Nativism and Slavery: The Northern Know Nothings and the Politics of the 1850's

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Summary: Know Something about the Know Nothings
Review: For those familiar with American history - sadly, a relatively small group - the era of the Know Nothings is usually considered little more than a semi-amusing footnote in the chronicle of antebellum America. With their silly name and their lack of any sort of substantial contribution to the political scene, the Know-Nothings deserve their minor standing, but a history of this political party does impart some lessons, both in history and in the nature of politics.

The Know Nothings - a name used by both themselves and their foes - started out as a semi-secret fraternal organization in the 1850s that was distinctly anti-immigrant. In particular, an anti-Catholic sentiment united the Know Nothings, and in an era of high immigration rates, they were able to rise in popularity quickly. Outside their religious intolerance, they did hold some values that are easier to identify with, including a belief in temperance and most importantly, an opposition to slavery.

With the decline of the Whigs, the Know Nothings filled a void. They were also against political corruption, which combined with their anti-slavery views (at least in the North), elevated them a number of state and federal offices in 1854 and 1855. Unfortunately, once in power, they became just as political as those they once opposed, and the anti-slavery Know Nothings began to defect to the new Republican party. In short, by 1856, they were just another political party; their presidential candidate - the deservedly obscure ex-President Millard Fillmore - carried only one state. With a lack of organization and the loss of its core ideas, the party was gone by the time of the Civil War.

Even if the Know Nothings didn't directly contribute a lot in a historical sense, they do offer lessons in the difficulty of third parties in the United States. A party may be able to burst to a fad-like popularity based on the power of a single personality (such as Teddy Roosevelt with the Bull Mooses or more recently, Ross Perot with the Reform Party) or a single idea (such as the nativist Know Nothings), but eventually, like any fad, it fades away to obscurity. Sustained success requires a level of "selling out" which inevitably disillusions those drawn to the party in the first place and leads them back to a major party that may also be "sold out" but at least offers the opportunity of victory.

The book itself is well-written, although the overall significance of the Know Nothings is a little overstated. With a subject that could be tedious, we instead get something that - while it may not be a beach read - is both readable and informative. Nativism and Slavery is a good book on the era leading up to the Civil War.