Chapter 9, page 274-275.
James G. Blaine was a lawyer, teacher, journalist and politician.
He served in the Maine Legislature and then in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1863-1876, serving as Speaker from 1869-1875.
He also served as U.S. Senator from Maine, 1876-81 and U.S. Secretary of State, 1881, 1889-92.
Blaine was a national leader in the Republican party.
Primary Sources for Finding Katahdin Chapter 9, Section 3
Item 6427
Item 9589
Chapter 9, page 274-275.
In an 1879 letter to G.L. Randall, James G. Blaine requested that Randall form a Republican Club in his neighborhood.
Blaine, who moved to Maine in 1854 from Pennsylvania, was a prominent and influential leader in the Republican party.
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Item 9590
Chapter 9, page 274-276.
In 1888, Albert H. Horton, chief justice of the Supreme Court of Kansas, wrote to John A. Stevens regarding the upcoming Republican convention.
Horton's letter indicates that the Kansas delegation intended to cast its votes for James Blaine, despite Blaine's letter of declination.
Blaine was the Republican candidate for president in 1884. He had been unsuccesful in gaining the party's nomination in 1876 and 1880.
Item 9607
Chapter 9, page 274-276.
As evidenced by this pro-Blaine letter, Republican supporters across the country continued to rally for James Blaine's nomination as presidential candidate, despite his stated intention to decline such a nomination.
In this 1888 letter, S.B. Elkins states that the West Virginia delegates will be split in their votes, and notes that Blaine's letter declining the nomination has caused confusion among delegates.
The letter also mentions tariff policy, an important political issue of the day.
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Item 9967
Chapter 9, page 274-276.
By the late 1800s, James Blaine was one of the most powerful Republican politicians in the country.
This 1888 letter, written by Andrew van Bibber of Ohio, confirms Blaine's popularity and notes that "there are thousands in the west who will wade twenty miles through mud to vote for him."
The document also mentions tariff reform, and indicates that without Blaine in the presidential race, the outcome for Republicans is doubtful.
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Item 140
Chapter 9, page 276-278.
Portland native Thomas Brackett Reed (1839-1902) was one of the political giants of his day.
Admitted to the Maine Bar in 1865, he soon entered politics and in 1876 was elected to the U.S. Congress from Maine's First District. He was continuously elected to that office, authoring "Reeds Rules of Procedures," a controversial measure that kept political parties from blocking House action on bills.
Reed was Speaker of the House from 1889-1891 and 1895-1898. His revitalization of Congress and his blunt but effective approach earned him the nickname of "Czar" Reed.
His disgust with the rising tide of American imperialism during and after the Spanish American War led Reed to resign from Congress. He practiced law in New York, then returned to his home on Deering Street in Portland, where he died.