Now that I’m moving on to updates besides the House of Representatives, do you guys prefer the recent update style, where it’s a more specific view of a singular topic for each update, or the kind of updates from the beginning of the timeline, where it was a more general view on multiple topics every update?
1920: Progressivism Triumphant, the Fifth Party System and Beyond A Wikibox TL
- Thread starter Ohheckitsian
- Start date
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- 1920 herbert hoover usa
The next update, concerning the fall of one sports league and the rise of others, will come out by this friday.
Its actually the dad of the Rush Limbaugh we all know now. In OTL, Rush Limbaugh Sr. was a city attorney for Cape Girardeau and joined calls for a new Progressive organization in 1919.
Edit: It's actually his grandfather!
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The rise of the AWL and fall of the NFL
In the year 1921, a year after American success in Freestyle Wrestling at the Olympics in Belgium, Olympic wrestling medalists, Pro Wrestlers, early proponents of Collegiate Wrestling, and several Boxing promoters met, with plans to create a new Sports League that would capitalize on the growth of wrestling during the early 1920s. Dubbed the American Wrestling League, the first season was set for the fall of 1922. Existing stadiums were used for all but one team, with the Cincinnati Bears being owned and financed by former President William Howard Taft, who paid for the construction of the new Roosevelt Stadium. Named after his friend-turned-adversary-turned friend, the state of the art stadium boasted a seating capacity of 10,000.
The main rivalry of the first season was between the Oklahoma-based Enid Eagles, and the Nebraska-based Lincoln Lions. Coached by the legendary Edward C. Gallagher, former College Wrestling Coach for Oklahoma A&M, and retired Pro Wrestling Champion Martin Burns respectively, the Eagles and Lions both finished the regular season 17-1 (the season consisted of playing every other team in the league twice). With no post-season planned, and both teams only triumphing over the other once, a tiebreaker match between the two was scheduled. Gallagher's Eagles won the tiebreaker, making his team the champions of the first AWL season.
Despite the moderate success of the first AWL season, more and more Americans were paying attention to the growth of Football. This included the President's son, Herbert Hoover Jr., who began his first college football season for Stanford University in 1922. However, this season would also be his last. During the annual big game against Stanford rival California, in the closing minutes of the game, Hoover went to kick an extra point. However, the Golden Bears, in an effort to keep their chances in the game alive, attempted to block Hoover's kick using a Pyramid Play. They succeeded in blocking the kick, but a Golden Bears player ended up falling onto Hoover, severely injuring him. Hoover was sent to the hospital, and thankfully survived without any permanent damage to himself, but the incident dampened the growing popularity for Football. Despite the Pyramid Play being banned from major Football events after the game, many colleges replaced their Football programs with Rugby and Wrestling for the 1923 Season.
Nowhere was the impact of this incident felt more than in the National Football League. Having begun in 1920, the League was off to a shaky start from its inception. Many teams reported financial difficulties, and the number of teams fluctuated constantly. Prior to the 28th Big Game, the NFL had 18 teams, down from 22 the year prior. After the 28th Big Game, some of the already struggling teams ceased operation going into the 1923 season, which quickly spiraled out of control for the League. Commissioner Joseph Carr attempted to turn things around in the following years, working to introduce new safety precautions for the players, but to no avail. Carr resigned as Commissioner prior to the 1926 season, leading to Gus Tebell to become Commissioner of the League. With only 10 teams, and a consistent decrease in revenue, Gus, and other high-ranking League officials and funders, opted not to open the League for the 1927 Season, officially ceasing operations in April of 1927.
The main rivalry of the first season was between the Oklahoma-based Enid Eagles, and the Nebraska-based Lincoln Lions. Coached by the legendary Edward C. Gallagher, former College Wrestling Coach for Oklahoma A&M, and retired Pro Wrestling Champion Martin Burns respectively, the Eagles and Lions both finished the regular season 17-1 (the season consisted of playing every other team in the league twice). With no post-season planned, and both teams only triumphing over the other once, a tiebreaker match between the two was scheduled. Gallagher's Eagles won the tiebreaker, making his team the champions of the first AWL season.
Despite the moderate success of the first AWL season, more and more Americans were paying attention to the growth of Football. This included the President's son, Herbert Hoover Jr., who began his first college football season for Stanford University in 1922. However, this season would also be his last. During the annual big game against Stanford rival California, in the closing minutes of the game, Hoover went to kick an extra point. However, the Golden Bears, in an effort to keep their chances in the game alive, attempted to block Hoover's kick using a Pyramid Play. They succeeded in blocking the kick, but a Golden Bears player ended up falling onto Hoover, severely injuring him. Hoover was sent to the hospital, and thankfully survived without any permanent damage to himself, but the incident dampened the growing popularity for Football. Despite the Pyramid Play being banned from major Football events after the game, many colleges replaced their Football programs with Rugby and Wrestling for the 1923 Season.
Nowhere was the impact of this incident felt more than in the National Football League. Having begun in 1920, the League was off to a shaky start from its inception. Many teams reported financial difficulties, and the number of teams fluctuated constantly. Prior to the 28th Big Game, the NFL had 18 teams, down from 22 the year prior. After the 28th Big Game, some of the already struggling teams ceased operation going into the 1923 season, which quickly spiraled out of control for the League. Commissioner Joseph Carr attempted to turn things around in the following years, working to introduce new safety precautions for the players, but to no avail. Carr resigned as Commissioner prior to the 1926 season, leading to Gus Tebell to become Commissioner of the League. With only 10 teams, and a consistent decrease in revenue, Gus, and other high-ranking League officials and funders, opted not to open the League for the 1927 Season, officially ceasing operations in April of 1927.
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Not sure what I’m gonna do with the next update, either there’ll be a somewhat short one out by Friday or a longer one in about two weeks
I just realized that the first wikibox for AWL teams doesn’t include the Mitchell Magicians. I’ll fix it soon
Watch as this improves US politics in general due to a lesser number of head injuries
1921 Canadian Election
In the early 1920s, Canada's political situation was close to that of the United States, with backlash against the Conservatives following the end of the First World War mirroring that of Woodrow Wilson and the Democrats of the United States. A new party, the Progressives, hoped to capitalize on this by dominating Western Canada. The Liberals, under the leadership of the young W.L. Mackenzie King, hoped that gains in the Maritime Provinces in the east would bring them into power. In the end, both parties could have claimed to succeed, while the Conservatives were left a distant third in terms of seats. However, the Liberals fell short of a majority by 5 seats. This led to a Liberal minority government, with Progressive support, due to the decentralized nature of the Progressive Party. Conservatives became the official opposition party, leading Progressive leader Thomas Crerar to gradually centralize the party in time for the next election.
The next update to release will (hopefully) be the 1922 midterms in the House. It'll probably be on the larger end of updates, so expect it in about two weeks.
So the jist of what is happening here is:
Progressives: Party that is made up of many former Progressives and other Social and Economic Reformers. It probably took up the mantle as the party of immigrants in the North after the collapse of the Dems in the North, and most of the formerly traditionally Dem immigrant groups probably vote for this party (though still reluctant to support the anti-immigrant Borah and Johnson wing). Women's suffrage activists (among other social reform advocates) vote here as well, as well as blue collar union workers, and farmers looking for economic reform as well. They are most present in the Northeast, Midwest, Mountain West, and the West Coast, though they have scattered support in the South.
Democrats: Largely Southern Conservative party made most likely out of landowners, but also probably has a few stragglers in the North and West (includes moderates, occasionally).
Republicans: Largely Northern and Western (largely) pro-business Conservative Party, though they probably still have a large moderate wing due to support from the Northeast.
Prohibition: Though they have their main plank out of the banning of alcohol, they are also the party of poor protestant farmers in the West, plains, and the Upper South that are looking for reform that will benefit them (Appalachian coal miners might also be included). Also probably has a decent chunk of support from Women's suffrage activists that supported prohibition. Basically the Populist Party 2.0.
Socialist: A party of Urban Workers (evidenced by the Socialist Victories in Seattle) and Poor Farmers (evidenced by Socialist victories in rural Louisiana and Oklahoma) that are willing to go even further in terms of economic distribution.
Adding on to this, I have a few questions:
1. Given that OTL, he was a huge proponent of the New Deal (and most New Dealers such as FDR and Joe Kennedy seem to be in the Progressives), shouldn't Sam Rayburn be in the Progressive camp?
2. Are other New Dealers such as Wright Patman, Robert Wagner, and Henry Wallace also under the Progressive banner ITTL?
Progressives: Party that is made up of many former Progressives and other Social and Economic Reformers. It probably took up the mantle as the party of immigrants in the North after the collapse of the Dems in the North, and most of the formerly traditionally Dem immigrant groups probably vote for this party (though still reluctant to support the anti-immigrant Borah and Johnson wing). Women's suffrage activists (among other social reform advocates) vote here as well, as well as blue collar union workers, and farmers looking for economic reform as well. They are most present in the Northeast, Midwest, Mountain West, and the West Coast, though they have scattered support in the South.
Democrats: Largely Southern Conservative party made most likely out of landowners, but also probably has a few stragglers in the North and West (includes moderates, occasionally).
Republicans: Largely Northern and Western (largely) pro-business Conservative Party, though they probably still have a large moderate wing due to support from the Northeast.
Prohibition: Though they have their main plank out of the banning of alcohol, they are also the party of poor protestant farmers in the West, plains, and the Upper South that are looking for reform that will benefit them (Appalachian coal miners might also be included). Also probably has a decent chunk of support from Women's suffrage activists that supported prohibition. Basically the Populist Party 2.0.
Socialist: A party of Urban Workers (evidenced by the Socialist Victories in Seattle) and Poor Farmers (evidenced by Socialist victories in rural Louisiana and Oklahoma) that are willing to go even further in terms of economic distribution.
Adding on to this, I have a few questions:
1. Given that OTL, he was a huge proponent of the New Deal (and most New Dealers such as FDR and Joe Kennedy seem to be in the Progressives), shouldn't Sam Rayburn be in the Progressive camp?
2. Are other New Dealers such as Wright Patman, Robert Wagner, and Henry Wallace also under the Progressive banner ITTL?
Yeah you pretty much hit the nail on the head. Quite a few Democratic political machines are still kicking, though their influence is quickly declining.
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Patman was narrowly elected to the Texas House as a Progressive in 1920. He is rumored to be looking into a run for Congress in 1922, but the 1st district remains very Democratic.
Wagner, similarly, defected to the Progressives, and recently retired from the New York Supreme Court, leading to speculation that he is running for New York’s Senate Seat in 1922. However, New York has a large amount of Progressives, and the primary is expected to be contentious.
Wallace, however, remains a Republican. After Hoover slighted his father by abandoning their agricultural practices as USFA director, both Wallaces have been bitter towards the President. Hoover had made up for some of this through his promotion of aggressive relief for farmers devastated in the post-war recession, but the younger Wallace has not yet made the jump to the Progressives, at least not publicly.
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As of 1922, Rayburn is being courted by both Progressives and Democrats. Democrats have kept him around by offering him positions on various Committees and Chairmanships (He is the chair of the House Democratic Caucus following the 1920 elections), as he is a protege of John Nance Garner. Progressives have trouble offering him much due to much of their leadership being comprised of their original defectors, but many of Rayburn’s former colleagues, particularly Samuel Ealy Johnson, are working to bring Rayburn to their side.
Patman was narrowly elected to the Texas House as a Progressive in 1920. He is rumored to be looking into a run for Congress in 1922, but the 1st district remains very Democratic.
Wagner, similarly, defected to the Progressives, and recently retired from the New York Supreme Court, leading to speculation that he is running for New York’s Senate Seat in 1922. However, New York has a large amount of Progressives, and the primary is expected to be contentious.
Wallace, however, remains a Republican. After Hoover slighted his father by abandoning their agricultural practices as USFA director, both Wallaces have been bitter towards the President. Hoover had made up for some of this through his promotion of aggressive relief for farmers devastated in the post-war recession, but the younger Wallace has not yet made the jump to the Progressives, at least not publicly.
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might be 👀
Lyndon is only 14 at this point in the timeline however.
Division and Infighting: The House of Representatives Elections of 1922
Two years since Hoover won election to the Presidency in a 6-way election, Progressives were united. Aggressive relief for farmers, and new laws restricting child labor, earned the Hoover administration wide praise from Progressives, Socialists, Prohibitionists, and some Democratic and Republican moderates. The Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill received praise in the north and west, but drew condemnation or silence from politicians of all parties in the South. Also, intervention in Armenia, and the U.S. joining the League of Nations, were criticized by isolationists, especially those within the Progressives. Despite some major disagreements on foreign policy and immigration, tensions between the Hoover and Johnson wings of the Progressives remained low after Johnson, Borah, and their supporters, folded back into the Progressives with the election of Hoover.
Other parties could not say the same however. With the Republicans, moderates were increasingly stifled under Speaker of the House and Republican leader Frederick Gillett, from Massachusetts 2nd district. This division between rural moderates and business-backed urban Republicans came to a head during the vote on the McNary-Haugen Farm Relief Bill. Supported by President Hoover, Secretary of Agriculture Arthur Townley, and most rural Representatives, Gillett was headstrong in his opposition to the bill. Despite this, it passed anyway, with the support of all Progressives, some Socialists, rural Prohibitionists, and defections from Republicans and Democrats alike. Due to his opposition to the bill, Progressives recruited Charles McCarthy to run for Gillett's seat. McCarthy had lived in Wisconsin for some time to work with the state legislature there on the implementation of Progressive ideas. In 1920, he decided that he would bring this Progressive thinking to his native Massachusetts, and moved to Springfield. He ran for mayor the following year, and despite accusations of carpetbagging, won handily with the endorsement of Hoover and other Progressives. Within a few weeks of the announcement of the McCarthy campaign, Gillett retired, though he had already stated previously that he was "heavily considering" retiring. The conservative Frank L. Greene, of Vermont, would be elected Republican House leader following the election, much to the dismay of the moderates.
As for the Democrats, large parts of their bench were wiped out in 1920 outside of the South. Those that remained were locked in a brutal power struggle between the remaining moderate faction, known as the Regular Democrats, and the conservative faction of the Deep South, named the Orange Democrats due to the fruits popularity in Florida, where many of such Democrats were based. The Regular Democrats, led by freshman representative and Champ Clark protege Clarence Cannon, argued that the party should moderate or tone down its position on social issues, while striking a populist tone economically. This, they believed, would help the party to make up lost ground outside of the South. The Orange Democrats argued bitterly against this, due to their extremely conservative views, stating that moderation on social issues would cause massive losses in the South, leading to the collapse of the party nationally. Due to Orange Democrats outnumbering the Regulars by a large margin, Representative James F. Byrnes, a conservative representative from South Carolina, was elected Democratic Party leader.
The Socialist Party had always been incredibly disunited, a ragtag group of leftist movements that separated and merged at will. But with Debs' shocking performance in 1920, and the slow collapse of the Communist Party, the found reason to be united. However, under the surface, tensions bubbled. Southern Socialists, such as Long and Meitzen, faced little opposition in the party during its first two years, but with primaries in 1922, some felt threatened by them. Long-backed candidates were mainly the only credible Socialist nominees in most of the South in 1922, which was appreciated by the party, but the Long-Meitzen wing of the party occasionally clashed with the rest of the party. Such was the case when Long and Meitzen endorsed candidates in races in Oklahoma and New Orleans, where leading figures from the rest of the party from that area, such as A.A. Bagwell and Frank P. O'Hare, had already backed other candidates. Some saw this as a blatant power grab for Long, but the Party was busy running candidates elsewhere, so it did not pay much mind to this.
Long and Meitzen backed candidates in 1922. Blue represents Socialists elected in 1920. Green represents Socialists elected in 1922. Yellow represents Socialists that lost in 1922. Red represents Long and Meitzen backed candidates that lost in the primary.
Aside from feuds in the South, divisions in the Plains area and Midwest kept Socialist successes to a minimum. In Minnesota's Minneapolis-based fifth district, Socialists won in 1920 due to a strong campaign by Thomas E. Latimer. In 1922, Progressive mayor of Minneapolis Floyd B. Olson ran for the seat, and succeeded, thanks in part to an independent run by former Minneapolis mayor Thomas Van Lear, who had been expelled from the Socialist Party in 1918 due to accusations that his supporters wanted a German victory in the Great War. Similar disagreements plagued this region of the Socialist Party, leading to a Progressive sweep in 1922.
House elections in the states of Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota in 1922. Lime Green represents a Progressive hold, while Dark Green represents a Progressive gain.
Finally, the Prohibitionists, which were even more loosely connected than the Socialists, struggled to unite their party. Being comprised of some Wilsonian Democrats, Georgists, Bryanites, and even people who would otherwise be Orange Democrats, the party struggled to unify around a single message, except that Prohibition should be strictly enforced. This led to failures for the party, which struggled to recruit solid candidates for most races. However, they still managed to gain seats in 1922, mainly because of the poor national environment for Republicans and Democrats, and the infighting that plagued those parties.
Finally, election day had arrived. As party leaders and fearful Representatives waited for results to come in, many had already predicted the outcome.
Massive gains from the Progressive, and successes from both the Socialists and Prohibitionists, all at the cost of the Democrats and Republicans. Progressives, now the largest party in Congress, sought to have Progressive House leader Whitmell P. Martin elected Speaker, though this did not go to plan.
Other parties could not say the same however. With the Republicans, moderates were increasingly stifled under Speaker of the House and Republican leader Frederick Gillett, from Massachusetts 2nd district. This division between rural moderates and business-backed urban Republicans came to a head during the vote on the McNary-Haugen Farm Relief Bill. Supported by President Hoover, Secretary of Agriculture Arthur Townley, and most rural Representatives, Gillett was headstrong in his opposition to the bill. Despite this, it passed anyway, with the support of all Progressives, some Socialists, rural Prohibitionists, and defections from Republicans and Democrats alike. Due to his opposition to the bill, Progressives recruited Charles McCarthy to run for Gillett's seat. McCarthy had lived in Wisconsin for some time to work with the state legislature there on the implementation of Progressive ideas. In 1920, he decided that he would bring this Progressive thinking to his native Massachusetts, and moved to Springfield. He ran for mayor the following year, and despite accusations of carpetbagging, won handily with the endorsement of Hoover and other Progressives. Within a few weeks of the announcement of the McCarthy campaign, Gillett retired, though he had already stated previously that he was "heavily considering" retiring. The conservative Frank L. Greene, of Vermont, would be elected Republican House leader following the election, much to the dismay of the moderates.
As for the Democrats, large parts of their bench were wiped out in 1920 outside of the South. Those that remained were locked in a brutal power struggle between the remaining moderate faction, known as the Regular Democrats, and the conservative faction of the Deep South, named the Orange Democrats due to the fruits popularity in Florida, where many of such Democrats were based. The Regular Democrats, led by freshman representative and Champ Clark protege Clarence Cannon, argued that the party should moderate or tone down its position on social issues, while striking a populist tone economically. This, they believed, would help the party to make up lost ground outside of the South. The Orange Democrats argued bitterly against this, due to their extremely conservative views, stating that moderation on social issues would cause massive losses in the South, leading to the collapse of the party nationally. Due to Orange Democrats outnumbering the Regulars by a large margin, Representative James F. Byrnes, a conservative representative from South Carolina, was elected Democratic Party leader.
The Socialist Party had always been incredibly disunited, a ragtag group of leftist movements that separated and merged at will. But with Debs' shocking performance in 1920, and the slow collapse of the Communist Party, the found reason to be united. However, under the surface, tensions bubbled. Southern Socialists, such as Long and Meitzen, faced little opposition in the party during its first two years, but with primaries in 1922, some felt threatened by them. Long-backed candidates were mainly the only credible Socialist nominees in most of the South in 1922, which was appreciated by the party, but the Long-Meitzen wing of the party occasionally clashed with the rest of the party. Such was the case when Long and Meitzen endorsed candidates in races in Oklahoma and New Orleans, where leading figures from the rest of the party from that area, such as A.A. Bagwell and Frank P. O'Hare, had already backed other candidates. Some saw this as a blatant power grab for Long, but the Party was busy running candidates elsewhere, so it did not pay much mind to this.
Long and Meitzen backed candidates in 1922. Blue represents Socialists elected in 1920. Green represents Socialists elected in 1922. Yellow represents Socialists that lost in 1922. Red represents Long and Meitzen backed candidates that lost in the primary.
Aside from feuds in the South, divisions in the Plains area and Midwest kept Socialist successes to a minimum. In Minnesota's Minneapolis-based fifth district, Socialists won in 1920 due to a strong campaign by Thomas E. Latimer. In 1922, Progressive mayor of Minneapolis Floyd B. Olson ran for the seat, and succeeded, thanks in part to an independent run by former Minneapolis mayor Thomas Van Lear, who had been expelled from the Socialist Party in 1918 due to accusations that his supporters wanted a German victory in the Great War. Similar disagreements plagued this region of the Socialist Party, leading to a Progressive sweep in 1922.
House elections in the states of Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Minnesota in 1922. Lime Green represents a Progressive hold, while Dark Green represents a Progressive gain.
Finally, the Prohibitionists, which were even more loosely connected than the Socialists, struggled to unite their party. Being comprised of some Wilsonian Democrats, Georgists, Bryanites, and even people who would otherwise be Orange Democrats, the party struggled to unify around a single message, except that Prohibition should be strictly enforced. This led to failures for the party, which struggled to recruit solid candidates for most races. However, they still managed to gain seats in 1922, mainly because of the poor national environment for Republicans and Democrats, and the infighting that plagued those parties.
Finally, election day had arrived. As party leaders and fearful Representatives waited for results to come in, many had already predicted the outcome.
Massive gains from the Progressive, and successes from both the Socialists and Prohibitionists, all at the cost of the Democrats and Republicans. Progressives, now the largest party in Congress, sought to have Progressive House leader Whitmell P. Martin elected Speaker, though this did not go to plan.