THE ORGANIZATION OF THE AMERICAN FARMER AND POPULISM
As stated previously, American farmers from the West were in economic trouble by the mid-1880s. Many farmers from the South shared their plight. Several policies were originating in Washington that farmers felt greatly hurt them economically. Congresses of this era favored high tariffs, which helped Eastern businessmen. Farmers felt they were hurt by the high tariff policy, as it kept foreigners from buying their produce. The issue that farmers were most upset about, however, concerned currency.
The Issue of the Gold Standard
After the Civil War, federal budget officials enacted a “tight money” policy and cook the paper money used during the Civil War out of circulation. In addition, the dollar during this period was for the first time put on the gold standard, meaning that every dollar in circulation had to be backed by a similar amount of gold held by the federal government. This action also served to limit the amount of money in circulation. These financial measures ensured that inflation would not occur, but Western farmers were convinced that depressed farm prices were largely a result of these policies. Several congressional acts to increase the coining and mining of gold and silver met with limited success and were opposed by the presidents of the era.
The Beginning of Organization: The Grange and the Farmer's Alliances
In 1867 the Grange organization was founded by Western farmers. By 1875 it boasted of over 800,000 members. Through the Grange, farmer cooperatives were formed, allowing farmers to buy in large quantities (and at tower prices). Farmers were also convinced that railroad rates were disadvantageous to them, and legislators in farm states began to receive communications from farmers urging regulation of railroad rates and policies. Some farmers supported the Greenback party, which supported getting more paper money into circulation, in the 1878 election. The Greenbacks managed to elect several congressmen from farm states but got little support elsewhere.
While the Grange organization largely operated on the local level, development of the Farmer's Alliances joined farmers at the statewide and even regional level. By 1889 the Southern Alliance claimed 1 million members, while a separate Colored Farmers’ National Alliance also had 1 million members on the books. Membership in the Farmer’s Alliances on the Great Plains was nearly 2 million members. The policies endorsed by the Farmer’s Alliances included federal regulation of the railroad, putting more money in circulation, the establishment of a state department of agriculture in every state, and readily available farm credits; it was proposed that the federal government have large warehouses where farmers could store their grain and get credit for it if prices were low during harvest season. These measures were spelled out in detail at a national Alliance convention held in 1890 in Ocala, Florida. The Ocala Platform stated the principles that motivated most political activity by farmers for the remainder of the century. Some federal policies did at least partially meet the demands of agricultural interests; the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 stated that the federal government could regulate interstate railway rates, and the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890 aimed to control the power of trusts and monopolies.
By 1890 some leaders of the Farmer’s Alliances began to plan for political action on the national level. Alliance strength was particularly strong in the South, where four governors owed their election to Alliance support. Forty-seven congressmen in the South were also strongly supported by the Alliance. In the plains states Alliance candidates were successful on the local level. Alliance support extended to women as well; several women held important leadership positions at the top levels of the Farmer’s Alliances.
The Populist Campaign of 1892
On July 4, 1892, in a convention held in Omaha, Nebraska, a national convention of Farmer’s Alliances created the People’s party, whose followers soon became known as Populists. The Populist party was intended to appeal to workers of all parts of the country. Populists desired a much greater role of government in American society. The party platform expressed support for increasing the circulation of money, a progressive income tax (by which wealthy Eastern industrialists would pay the most and farmers would pay the least), government ownership of communication and transportation systems, and more direct methods of democracy (greater use of direct primaries, recall, referendum, etc.). To appeal to urban workers, the platform also supported an eight-hour workday. The Populists nominated James B. Weaver, a Union general from the Civil War, as their candidate.
Despite a spirited campaign by Populist supporters, the party only received 1 million popular votes and 22 electoral votes in the 1892 election. Few voters in the Northeast supported the Populists, and Democratic control of the electoral process in the South remained strong. Only in the western United States did Populism do well.
Populism in the 1890s
The reelection of Grover Cleveland angered the agricultural interests greatly, as he announced his continued support of the gold standard during his inauguration speech. A great depression hit America in 1893, with workers from all parts of the country being laid off (in some cities up to 25 percent of laborers were unemployed). Populist marchers joined with marchers from many groups protesting government financial policy in Washington in 1894.
In the 1896 presidential election, the Republican candidate was William McKinley, who followed Cleveland in his support of the gold standard. The Democratic candidate, endorsed by the Populists, was William Jennings Bryan, campaigned on a policy of free silver and an expanded availability of currency, stating, “You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold!” Many Populist leaders hit the campaign trail for Bryan, yet with little success. Bryan carried the South and the West, but was unable to garner support in the Midwestern or Northeastern states.
As the depression ended at the end of the decade, Populists and others in the agricultural sector began to recognize the massive changes that had taken place in the American economy since the end of the Civil War. The American economy was now a national economy and not a sectional one; the railroad had been largely responsible for this change. In addition, slowly but surely the United States was becoming an industrial nation and not an agricultural one.