entente. The March 1915 Thrasher incident , in which a German U-boat sank the British steamship Falaba with a U.S. citizen on board, provided
1890-555: A progressive, the convention nominated Bryan's brother, Charles W. Bryan, for vice president. Bryan was disappointed by the nomination of Davis but strongly approved of the nomination of his brother and he delivered numerous campaign speeches in support of the Democratic ticket. Davis suffered one of the worst losses in the Democratic Party's history, taking just 29 percent of the vote against Republican President Calvin Coolidge and
1995-539: A reduction in tariff rates, the coinage of silver at a ratio equal to that of gold and action to stem the power of trusts . In part because of a series of strong debate performances, Bryan defeated incumbent Republican William James Connell , who had campaigned on the orthodox Republican platform, centered around the protective tariff . Bryan's victory made him only the second Democrat who ever represented Nebraska in Congress. Nationwide, Democrats picked up 76 seats in
2100-521: A resolution condemning the Ku Klux Klan because he expected that the organization would soon fold. Bryan disliked the Klan but never publicly attacked it. He also strongly opposed the candidacy of Al Smith due to Smith's hostility towards Prohibition. After over 100 ballots, the Democratic convention nominated John W. Davis , a conservative Wall Street lawyer. To balance the conservative Davis with
2205-564: A roller skating palace, a swimming pool (1922), and the midway bordered on both sides with such attractions as the ice cream parlor, lunch room, games of skill, and the rides. Beginning in 1902, the Assembly of the Rockford Chautauqua met at Harlem Park for two weeks each summer, with attendance of over 80,000 annually. Participants could rent tents and stay overnight on site, enjoying educational and entertainment programs during
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#17327977013072310-501: A sawed off tree stump to deliver their speech. In presidential campaigns in the United States, a candidate's speech at his or her party's presidential nominating convention usually forms the basis for the stump speech for the duration of the national campaign. Stump speeches are not meant to generate news, outside of local media covering a candidate's appearance. National media usually ignore their contents in their daily news coverage. The predictability of stump speeches gives reporters
2415-421: A strong progressive record as governor. As the 1912 Democratic National Convention approached, Bryan continued to deny that he would seek the presidency, but many journalists and politicians suspected that Bryan hoped a deadlocked convention would turn to him. After the start of the convention, Bryan engineered the passage of a resolution stating that the party was "opposed to the nomination of any candidate who
2520-478: A strong public speaker. Bryan's anti-imperialism failed to register with many voters and as the campaign neared its end, Bryan increasingly shifted to attacks on corporate power. He once again sought the vote of urban laborers by telling them to vote against the business interests that had "condemn[ed] the boys of this country to perpetual clerkship". By election day, few believed that Bryan would win, and McKinley ultimately prevailed once again over Bryan. Compared to
2625-458: A trip around the globe and visited eighteen countries in Asia and Europe. Bryan funded the trip with public speaking fees and a travelogue that was published on a weekly basis. Bryan's travels abroad were documented in a study called "The Old World and its Ways", in which he shared his thoughts on different topics such as those related to progressive politics and labor legislation. Bryan was greeted by
2730-523: A well-received speech that strongly defended Wilson's domestic record. Bryan served as a campaign surrogate for Wilson by delivering dozens of speeches, primarily to audiences west of the Mississippi River . Ultimately, Wilson narrowly prevailed over the Republican candidate, Charles Evans Hughes . When the United States entered World War I in April 1917, Bryan wrote to Wilson: "Believing it to be
2835-413: Is a representative of, or under any obligation to, J. Pierpont Morgan , Thomas F. Ryan , August Belmont , or any other member of the privilege-hunting and favor-seeking class". Clark and Wilson won the support of most delegates on the first several presidential ballots of the Democratic convention, but each fell short of the necessary two-thirds majority. After Tammany Hall came out in favor of Clark and
2940-621: Is acknowledged by historians as one of the most influential figures of the Progressive Era . William Jennings Bryan was born in Salem, Illinois , on March 19, 1860, to Silas Lillard Bryan and Mariah Elizabeth (Jennings) Bryan. Silas Bryan had been born in 1822 and had established a legal practice in Salem in 1851. He married Mariah, a former student of his at McKendree College , in 1852. Of Scots-Irish and English ancestry, Silas Bryan
3045-483: The 1916 presidential election , members of the Prohibition Party attempted to place Bryan into consideration for its presidential nomination, but he rejected the offer via telegram. Bryan supported Wilson's 1916 re-election campaign. Bryan did not attend as an official delegate, but the 1916 Democratic National Convention suspended its own rules to allow Bryan to address the convention; Bryan delivered
3150-536: The American Federation of Labor . As in previous campaigns, Bryan embarked on a public speaking tour to boost his candidacy but was later joined on the trail by Taft. Defying Bryan's confidence in his own victory, Taft decisively won the 1908 presidential election. Bryan won just a handful of states outside of the Solid South, as he failed to galvanize the support of urban laborers. Bryan remains
3255-595: The Eighteenth Amendment , which provided for nationwide Prohibition, in 1917. Two years later, Congress passed the Nineteenth Amendment , which granted women the right to vote nationwide. Both amendments were ratified in 1920. In 1916 Bryan expressed his belief to John Reed that the government "may properly impose a minimum wage, regulate hours of labor, pass usury laws, and enforce inspection of food, sanitation and housing conditions." During
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3360-500: The Twelfth Amendment . After the Democrats won the presidency in the 1912 election , Woodrow Wilson rewarded Bryan's support with the important cabinet position of Secretary of State. Bryan helped Wilson pass several progressive reforms through Congress. In 1915, he considered that Wilson was too harsh on Germany and finally resigned after Wilson had sent Germany a note of protest with a veiled threat of war in response to
3465-676: The United States Senate . He also became the editor-in-chief of the Omaha World-Herald although most editorial duties were performed by Richard Lee Metcalfe and Gilbert Hitchcock . Nationwide, the Republican Party won a huge victory in the elections of 1894 by gaining over 120 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. In Nebraska, despite Bryan's popularity, the Republicans elected a majority of
3570-626: The latter's assassination in September 1901 at the Pan-American Exposition , in Buffalo, New York. Roosevelt prosecuted antitrust cases and implemented other progressive policies, but Bryan argued that Roosevelt did not fully embrace progressive causes. Bryan called for a package of reforms, including a federal income tax, pure food and drug laws, a ban on corporate financing of campaigns, a constitutional amendment providing for
3675-490: The sinking of the Lusitania by a German U-boat . After leaving office, Bryan retained some of his influence within the Democratic Party, but he increasingly devoted himself to Prohibition , religious matters, and anti-evolution activism. He opposed Darwinism on religious and humanitarian grounds, most famously in the 1925 Scopes trial , dying soon after. Bryan has elicited mixed reactions from various commentators but
3780-415: The 1920s, Bryan called for further reforms, including agricultural subsidies, the guarantee of a living wage , full public financing of political campaigns and an end to legal gender discrimination. Some Prohibitionists and other Bryan supporters tried to convince the three-time presidential candidate to enter the 1920 presidential election , and a Literary Digest poll taken in mid-1920 ranked Bryan as
3885-526: The Democratic nomination, Bryan argued that the election represented "a contest between democracy and plutocracy". He also strongly criticized the U.S. annexation of the Philippines and compared it to Britain's past rule over the Thirteen Colonies . Bryan argued that the United States should refrain from imperialism and should seek to become the "supreme moral factor in the world's progress and
3990-490: The Eighteenth Amendment. Bryan declined the presidential nomination of the Prohibition Party and refused to campaign for Cox, which made the 1920 campaign the first presidential contest in over thirty years in which he did not actively campaign. Though he became less involved in Democratic politics after 1920, Bryan attended the 1924 Democratic National Convention as a delegate from Florida. He helped defeat
4095-557: The House Champ Clark . As Speaker, Clark could lay claim to progressive accomplishments, including the passage of constitutional amendments providing for the direct election of senators and the establishment of a federal income tax. However, Clark had alienated Bryan for his failure to lower the tariff and Bryan viewed the Speaker as overly friendly to conservative business interests. Wilson had criticized Bryan but had compiled
4200-520: The House and so obtained a majority in that chamber. The Populist Party, a third party that drew support from agrarian voters in the West, also won several seats in Congress. With the help of Representative William McKendree Springer , Bryan secured a coveted spot on the House Ways and Means Committee . He quickly earned a reputation as a talented orator and set out to gain a strong understanding of
4305-461: The New York delegation threw its support behind the Speaker, Bryan announced that he would support Wilson. In explaining his decision, Bryan stated that he could "not be a party to the nomination of any man... who will not, when elected, be absolutely free to carry out the anti-Morgan-Ryan-Belmont resolution". Bryan's speech marked the start of a long shift away from Clark: Wilson would finally clinch
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4410-536: The Republican candidate, William McKinley , over Bryan. Many urban newspapers in the Northeast and Midwest that had supported previous Democratic tickets also opposed Bryan's candidacy. Bryan, however, won the support of the Populist Party, which nominated a ticket consisting of Bryan and Thomas E. Watson of Georgia. Though Populist leaders feared that the nomination of the Democratic candidate would damage
4515-423: The Republican platform also advocated for progressive policies, which left relatively few major differences between the two major parties. One issue that the two parties differed on concerned deposit insurance, as Bryan favored requiring national banks to provide deposit insurance . Bryan largely unified the leaders of his own party and his pro-labor policies won him the first presidential endorsement ever issued by
4620-472: The Republican ranks helped give Wilson the presidency; he won over 400 electoral votes but only 41.8 percent of the popular vote. In the concurrent congressional elections, Democrats expanded their majority in the House and gained control of the Senate, which gave the party unified control of Congress and the presidency for the first time since the early 1890s. President Wilson named Bryan as Secretary of State,
4725-588: The South. After the election, Bryan returned to journalism and oratory and frequently appeared on the Chautauqua circuits to give well-attended lectures across the country. In January 1901, Bryan published the first issue of his weekly newspaper, The Commoner , which echoed his favorite political and religious themes. Bryan served as the editor and publisher of the newspaper; Charles Bryan, Mary Bryan and Richard Metcalfe also performed editorial duties when Bryan
4830-462: The United States had an obligation to "civilize" the Philippines, but Bryan strongly opposed what he saw as American imperialism . Despite his opposition to the annexation of the Philippines, Bryan urged his supporters to ratify the Treaty of Paris. He wanted to quickly bring an official end to the war and then to grant independence to the Philippines as soon as possible. With Bryan's support, the treaty
4935-414: The United States on the gold standard . Bryan remained popular in the Democratic Party and his supporters took control of party organizations throughout the country, but he initially resisted shifting his political focus from free silver. Foreign policy emerged as an important issue due to the ongoing Cuban War of Independence against Spain , as Bryan and many Americans supported Cuban independence. After
5040-625: The accepted arbiter of the world's disputes". By 1900, the American Anti-Imperialist League , which included individuals like Benjamin Harrison, Andrew Carnegie , Carl Schurz and Mark Twain , had emerged as the primary domestic organization opposed to the continued American control of the Philippines. Many of the leaders of the League had opposed Bryan in 1896 and continued to distrust Bryan and his followers. Despite
5145-482: The age of four. Silas was a Baptist and Mariah was a Methodist , but William's parents allowed him to choose his own church. At age fourteen, he had a conversion experience at a revival. He said that it was the most important day of his life. At 15, he was sent to attend Whipple Academy, a private school in Jacksonville, Illinois . After graduating from Whipple Academy, Bryan entered Illinois College , which
5250-497: The attorney Lyman Trumbull , a former senator and friend of Silas Bryan who would serve as an important political ally to the younger Bryan until his death in 1896. Bryan graduated from law school in 1883 with a Bachelor of Laws and returned to Jacksonville to take a position with a local law firm. Frustrated by the lack of political and economic opportunities in Jacksonville, Bryan and his wife moved west to Lincoln in 1887,
5355-467: The campaign trail, the Republican nominee conducted a front porch campaign . Hanna, meanwhile, raised an unprecedented amount of money, dispatched campaign surrogates and organized the distribution of millions of pieces of campaign literature. Facing a huge campaign finance disadvantage, the Democratic campaign relied largely on Bryan's oratorical skills. Breaking with the precedent set by most major party nominees, Bryan gave some 600 speeches, primarily in
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#17327977013075460-433: The capital of the fast-growing state of Nebraska. Bryan established a successful legal practice in Lincoln with partner Adolphus Talbot, a Republican whom Bryan had known in law school. Bryan also entered local politics by campaigning for Democrats like Julius Sterling Morton and Grover Cleveland . After earning notoriety for his effective speeches in 1888, Bryan ran for Congress in the 1890 election . Bryan called for
5565-404: The center of town, bound for the park. The park was also served by two steamboats running two miles upstream from the center of town and by an electric ferry bringing park patrons across the river. At the close of the 1928 summer season the park was closed, and some of the attractions were moved to Central Park (1921-1942) on the west edge of the city. In preparation for a residential subdivision,
5670-456: The convention, but he fell far short of the necessary two-thirds vote. Bryan finished in a distant second on the convention's first ballot, but his Cross of Gold speech had left a strong impression on many delegates. Despite the distrust of party leaders like Altgeld, who was wary of supporting an untested candidate, Bryan's strength grew over the next four ballots. He gained the lead on the fourth ballot and won his party's presidential nomination on
5775-404: The day and evening. Lecturers included William Jennings Bryan , "Fighting Bob" La Follette and Jane Addams . The Rockford Street Railway Company developed Harlem Park as a terminus for its streetcar line serving the north side of the city. A car barn stood near the park between Harlem Blvd. and Clinton Street on the south side of Brown Ave. During the summer, cars departed every 15 minutes from
5880-487: The direct election of senators, local ownership of utilities, and the state adoption of the initiative and the referendum , and provisions for old age. He also criticized Roosevelt's foreign policy and attacked Roosevelt's decision to invite Booker T. Washington to dine at the White House in 1901. Before the 1904 Democratic National Convention , Alton B. Parker , a New York and conservative ally of David Hill,
5985-493: The distrust, Bryan's strong stance against imperialism convinced most of the league's leadership to throw their support behind the Democratic nominee. Once again, the McKinley campaign established a massive financial advantage, and the Democratic campaign relied largely on Bryan's oratory. In a typical day Bryan gave four hour-long speeches and shorter talks that added up to six hours of speaking. At an average rate of 175 words
6090-469: The duty of the citizen to bear his part of the burden of war and his share of the peril, I hereby tender my services to the Government. Please enroll me as a private whenever I am needed and assign me to any work that I can do." Wilson declined to appoint Bryan to a federal position, but Bryan agreed to Wilson's request to provide public support for the war effort through his speeches and articles. After
6195-411: The eastern moneyed interests and crusaded for inflationary policies built around the expanded coinage of silver coins . In a repudiation of incumbent President Grover Cleveland and his conservative Bourbon Democrats , the Democratic convention nominated Bryan for president, making Bryan the youngest major party presidential nominee in U.S. history. Subsequently, Bryan was also nominated for president by
6300-462: The effects of inflation. Bryan sought re-election in 1892 with the support of many Populists and backed the Populist presidential candidate James B. Weaver over the Democratic presidential candidate, Grover Cleveland. Bryan won re-election by just 140 votes, and Cleveland defeated Weaver and incumbent Republican President Benjamin Harrison in the 1892 presidential election . Cleveland appointed
6405-493: The election by a fairly comfortable margin by taking 51 percent of the popular vote and 271 electoral votes . Democrats remained loyal to their champion after his defeat; many letters urged him to run again in the 1900 presidential election . William's younger brother, Charles W. Bryan , created a card file of supporters to whom the Bryans would send regular mailings to for the next thirty years. The Populist Party fractured after
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#17327977013076510-621: The election; many Populists, including James Weaver, followed Bryan into the Democratic Party, and others followed Eugene V. Debs into the Socialist Party . Because of better economic conditions for farmers and the effects of the Klondike Gold Rush in raising prices, free silver lost its potency as an electoral issue in the years after 1896. In 1900, President McKinley signed the Gold Standard Act , which put
6615-645: The end of the war, which prevented Bryan from taking an active role in the 1898 midterm elections . Bryan resigned his commission and left Florida in December 1898 after the United States and Spain had signed the Treaty of Paris . Bryan had supported the war to gain Cuba's independence, but he was outraged that the Treaty of Paris granted the United States control over the Philippines . Many Republicans believed that
6720-454: The endorsement of numerous local and state organizations. Conservative Democrats again sought to prevent Bryan's nomination, but were unable to unite around an alternative candidate. Bryan was nominated for president on the first ballot of the 1908 Democratic National Convention . He was joined by John W. Kern , a former state senator from the swing state of Indiana. Bryan campaigned on a party platform that reflected his long-held beliefs, but
6825-542: The entire East and industrial Midwest and did well along the border and the West Coast. Bryan swept the South and Mountain states and the wheat growing regions of the Midwest. Revivalistic Protestants cheered at Bryan's semi-religious rhetoric. Ethnic voters supported McKinley, who promised they would not be excluded from the new prosperity, as did more prosperous farmers and the fast-growing middle class. McKinley won
6930-616: The explosion of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor , the United States declared war on Spain in April 1898, which began the Spanish–American War . Though wary of militarism , Bryan had long favored Cuban independence and so supported the war. He argued that "universal peace cannot come until justice is enthroned throughout the world. Until the right has triumphed in every land and love reigns in every heart, government must, as
7035-457: The fifth ballot. At the age of 36, Bryan became the youngest presidential nominee of a major party in American history, a position that he still holds. The convention nominated Arthur Sewall , a wealthy Maine shipbuilder who also favored free silver and the income tax, as Bryan's running mate. Conservative Democrats, known as the " Gold Democrats ", nominated a separate ticket. Cleveland himself did not publicly attack Bryan but privately favored
7140-564: The first ballot at the convention, with Cockrell finishing a distant third place. Bryan would nonetheless get his desired outcome when Roosevelt won by the biggest popular vote margin since James Monroe was re-elected without opposition in 1820. Afterwards, Bryan published a post-election edition of The Commoner that advised its readers: "Do not Compromise with Plutocracy". Bryan traveled to Europe in 1903, meeting with figures such as Leo Tolstoy , who shared some of Bryan's religious and political views. In 1905, Bryan and his family embarked on
7245-443: The fourth-most popular potential Democratic candidate. Bryan, however, declined to seek public office and wrote, "if I can help this world to banish alcohol and after that to banish war... no office, no Presidency, can offer the honors that will be mine". He attended the 1920 Democratic National Convention as a delegate from Nebraska but was disappointed by the nomination of Governor James M. Cox , who had not supported ratification of
7350-461: The growing power of trusts. Bryan, however, decided that his campaign would focus on anti-imperialism, partly to unite the factions of the party and win over some Republicans. The party platform contained planks supporting free silver and opposing the power of trusts, but imperialism was labeled as the "paramount issue" of the campaign. The party nominated former Vice President Adlai Stevenson to serve as Bryan's running mate. In his speech accepting
7455-509: The hotly-contested Midwest. Bryan invented the national stumping tour , reaching an audience of 5 million in 27 states. He was building a coalition of the white South, poor northern farmers and industrial workers and silver miners against banks and railroads and the "money power". Free silver appealed to farmers, who would be paid more for their products, but not to industrial workers, who would not get higher wages but would pay higher prices. The industrial cities voted for McKinley, who won nearly
7560-432: The introduction of the initiative and referendum as a means of giving voters a direct voice while he made a whistle-stop campaign tour of Arkansas in 1910. Although some observers, including President Taft, speculated that Bryan would make a fourth run for the presidency, Bryan repeatedly denied that he had any such intention. An escalating split in the Republican Party gave Democrats their best chance in decades to win
7665-413: The issue's unpopularity among many Democrats. According to biographer Paolo Colletta, Bryan "sincerely believed that prohibition would contribute to the physical health and moral improvement of the individual, stimulate civic progress and end the notorious abuses connected with the liquor traffic". In 1910, he also came out in favor of women's suffrage . Bryan crusaded as well for legislation to support
7770-521: The key economic issues of the day. During the Gilded Age , the Democratic Party had begun to separate into two groups. The conservative northern " Bourbon Democrats ", along with some allies in the South, sought to limit the size and power of the federal government. Another group of Democrats, drawing its membership largely from the agrarian movements of the South and West, favored greater federal intervention to help farmers, regulate railroads, and limit
7875-469: The left-wing Populist Party , and many Populists would eventually follow Bryan into the Democratic Party. In the intensely-fought 1896 presidential election , the Republican nominee, William McKinley , emerged triumphant. At age 36, Bryan remains the youngest person in United States history to receive an electoral vote for president and cumulatively, the most electoral votes without ever being elected president. Bryan gained fame as an orator, as he invented
7980-633: The members of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors . Secretary of State Bryan pursued a series of bilateral treaties that required both signatories to submit all disputes to an investigative tribunal. He quickly won approval from the president and the Senate to proceed with his initiative. In mid-1913, El Salvador became the first nation to sign one of Bryan's treaties, and 29 other countries, including every great power in Europe other than Germany and Austria-Hungary , also agreed to sign
8085-527: The most prestigious appointive position. Bryan's extensive travels, popularity in the party, and support for Wilson in the election made him the obvious choice. Bryan took charge of a State Department that employed 150 officials in Washington and an additional 400 employees in embassies abroad. Early in Wilson's tenure, the president and the secretary of state broadly agreed on foreign policy goals, including
8190-475: The most received by a presidential candidate who was never elected. Bryan remained an influential figure in Democratic politics, and after Democrats took control of the House of Representatives in the 1910 midterm elections , he appeared in the House of Representatives to argue for tariff reduction. In 1909, Bryan came out publicly for the first time in favor of Prohibition . A lifelong teetotaler , Bryan had refrained from embracing Prohibition earlier because of
8295-418: The national stumping tour when he reached an audience of 5 million people in 27 states in 1896, and continued to deliver well-attended lectures on the Chautauqua circuit well into the 20th century. Bryan retained control of the Democratic Party and again won the presidential nomination in 1900 . After serving as a colonel in the 3rd Nebraska Infantry Regiment during the Spanish–American War , Bryan became
8400-458: The only individual since the Civil War to lose three separate U.S. presidential elections as a major party nominee. Since the ratification of the Twelfth Amendment , Bryan and Henry Clay are the lone individuals who received electoral votes in three separate presidential elections but lost all three elections. The 493 cumulative electoral votes cast for Bryan across three separate elections are
8505-436: The open field and defend the gold standard as a good thing, we shall fight them to the uttermost, having behind us the producing masses of the nation and the world. Having behind us the commercial interests and the laboring interests and all the toiling masses, we shall answer their demands for a gold standard by saying to them, you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind upon
8610-431: The party in the long term, they shared many of Bryan's political views and had developed a productive working relationship with Bryan. The Republican campaign painted McKinley as the "advance agent of prosperity" and social harmony and warned of the supposed dangers of electing Bryan. McKinley and his campaign manager, Mark Hanna , knew that McKinley could not match Bryan's oratorical skills. Rather than giving speeches on
8715-426: The power of large corporations. Bryan became affiliated with the latter group and advocated for the free coinage of silver (" free silver ") and the establishment of a progressive federal income tax . That endeared him to many reformers, but Bryan's call for free silver cost him the support of Morton and some other conservative Nebraska Democrats. Free silver advocates were opposed by banks and bondholders who feared
8820-529: The presidency. Bryan did not seek the Democratic presidential nomination; his continuing influence gave him a major voice in choosing the nominee. Bryan was intent on preventing the conservatives in the party from nominating their candidate, as they had done in 1904. For a mix of practical and ideological reasons, Bryan ruled out supporting the candidacies of Oscar Underwood , Judson Harmon , and Joseph W. Folk , which left two major candidates competing for his backing: New Jersey Governor Woodrow Wilson and Speaker of
8925-490: The presidential nomination after over 40 ballots. Journalists attributed much of the credit for Wilson's victory to Bryan. In the 1912 presidential election , Wilson faced off against President Taft and former President Roosevelt, the latter of whom ran on the Progressive Party ticket. Bryan campaigned throughout the West for Wilson and also offered advice to the Democratic nominee on various issues. The split in
9030-416: The progressive reforms that had long been championed by Bryan. Bryan won his party's nomination in the 1908 presidential election , but he was defeated by Roosevelt's chosen successor, William Howard Taft . Along with Henry Clay , Bryan is one of the two individuals who never won a presidential election despite receiving electoral votes in three separate presidential elections held after the ratification of
9135-497: The rejection of Taft's Dollar diplomacy . They also shared many priorities in domestic affairs and, with Bryan's help, Wilson orchestrated passage of laws that reduced tariff rates, imposed a progressive income tax, introduced new antitrust measures, and established the Federal Reserve System . Bryan proved particularly influential in ensuring that the president, rather than private bankers, was empowered to appoint
9240-429: The results of the 1896 election, McKinley increased his popular vote margin and picked up several Western states, including Bryan's home state of Nebraska. The Republican platform of victory in war and a strong economy proved to be more important to voters than Bryan's questioning the morality of annexing the Philippines. The election also confirmed the continuing organizational advantage of the Republican Party outside of
9345-428: The speakers who would advocate for free silver, but Tillman's speech was poorly received by delegates from outside the South because of its sectionalism and references to the Civil War. Charged with delivering the convention's last speech on the topic of monetary policy, Bryan seized his opportunity to emerge as the nation's leading Democrat. In his "Cross of Gold" speech , Bryan argued that the debate over monetary policy
9450-403: The state and federal ownership of railroads in a manner similar to Germany but backed down from that policy in the face of an intra-party backlash. Roosevelt, who enjoyed wide popularity among most voters even while he alienated some corporate leaders, anointed Secretary of War William Howard Taft as his successor. Meanwhile, Bryan re-established his control over the Democratic Party and won
9555-408: The state legislators, and Bryan lost the Senate election to Republican John Mellen Thurston . Bryan, nonetheless, was pleased with the result of the 1894 election, as the Cleveland wing of the Democratic Party had been discredited, and Bryan's preferred gubernatorial candidate, Silas A. Holcomb , had been elected by a coalition of Democrats and Populists. After the 1894 elections, Bryan embarked on
9660-450: The third-party candidate Robert M. La Follette . Stump speech A political stump speech is a standard speech used by a politician running for office . Typically a candidate who schedules many appearances prepares a short standardized stump speech that is repeated verbatim to each audience, before opening to questions. The term derives from the early American custom in which candidates campaigned from town to town and stood upon
9765-416: The time of the convention and he won his party's nomination unanimously. Bryan did not attend the convention but exercised control of the convention's proceedings via telegraph. Bryan faced a decision regarding which issue his campaign would focus on. Many of his most fervent supporters wanted Bryan to continue his crusade for free silver, and Democrats from the Northeast advised Bryan to center his campaign on
9870-802: The treaties. Despite Bryan's stated aversion to conflict, he oversaw U.S. military interventions in Haiti , the Dominican Republic and Mexico as part of the Banana Wars . After World War I broke out in Europe, Bryan consistently advocated for American neutrality between the Entente and the Central Powers . With Bryan's support, Wilson initially sought to stay out of the conflict, urging Americans to be "impartial in thought as well as action". For much of 1914, Bryan attempted to bring
9975-491: The war, despite some reservations, Bryan supported Wilson's unsuccessful effort to bring the United States into the League of Nations . After leaving office, Bryan spent much of his time advocating for the eight-hour day , a minimum wage , the right of unions to strike and increasingly women's suffrage . However, his main crusades focused on support for prohibition and opposition to the teaching of evolution. Congress passed
10080-530: The youngest presidential candidate, " the Boy Orator ". Born and raised in Illinois , Bryan moved to Nebraska in the 1880s. He won election to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 1890 elections , served two terms, and made an unsuccessful run for the U.S. Senate in 1894. At the 1896 Democratic National Convention , Bryan delivered his "Cross of Gold" speech which attacked the gold standard and
10185-704: Was a dominant force in the Democratic Party , running three times as the party's nominee for President of the United States in the 1896 , 1900 , and 1908 elections. He served in the House of Representatives from 1891 to 1895 and as the Secretary of State under Woodrow Wilson from 1913 to 1915. Because of his faith in the wisdom of the common people, Bryan was often called " the Great Commoner ", and because of his rhetorical power and early fame as
10290-466: Was also located in Jacksonville. During his time at Illinois College, Bryan served as chaplain of the Sigma Pi literary society . He also continued to hone his public speaking skills, taking part in numerous debates and oratorical contests. Bryan graduated from Illinois College in 1881 at the top of his class. In 1879, while still in college, Bryan met Mary Elizabeth Baird , the daughter of an owner of
10395-444: Was an avid Jacksonian Democrat and an admirer of Andrew Jackson and Stephen A. Douglas , who would pass on his Democratic affiliation to his son, William. Silas Bryan won election as a state circuit judge and in 1866 moved his family to a 520-acre (210.4 ha) farm north of Salem. He lived in a ten-room house that was the envy of Marion County . Silas served in various local positions and sought election to Congress in 1872, but
10500-453: Was narrowly defeated by the Republican candidate. William's cousin, William Sherman Jennings , was also a prominent Democrat. William was the fourth child of Silas and Mariah, but all three of his older siblings died during infancy. He also had five younger siblings, four of whom lived to adulthood. William was home-schooled by his mother until the age of ten. Demonstrating a precocious talent for oratory, he gave public speeches as early as
10605-402: Was part of a broader struggle for democracy, political independence and the welfare of the "common man". Bryan's speech was met with rapturous applause and a celebration on the floor of the convention that lasted for over half an hour. The next day, the Democratic Party held its presidential ballot. With the continuing support of Governor John Altgeld of Illinois, Bland led the first ballot of
10710-643: Was ratified in a close vote, bringing an official end to the Spanish–American War. In early 1899, the Philippine–American War broke out as the established Philippine government, under the leadership of Emilio Aguinaldo , sought to stop the American invasion of the archipelago. The 1900 Democratic National Convention met in Kansas City, Missouri , where some Democratic leaders opposed to Bryan had hoped to nominate Admiral George Dewey for president. Nevertheless, Bryan faced no significant opposition by
10815-413: Was the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination. Conservatives feared that Bryan would join with the publisher William Randolph Hearst to block Parker's nomination. Seeking to appease Bryan and other progressives, Hill agreed to a party platform that omitted mention of the gold standard and criticized trusts. In the event, Bryan did not support Parker or Hearst, but rather Francis Cockrell ,
10920-419: Was traveling. The Commoner became one of the most widely-read newspapers of its era and boasted 145,000 subscribers approximately five years after its founding. Though the paper's subscriber base heavily overlapped with Bryan's political base in the Midwest, content from the papers was frequently reprinted by major newspapers in the Northeast. In 1902, Bryan, his wife and his three children moved into Fairview ,
11025-409: Was widely perceived to be the frontrunner for the party's presidential nomination. Bryan hoped to offer himself as a presidential candidate, but his youth and relative inexperience gave him a lower profile than veteran Democrats like Bland, Governor Horace Boies of Iowa, and Vice President Adlai Stevenson . The free silver forces quickly established dominance over the convention, and Bryan helped draft
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