Early in his career, Tom Watson was influenced by many leaders of the Confederacy, and he was drawn to local politics. After attending the Convention of 1800, he was determined to run for legislature. He appealed to Georgians as a defender of the old way of life and he was first elected to the state legislation representing McDuffie County in 1882. During the campaign, he discovered that the white...
On April 24, 1889, The Episcopal Methodist, a Baltimore, Maryland newspaper, published an article by the Reverend J. M. Hawley entitled Southern Methodism and the Age, calling for the Methodist Church to reform itself in order to be a success in the modern age. Hawley called the present age a great period for both the Church and the country. The Church, he said, must embrace the age and modernize along...
After the Civil War, silver reserves were discovered in the Western United States. Free silver advocates were people who advocated the Federal Government to allow silver to be minted at 1 per troy ounce as opposed to the gold standard which valued gold at 20 per troy ounce. The result of introducing silver into the market would have been an increase in money supply and inflation. Those who backed...
When they met on January 20, 1887 in Waco, members of the Texas state alliance made plans to stage a coup that would get rid of the current president of the organization and unite smaller factions already within the coalition. This newly integrated group created a national alliance, known as the Texas Farmer's Alliance, and declared C.W. Macune their president. The Alliance immediately sent organizers...
Hands burrowed into pockets and handbags searching for coins, small bills, or anything to give to Joseph Pearson, a poor African American man who spoke so tenderly of his recently deceased wife and her last wish. Indeed, attendants of the People's Party mass meeting in Thomson Friday, December 5, were deeply stirred as Pearson described his wife who requested that she wanted to give something to help...
In February and May of 1898, the Louisiana state government held a constitutional convention. In doing so, the legislators focused heavily on certain aspects of the state laws that pertained to voting rights of African-Americans and poor whites. From 1897 on, almost all of the Southern states were revising or creating their state constitutions. Many of the modifications increased the authority of the...
After its establishment in July 1889, membership of the Farmers' Alliance grew rapidly and reached over 100,000 people in 1890. The Alliance widely proclaimed their goal to influence the Democratic Party. Throughout the year the Alliance engaged in a publicity campaign to sway Party actions and nominations. Newspapers played an important part in this publicity campaign. The Nashville Banner included...
They decided to meet in a wooded area around two miles outside of Waynesboro in the mist of the early morning. At six o'clock on June 30, 1883, Mr. Elam and Mr. Beirne met one another to settle the score as gentlemen always had before - with a duel. The procedure was decided in advance, specifying the use of Colt's six-shooters at eight paces. All men not directly involved with the business were...
Effective means of transportation became extremely important as populations rose and mass production improved.Richmond Locomotive and Machine Works cashed in on this fact as they produced locomotives.The South Carolina and Georgia Railway placed an order for five locomotives.On September 22, 1897, The State reported the requested locomotives as having twenty-five and thirty-five by thirty-six inch...
John W. Daniel, who later served as a US Senator from VA from 1887-1910, gave speeches on August 15th, 18th, and 19th as a part of his campaign for the governorship of VA. Daniel was well-known for his oratorical skills, which made his speeches crucial to his campaign against William Cameron of the Readjusters, a new party in Virginia led by William Mahone that ran in opposition to the conservative...