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The Ku Klux Klan and the press in Western Kansas, 1921-1926 : an examination of Hays, Larned and...
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The Ku Klux Klan and the press in Western Kansas, 1921-1926 : an examination of Hays, Larned and Wallace County
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Author
Crawford-Gore
,
Betsy
Title
The
Ku
Klux
Klan
and the
press
in
Western
Kansas
,
1921-1926
: an
examination
of
Hays
,
Larned
and
Wallace
County
Degree Program
History
Abstract
This
thesis
examines
the
rise
and
spread
of the
Ku
Klux
Klan
in
Hays
,
Larned
and
Wallace
County
,
Kansas
during
the
years
1921-1926
as
viewed
by
local
newspapers
. These
newspapers
were the
principal
resources
used
.
Other
primary
materials
included
newspapers
from
other
communities
,
governors’
papers
,
court
records
,
Klan
documents
and
publications
,
pamphlets
, and
books
and
articles
published
during
that
time
.
Secondary
sources
were
used
to
examine
modern
though
and
historiographical
changes
concerning
the
1920’s
Ku
Klux
Klan
. The
experience
of
western
Kansans
with the
Ku
Klux
Klan
was
essentially
different
from that of
eastern
Kansans
and
deserved
its
own
study
. The
Kan
arrived
alter
and had
different
issues
in
hays
,
Larned
and
Wallace
County
than in
Emporia
or
Pittsburg
.
Each
area
reviewed
had a
different
experience
with the
Klan
.
Hays
, with its
strongly
catholic
population
, was
affected
by the
Klan
but
saw
little
Klan
activity
.
While
evidence
suggests
that there were
Klan
operations
in
nearby
Ellis
and
Plainville
, they
seemed
to have had
minimal
impact
on
Hays
. The
Hays
Free
Press
,
published
by A.
L
.
Clark
, and the
Ellis
County
News
,
published
by
John
S
.
Bird
,
differed
in
many
respects
but
succeeded
in
virtually
ignoring
the
Klan
.
When
necessary
,
both
newspapers
battled
the
Klan
by
pointing
out
its
failures
and by
making
fun
of its
more
ridiculous
aspects
.
Larned
accepted
the
Klan
, and
it
played
a
major
role
in that
community’s
affairs
.
Local
newspares
,
Harry
H
.
Wolcott
and
Lynn
M
.
Christy’s
Chonoscope
and
Leslie
E
.
Wallace’s
Tiller
and
Toiler
divided
on
political
lines
like
their
Hays
counterparts
. The
tow
papers
were
only
mildly
divergent
on the
Klan
issue
in the
beginning
but by
1926
the
difference
was
more
pronounced
, with the
Tiller
and
Toiler
taking
on the
anti-Klan
role
. In
Larned
the
Klan
played
the
part
of a
social
club
.
It
was
supported
by
members
of the
clergy
,
business
people
and
many
citizens
.
Although
there was
some
anti-Klan
feeling
, there
seems
to have been
little
hostility
between
the
Klan
and the
average
citizen
.
Wallace
County
provided
the
western
half
of the
state
with a
strong
Klan
leader
and
Klan
paper
. The
Wallace
County
News
was an
average
weekly
edited
by
F
.
B
.
Gergen
.
Under
Gergen
it
began
to
exhibit
pro-Klan
sympathies
but
soon
became
a
Klan
mouthpiece
when
it
was
purchased
by
D
.
P
.
Abbey
.
Abbey
also
printed
a
Klan
newspaper
. As
balance
, the
Wallace
County
Western
Times
continued
as a
regular
weekly
paper
under
W.E
.
Ward
.
Ward
tried
to
ignore
the
Klan
upheaval
in his
community
and
when
Abbey
and his
newspapers
collapsed
, the
Western
Times
was
jubilant
. The
Klan
peaked
in
Kansas
during
1924
with its
considerable
influence
affecting
the
election
.
Although
the
sate
government
had been
attempting
to
remove
the
Klan
from
Kansas
since
its
arrival
in the
state
, the
Klan
was an
active
force
throughout
the
years
covered
by this
thesis
. The
time
period
chosen
for
study
allows
the
documentation
of the
rise
and
fall
of the
Klan
in
each
locale
. A
common
thread
that
ran
through
all
these
communities
in their
struggle
with the
Klan
members
were not
monsters
and were not
members
of
some
fire
breathing
cult
.
Although
the
name
of the
Ku
Klux
Klan
stands
for
bigotry
and
violence
to
many
today
, in the
1920s
bigotry
was
more
acceptable
, and the
Klan
stood
for
positive
moral
values
. The
Klan
, its
members
, and
supporters
cannot
be
understood
when
judged
by
1990s
values
. The
Klan’s
excesses
and
failures
cannot
by
excused
, but its
popularity
can
be
understood
. The
fears
and
concerns
of the
average
citizen
of the
post-World
War
I
era
played
a
major
role
in the
success
of the
Klan
.
Date Original
1994
Publisher
Fort Hays State University
Relation
Digital reproduction of the Fort Hays State University Theses Collection.
Type
Text
Format
application/pdf
Identifier
Crawford-GoreBetsy_1994_web.pdf
Source
LD2652 .T5 H5 C73 1994
Language
eng
Relation-Requires
Adobe Reader is required to view this item. Download at
http://get.adobe.com/reader/.
Rights
Copyright 1994 Betsy Crawford-Gore
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