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The '''Know-Nothing movement''' was a [[nativist]] [[United States|American]] political movement of the [[1850s]]. It grew up as a popular reaction to
The official name of the movement was the '''American Party'''. The origin of the "Know Nothing" term was in the semi-secret organization of the party. When a member was asked about its activities, he was supposed to reply "I know nothing."
Many active Protestants feared that the [[Pope]] planned to undermine American democracy by creating a political network, controlled by him through his bishops and priests. Some Protestants argued that the strong allegiance of Roman Catholics to the
▲Many active Protestants feared that the [[Pope]] planned to undermine American democracy by creating a political network, controlled by him through his bishops and priests. Some Protestants argued that the strong allegiance of Roman Catholics to the [[Pope]] and priests ran counter to the values of independent voters that was required by republicanism. The current pope was [[Pius IX]], increasingly a symbol, after the failed liberal [[Revolutions of 1848]], of intransigent European reaction and opposition to liberty, democracy and Protestantism.
The growing sentiment against [[Irish Americans]] led to a dissatisfaction with the dominant party, the [[History of the United States Democratic Party|Democrats]], who were closely allied to Irish politicians in most major cities. Thus activists formed secret groups, coordinating their votes and throwing their weight behind candidates sympathetic to their cause. When asked about these secret organizations, members supposedly were to reply "I know nothing," which led to them popularly being called ''Know-Nothings''. This movement won elections in major cities from Chicago to Boston in 1855, and carried the Massachusetts legislature and governorship.
In spring 1854 they carried Boston, Salem, and other New England cities. They swept the state of Massachusetts in the fall 1854 elections--their biggest victory. The Whig candidate in Philadelphia was editor Robert Conrad, soon revealed as a Know-Nothing; he promised to crack down on crime, close saloons on Sundays, and to appoint only native-born Americans to office. He won by a landslide. In New York, the largest state, in a four-way race the Know Nothing candidate ran third with 26%. After the fall 1854 elections they claimed to have exerted decisive influence in Maine, Indiana, Pennsylvania and California, but historians are unsure because of the secrecy, because all parties were in turmoil, and because the anti-slavery and prohibition issues overlapped with nativism in complex and confusing ways. They did elect the mayor of San Francisco. They were still an unofficial movement with no centralized organization. The results of the 1854 elections were so favorable to the Know-Nothings that they formed officially as a political party, called the '''American Party''', and swallowed many members of the now nearly-defunct Whig party, as well as a significant number of Democrats and prohibitionists. Membership in the American Party increased dramatically: from 50,000 to over one million in a matter of months in that year, it is estimated. The same member might also split tickets to vote for Democrats or Republicans, for party loyalty was in confusion. Simultaneously the new Republican party emerged as a dominant power in many northern states. Very few prominent politicians joined the party, and very few party leaders had a subsequent career in politics. The major exceptions were [[Shuyler Colfax]] in Indiana and [[Henry Wilson]] in Massachusetts, both of whom became Republicans and were elected vice president.
The leading historian of the party concludes: [Anbinder p 95]
<blockquote>
The key to Know Nothing success in 1854 was the collapse of the second party system, brought about primarily by the demise of the Whig party. The Whig party, weakened for years by internal dissent and chronic factionalism, was nearly destroyed by the Kansas-Nebraska Act. Growing anti-party sentiment, fueled by anti-slavery as well as temperance and nativism, also contributed to the disintegration of the party system. The collapsing second party system gave the Know
Nothings a much larger pool of potential converts than was available to previous nativist organizations, allowing the Order to succeed where older nativist groups had failed.
</blockquote>
In spring 1855, [[Levi Boone]] was elected [[Mayor of Chicago]] for the Know-Nothings. He barred all immigrants from city jobs. Statewide, however, Republican leader [[Abraham Lincoln]] blocked the party from any successes. Ohio was the only state where the party gained strength in 1855. Their Ohio success seems to have come from winning over immigrants, especially German Lutherans and Scottish Presbyterians who feared Catholicism.
Also in [[1854]] members of the American Party stole and destroyed the block of granite contributed by [[Pope Pius IX]] for the [[Washington Monument]]. They also took over the monument's building society and controlled it for four years. What little progress occurred in their tenure had to be undone and remade. For the full story, see ''[[Washington Monument#History|Washington Monument: History]]''.▼
The party declined rapidly in 1855-56. In the [[U.S. presidential election, 1856|Election of 1856]], they were bitterly divided; one faction supported [[Millard Fillmore]] (a Whig who had been president from [[1850]] to [[1853]]). Fillmore lost, but won 22% of the popular vote and Maryland's 8 electoral votes. The American Party remained strong on the local and state levels in a few southern states, but by the [[U.S. presidential election, 1860|Election of 1860]], they were no longer a serious national political movement. Most of the anti-slavery members of the American Party went on to join the new [[United States Republican Party|Republican Party]].▼
▲The party declined rapidly in the North in 1855-56. In the [[U.S. presidential election, 1856|Election of 1856]],
The pro-slavery wing of the American Party remained strong on the local and state levels in a few southern states, but by the [[U.S. presidential election, 1860|Election of 1860]], they were no longer a serious national political movement.
==Platform==
The platform of the American Party called for, among other things:
*Severe limits on immigration, especially from Catholic countries
*Restricting political office to native-born Americans
*Mandating a wait of 21 years before an immigrant could gain citizenship.
*Restricting public school
*Mandating daily Bible readings in public schools (from the [[Biblical canon#Protestant OT canon|Protestant version]] of the Bible).
*Restricting the sale of [[liquor]].
==Trivia==
▲
==See also==
* [[Second Party System]]
* [[Third Party System]]
* [[Philadelphia Nativist Riots]]
* [[James Greene Hardy]]
==Notes==
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==References==
* Anbinder
* Baum, Dale. "Know-Nothingism and the Republican Majority in Massachusetts: The Political Realignment of the 1850s." ''Journal of American History'' 64 (1977-78): 959-86. **also in
* Ray A. Billington, ''The Protestant Crusade, 1800-1860: A Study of the Origins of American Nativism'' (1938)
* Gienapp, William E. ''The Origins of the Republican Party, 1852-1856'' (1938)
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