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CHARLESPOSTELDEPARTMENTOFHISTORYSANFRANCISCOSTATEUNIVERSITY

“THEPOPULISTCONTEXT:TEXASCOTTONFARMERSANDRELIGIOUSCONFLICT,1880‐1900”

AGRARIANSTUDIESCOLLOQUIUM,YALEUNIVERSITY,JANUARY29,2010

AbustlingtradingtownontheBrazosRiver,Waco,Texasservedasthe

supplycenterandmarketforthecottonfarmersoftheadjoiningdistricts.Bywagon

andrail,in1893farmersbrought180,000balesofcottontotheWacomarket.The

townalsoclaimedtobethe“AthensofTexas”andthe“CityofChurches,”asitwas

thehomeoftheBaptistBaylorUniversityandthecenterofmissionaryeducational

worktowinTexastoevangelicalChristianity.1Today,theabundanceofchurch

spiresandChristianacademieswouldconvinceanytwenty‐firstcenturyvisitorsto

thesignificanceofWaco’sevangelicalpast.Butwhattheymaynotknowisthat

Wacowasalsothecenterofanintensereligiousconflictthatcametoaheadon

November19,1897.Onthatday,inbroaddaylightinthemiddleoftown,twomen

ambushedCountyJudgeGeorgeBruceGerald.AimingattheJudge’sback,oneofthe

bulletslodgedinhisarmandanotherbouncedoffthemetalbuttonontheJudge’s

suspenders,givinghimtimetodrawhissix‐shooterandkillhiswould‐beassassins.

JudgeGeraldhadlongbeenathorninthesideofBaptistofficialdom.Inthe

early1880s,hehadturnedhiscourtroomovertotheweeklymeetingsofan

associationofsecularfreethinkers.ButtheJudge’sgreatestaffrontwashis

1CharlesCutter,Cutter’sGuidetotheCityofWaco(Waco:Padgitt’sParkNatatorium,1894),39.


outspokendefenseofhisfriendWilliamCowpersBrann,theeditorandpublisherin

WacooftheIconoclastmagazine,whichdevoteditspagestodebunkingthemyths

andexposingthehypocrisiesoftheProtestantchurches.Angrymembersofthe

BaptistcommunitysoughttoteachBrannalesson.WhenJudgeGeraldcametothe

editor’sdefense,theymadetheirattemptonGerald.Fourmonthslater,onApril1,

1898,amanseekingthefavorofBaptistcitizensshottheeditoroftheIconoclastin

thebackashewalkedalongWaco’smainstreet.BrannreturnedfireandbothBrann

andhisassassindiedthenextday.2

Inlaterdecades,Waco’sresidenthistorianswouldexplaintheseeventsasan

episodeinthetown’s“colorful”and“WildWest”past.3Thebloodshedonthestreets

ofWaco,however,carriedadeeperhistoricalsignificancebecauseitwaspartofa

profoundreligiousconflictthatplayedoutacrossthecottondistrictsofcentraland

easternTexas.Moreover,thisconflictoverbeliefandunbelieftookplaceatthesame

timeandinthesameruraldistrictsthatwereattheepicenterofthePopulistrevolt.

TheFarmers’Alliancemovementfirstappearedinthecottondistrictsofcentral

Texas,fromwhichitgrewbytheendofthe1880sasanunprecedentednational

forceofagrarianorganization.TheFarmers’Allianceprovidedtheintellectualand

organizationalcatalystforthePopulistfarmer‐laborcoalitionandthenational

2GeorgeB.Gerald,“ThePassingofWilliamCowperBrann,”Iconoclast,vol.8,no.4(May1898),74‐6;“FullerWilliamson’sStatementMadeinDr.CarlLovelace’sOffice,Feb.9,1934,”unpublishedms.,TexasCollection,BaylorUniversity;“LastActoftheWacoTragedy,”SanAntonio,April21,1898,clipping,and“Brann,WilliamCowper,”unpublishedms.in“WilliamCowperBrann,”verticalfile,CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin;CharlesCarver,BrannandtheIconoclast(Austin,TX,1957).3“G.B.GeraldReownedasJurist,Editor,ConfederateHeroandManofCourage,”WacoTribuneHerald,October30,1949;“LivesofLivelyDissent,”WacoTribuneHerald,May14,2007;GaryCleveWilson,“BaneoftheBaptists,”TexasMonthly,January,1986.


People’sParty,arguablythemostpowerfulchallengetocorporatepowerinU.S.

history.Whatthenwastherelationship,ifany,betweenthereligiouswarfareand

thePopulistrevolt?Thescholarshiphascoveredthechallengesofmarkets,

indebtedness,corporatepower,andpoliticalabusethatframedthesocialand

politicalcontextsofthePopulistrevolt.Thepurposeofthispaperistoexamine

anotherdimensionofthePopulistcontext,whichwasthereligiousconflictin

centralTexasthatledtothebloodshedinWaco.

TodosorequiresprobingsomeofthemostdurablemythsaboutAmerica’s

agrarianpastandthehistoricalmeaningofthenation’srural/urbandivide.Inthe

widerpoliticalculture,thismeaninghasoftenbeenrefractedthroughthelensofthe

Scopes“Monkey”Trialof1925.JohnScopes,ayoungscienceteacher,facedcharges

inthesmalltownofDaytonTennesseeforviolatingthestatelawbarringthe

teachingofevolution.Thecaseturnedintothe“trialofthecentury.”Forthe

prosecution,itwasWilliamJenningsBryan,aformercongressmanfromNebraska

andthreetimestheDemocraticnomineeforpresident.ForoverthirtyyearsBryan

madeheadlineswithhiscampaignsforpopularsocialreforms.Inthe1920s,he

madecommoncausewithChristianfundamentalistsintheireffortstobanthe

teachingofevolution.Onthedefenseteam,itwasClarenceDarrow,thefamous

Chicagoattorney,urbane,cosmopolitan,skeptical,andagnostic.Atthetime,the

journalistH.L.Menckenframedthetrialasa“religiousorgy,”witharural“Homo

Neanderthalensis”wielding“theanthropomorphicreligionofanelderday”against

theenlightenedurbanminority.4Historytextbookswouldlatermarkthetrialas

4BaltimoreEveningSun,June29,1925;TheNation,July1,1925.


“thelastholdoutofthenineteenthcentury”inthefaceofmodernurbanAmerica.

DespitetheevidencethatTennesseevotersweredividedovertheanti‐evolution

law,andthattheoppositiontothelawwasasstronginruraldistrictsasurbanones,

thetrialforgedthelinkinthenation’smythsandmemoriesbetweenfundamentalist

ortraditionalreligionandruralpeople.5

Moreover,inthepoliticalculture,theScopesTriallinkedfundamentalist

religiontoPopulistreform.WilliamJenningsBryanhadadvocatedsilverinflation

andotherreformssoughtbyfarmersand,althoughhewasalife‐longDemocratand

wontheDemocraticnominationforthepresidencyin1896,hiscandidacyhadalso

beenendorsedbythePeople’sParty.Hence,ifBryanattheScopesTrialrepresented

the“shabbinessoftheEvangelicalmind,”asRichardHofstadtersodelicatelyputit,

Populismcametorepresentmuchthesame.6EversincetheScopesTrialrural

PopulismandfundamentalistortraditionalProtestantismhavebeenclosely

intertwinedinhistoricalmemory.Indeed,inthescholarshipofAmericanpolitical

cultureandreform,evangelicalpietyhasservedasthesheetanchortyingPopulism

andagrarianprotesttoatraditionalpast.7

Formorethanhalfacentury,thenatureofthePopulistmovementhas

representedasharppointofscholarlycontroversy.Inthe1950s,RichardHofstadter

5EdwardJ.Larson,SummerfortheGods:TheScopesTrialandAmerica’sContinuingDebateOverScienceandReligion(Cambridge:HarvardUniversity,1997),50,56,236.6Hofstadter,AgeofReform,288.7RayGinger,SixDaysorForever?Tennesseev.JohnScopes(Boston:Beacon,1958,reprint,NewYork:Oxford,1970),16,223;MichaelKazin,ThePopulistPersuasion,AnAmericanHistory(NewYork:Basic,1995),106,andAGodlyHero:TheLifeofWilliamJenningsBryan(NewYork,Knopf,2006),303‐04;JohnL.Thomas,AlternativeAmerica:HenryGeorge,EdwardBellamy,HenryDemarestLloyd,andtheAdversaryTradition(NewYork:RandomHouse,1963),333;KevinP.Philips,PostConservativeAmerica:People,PoliticsandIdeologyinaTimeofCrisis(NewYork:RandomHouse,1982),181.


atColumbiaandaninfluentialsetofAmericanintellectuals,concernedaboutthe

originsoffascisminEurope,lookedbackatPopulismtoseeifitmightcontainseeds

ofirrational,intolerant,andanti‐Semiticmasspolitics.Sureenough,thatisjustwhat

theyfound.HofstadterdrewtheconclusionthatthePopulistswerebackward

lookinganddelusional,aruralpeoplepsychologicallyunabletocopewiththe

demandsofamodernsociety.8Quitedifferentconcernsanimatedthehistoriansof

the1970sand1980s.Theirpointofreferencewasthegrass‐rootsactivismofthe

CivilRightsMovement.HistorianssuchasLawrenceGoodwynandChristopher

LaschsawPopulismasthe1960sculturewritlarge.Populism,astheysawit,

providedhistoricalconfirmationoftheirownideasaboutgrass‐rootsdemocracy

andthefailingsofahierarchicalandcommercialculture.Populism,theyargued,

wasdrivenbythedemocraticresponseofruralpeopletakingastandtodefendtheir

traditionalworld–family,community,andchurch–fromamoderninvasionof

businessmenseekingdevelopment.9Thekeythingtounderstandaboutthese

sharplydifferentviews–Populismasproto‐fascismversusPopulismasthelastbest

hopeforgrass‐rootsdemocracy–isthattheyarebothfoundedonacommon

8Hofstadter,TheAgeofReform,12‐22,46‐47;VictorFerkiss,“PopulistInfluencesonAmericanFascism,”WesternHistoricalQuarterly,vol.10(1957),350‐57;SeymourLipsetandEarlRaab,ThePoliticsofUnreason:RightWingExtremisminAmerica,17901977(Chicago:UniveristyofChicago,1978),90‐99.9LawrenceGoodwyn,TheDemocraticPromise:ThePopulistMomentinAmerica(NewYork:Oxford,1976),612‐14,andThePopulistMoment:AShortHistoryoftheAgrarianRevoltinAmerica(NewYork:Oxford,1978),ixandxxi;ChristopherLasch,“ThePopulistCampaignAgainst‘Improvement,’”inTheTrueandOnlyHeaven:ProgressandItsCritics(NewYork:Norton,1991),168‐225,and“CommunitarianismorPopulism,”inTheRevoltoftheElitesandtheBetrayalofDemocracy(NewYork:Norton,1995),92‐114;StevenHahn,TheRootsofSouthernPopulism,YeomanFarmersandtheTransformationoftheGeorgiaUpcountry,18501890(NewYork:Oxford,1985);BrucePalmer,“ManOverMoney”:TheSouthernPopulistCritiqueofAmericanCapitalism(ChapelHill:UniversityofNorthCarolina,1980).


premise:ThePopulistsweretradition‐boundpeopleinrevoltagainstmodernityand

progress.

IntheusualnarrativeofAmericandevelopment,Populismhasbeenplaced

ontheteleologicaltrackfromtheagrarianGemeinschaftoflocal,self‐sufficient,

mutualistcommunity,totheurbanGesellschaftofcentralized,commercial,

bureaucraticsociety.Mybook,ThePopulistVision,haschallengedthatnarrative.It

questionstheassumptionsthatlocatePopulisminthecontextofrural

traditionalism,andreconsidersexactlywhowasmodernandwhowasnot.Inthe

process,averydifferentPopulismcomesintoview.ThisisaPopulismthat

represented,atitscore,avastmovementofruraleducation,amovementthat

broughtoftenmarginallyliteratemenandwomenintoinstitutes,classrooms,book

clubs,andlectureseries,wheretheystudiedpoliticaleconomy,history,andfarming

techniqueandbusinessmethods,alongwiththenaturalandsocialsciences

includingthelatestfindingsofHerbertSpencer,ThomasHenryHuxley,Charles

Darwinandotherevolutionarytheorists.ThisisaPopulismthatmobilized

hundredsofthousandsofwomendemandingeducation,professionalemployment,

andfreedomfromtraditionalrestraints.ThisisaPopulismthatpioneeredhighly

centralizedandtechnologicallyadvancedcooperativemarketingsystemsthatwould

serveasacornerstoneofmodernagribusiness.ThisisaPopulismthattranscended

localismandregionalism,representinganationalistmovementofSoutherncotton

farmersandGreatPlainsgrainproducers,aswellasCaliforniaandFloridafruit

growers,Midwesterncoalminersandrailwayemployees,andurbanmiddleclass

reformersinChicago,Denver,andSanFrancisco.ThisisaPopulismthatstoodona


platformthatcalledfortheexpansionofthenationalgovernmentonthemodelof

thepostalsystem,thecentralgovernment’slargestbureaucracy.Thiswasa

Populismthatsoughttomakeuseoftelecommunications,steampower,and

economiesofscaletobuildwhattheyperceivedasamorejustandequitablemodel

ofmoderndevelopment.

Foraworkingdefinitionoftheconceptmodern,Ireliedinmyresearchon

MarshalBerman’srenderingofTheCommunistManifesto.“Allthatissolidmeltsinto

air”withinthecontextofaglobalmarketfacilitatedby“technologically

sophisticatedcommunications.”Moreover,modernityalsoimpliesacertaintypeof

peoplewhoseekinnovationandchange.AsBermanputsit,they“lookforwardto

futuredevelopmentsintheirconditionsoflifeandtheirrelationswiththeirfellow

men.”10Myresearchconcludes:“ThePopulistswerejustthiskindofpeople.They

soughttoimprovetheirdomesticeconomyandtheirnationalgovernment.They

soughtrenewalinlocalschoolhousesandfederalcreditsystems.Theysoughtto

refashionassociationaltieswithneighborsandcommercialrelationswiththe

world.Theysoughtnewtechniques,newacreage,andnewavenuesofspiritual

expression.”11

Inotherwords,thePopulistswereruralmoderns.Buttheyweremorethan

that,astheirinnovativeeffortshadadetermined,pointededge.JamesScotthas

appliedtheconceptofhighmodernismtodescribeanoutlookthatis“bestconceived

asastrong(onemightevensaymuscle‐bound)versionofthebeliefsinscientific

10MarshalBerman,AllThatIsSolidMeltsintoAir:TheExperienceofModernity(NewYork:Simon&Schuster,1982,reprint,NewYork:Penguin,1988),90‐96.11CharlesPostel,ThePopulistVision(NewYork:Oxford,2007),10.


andtechnicalprogress,”especiallyasappliedbythestate,andshows“asupreme

self‐confidenceaboutcontinuedlinealprogress.”12IntheAmericancontext,scholars

haveusedScott’sconcepttodiscussurbanleaders–collegeprofessors,government

agents,andbusinessexecutives–who,inthe1920sand1930s,brought“agriculture

kickingandscreamingintothemodernworld.”13Butmyresearchpointsina

differentdirection–torural“highmoderns.”PostCivilWarAmericaproduceda

waveofagrarianmovements,culminatinginPopulism,thatmightbebestdescribed

ashighmodernistasScottdefinestheterm.ThemenandwomenofthePopulist

leadership,alongwiththegrass‐rootsrurallecturersandorganizers,displayeda

“muscle‐bound”faithinscience,technology,andprogress.Theyenjoyedenormous

self‐confidencethatprogresswaslinealandknowable.Andtheybelievedinthe

humancapacity,bymeansofthestateandotherwise,toharnessnatureinthe

serviceofever‐risingsocialimprovement.

ThehistorianRobertMcMath,Jr.pointsoutthatafterreadingThePopulist

Vision“itistemptingtociteDorothy’scommenttoherlittledogafterthecyclone

haddepositedtheminOz:‘Toto,we’renotinKansasanymore.’”14Placingagrarian

highmodernismintothenineteenth‐centuryruralworldofAmericanmyth,legend,

andprevailingscholarshipcanprovedisorienting.Thedissonanceisespecially

12JamesC.Scott,SeeingLikeaState:HowCertainSchemestoImprovetheHumanConditionHaveFailed(NewHaven:Yale,1998),8990.13DeborahFitzgerald,EveryFarmaFactory:TheIndustrialIdealinAmericanAgriculture(NewHaven:Yale,2003),6‐7,77,and“AccountingforChange,”inCatherineMcNicolStockandRobertD.Johnston,eds,TheCountrysideintheAgeoftheModernState(Ithaca,NY:Cornell,2001),189212.14RobertC.McMath,Jr.,“AnotherLookatthe‘HardSide’ofPopulism,”ReviewsinAmericanHistory,vol.36,no.2(June2008),and“ThePopulistVision:ARoundtableDiscussion,”KansasHistory,vol.32,no.1(Spring2009),18‐45.


acutewhenitcomestoreligion.Historicalmemoryandmuchofourhistorical

scholarshipassumesaubiquitouspresenceofevangelicalfaithintherural

heartland,anassumptionthatishardtosquarewithmyclaimsoftheinnovative

andscientisticnatureofPopulistbeliefandunbelief.Myoriginalresearchfocused

onthePopulistinterior,theliterature,correspondence,lecturenotes,minutebooks,

diaries,andmemoirsleftbehindbytheleadersaswellasthegrassroots“organic

intellectuals”ofthemovement.Thepurposeofthispaperistolookmorecloselyat

thereligiousenvironmentinwhichthemodernizingprojectofruralPopulism

emerged.

Religion,aswitheveryotherpartofhumanexperience,ishistorically

contingent.Whatwasthehistoricalspecificityofthereligiouscontextthatshaped

thePopulistmovement?Addressingthisquestionshedslightonthemoral

frameworksoflatenineteenth‐centuryreformmovements,therelationships

betweenplebianreligionandplebianpolitics,aswellasthenatureofthe

rural/urbandivide.Itisacomplexquestiontoresearch.Populismwasasocial

movementinvolvingmillionsofpeople,numerouscontradictorytrendsandcross

currentsspreadacrossacontinentwithwidevariationbyregionandplace.In

California,thePopulistsemergedinanenvironmentcharacterizedbybroad

indifferenceaboutreligiousconcerns,andthosethatweremostpolitically

influentialonthePopulistmovementtendedtobewhatareknowntodayasNew

AgeinterestsinmetaphysicsandEasternphilosophies.InKansas,thePopulists

reflectedespeciallyacrimoniousruralresentmentsagainstthechurchesand

“churchianity.”NorthCarolinahadthepeculiarcombinationofbothastrong


Populistmovementandstronglyestablishedchurches.15Texaswasthestormcenter

ofthePopulistrevoltandwasalsorifewithreligiouscontroversiesthatbrokeinto

publicpolitics(andpublicviolence)andleftatellinghistoricalrecord.

TheRev.H.S.Thrall,inchargeofMethodistmissionaryworkinTexas,

describedthestateinthelate1880sas“unoccupiedterritory,”whereamobile

populationhad“childrenasignorantofChristianityasthoughtheyhadbeenborn

heathens.”16The1890CensusseemedtoconfirmThrall’sassessment.Outofa

populationof2,235,527,aseventypercentmajoritydidnotbelongtoachurchor

religiousorder.Thelevelofchurchmembershipwashigherinthecitiesandtowns,

insomedistrictswithlargenumbersofMexicanCatholics,andamongsome

immigrantcommunities.Butconnectionstoorganizedreligiongrewthininthe

ruraldistrictsofcentralandeasternTexaswherethePopulistmovementhadits

greateststrength.17ThemainlyEnglish‐speakingfarmersandtenantsofthese

districtswereoftennewarrivals,andalthoughmostofthemcamefromProtestant

backgrounds,manysettlershadlostorganizedconnectionstothechurchesand

creedsthattheyoncemighthavehadbackinGeorgiaorNorthCarolinafrom

whencetheycame.Therewasalsoaracialdimension.Withthedefeatof

15WithhisresearchfocusonNorthCarolina,JoeCreechdrawstheconclusionthatevangelicalreligionwasthemotiveforcebehindthePopulistrevolt.Whileoverstatingthecase,thisconclusionalsoreflectsthepeculiaritiesofNorthCarolina.RighteousIndignation:Religion&thePopulistRevolution(Urbana:UniveristyofIllinois,2006).16TexasChristianAdvocate(Galveston,TX),January27,1887.17ReportonStatisticsofChurchesintheUnitedStatesattheEleventhCensus(Washington,D.C.:GovernmentPrintingOffice,1890),48,81,245‐6.


ReconstructionandthedestructionofAfrican‐Americanpoliticalorganizations,

African‐Americanfarmersandtenantsmayhaveprovedmoresuccessfulthantheir

whitecounterpartsinsettingupandmaintainingchurchnetworks.

InherstudyoftheoriginsoftheBibleBelt,ChristineHeyrmanremindsus

thattheante‐bellumevangelicalconquestoftheSouthinvolvedinnovationand

conflict,andwasundertakenbyevangelicalmissionariesfromNewEnglandand

acrosstheAtlanticwhoencounteredhostilityandresistancefromthelocal

populace.18ThecycleofconquestcontinuedinTexas.UnderMexicanrule,when

Anglo‐AmericansettlerswerediscouragedfrombringingProtestantismintoTexas,

StephenAustinconsideredthat“oneMethodistpreacher”wouldcausemore

damagetoAmericansettlement“thanadozenhorsethieves.”19Afterannexation,

mostsettlersshowedlittleinterestinreligiousmatters,yettheearlymissionaries

madedeterminedefforts.ThisincludedthegreatgrandfatherofLyndonBaines

Johnson,GeorgeWashingtonBaines,whoworkedasaBaptistmissionaryforthe

NewYorkHomeMissionSociety,andservedinthe1860sasthepresidentofBaylor

University.20AfterattendingBaylorandstudyingwithBaines,theparsonHenry

RenfrotookupfarmingandmissionaryworkintheCrossTimbersdistrict,wherehe

wroteto“BrotherBaines”aboutthelackofwaterforBaptisms,thelackofasingle

18ChristineLeighHeyrman,SouthernCross:TheBeginningsoftheBibleBelt(ChapelHill,NC,1997).19HandbookofTexasOnline,s.v.","http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/RR/izrdf.html(accessedJanuary21,2010).20RobertCaro,ThePathtoPower:TheYearsofLyndonJohnson(NewYork:Knopf,1982),50.


ministerinthecounty,andwhereanitinerantminister“comessixtymilestopreach

atthischurch.”21

Still,theBaptistsandMethodistshadtheupperhandwhenitcameto

missionarywork,butthePresbyteriansandotherevangelicalswerealsointhefield.

SotoowereSwedenborgians,Unitarians,Spiritualists,FreeThinkers,andother

unorthodoxandiconoclasticcreeds.MissionariesofeverystripeviewedTexasas

“unoccupiedterritory”becausethegreatmajorityofruralpeoplewereoutsideof

anyfoldand,perhapsmoreimportantly,theweaknessofestablishedchurches

openedthedoorsforupheavalandinnovation.AlbertFranciscoservedasa

missionaryfortheSwedenborgianNewChurch,agroupinspiredbythe

metaphysicalandrationalistphilosophyoftheSwedishscientistandinventor

EmanuelSwedenborg.Aftertouringthestate,Franciscoreportedbacktohischurch

officersthatTexasofferedthegreatestopportunityformissionsinthecountry,

because“thereisagreatrevolutiongoingonhere.”22

Intheirwidevariety,themissionariesfanningoutacrosstheTexas

countrysidetendedtofocusonwinningoverthesameethno‐culturalgroup.The

ruralpeoplethattheysoughttoconvertweremainlynotIndians,Mexicans,or,for

thatmatter,Germans,Bohemians,orotherimmigrants,butthenative‐born,English‐

speakingfarmerswhocomprisedthedemographicmajorityinthestate.This

majoritysustainedelementsofProtestantcultureandprobablyshowedless

“ignoranceofChristianity”thanclaimedintheexcitedreportsofthemissionaries.21HenryRenfro,LettertotheEditor,TheTexasBaptist,September2,1856,inWilliamClarkGriggs,ParsonHenryRenfro:FreeThinkingontheTexasFrontier(Austin,1994),11‐15.22KeithLynnKing,“ReligiousDimensionsoftheAgrarianProtestinTexas,1870‐1908,”PhDdiss.,UniversityofIllinoisKing,“ReligiousDimensions,”163.


ManydesolatefarmcabinshadaBibleontheshelf,thetextfromwhichfarm

childrenoftenlearnedtheirletters.Farmwomenoftenconsideredbiblereadingan

obligationasmuchasthehouseholdchores.Inthatcontext,biblicalreferencesand

biblestorieswerewovencloselyintohowruralpeoplediscussedandargued,across

thespectrumofbeliefandunbelief.

Missionariesalsousedsimilarmethodsofrecruitingas,forexample,intheir

useofcampmeetings.Revivalencampmentswheremissionariespreachedunder

bigtentstopotentialconvertsservedasameansbywhichtheevangelicalshad

conqueredtheSouthinapreviousgeneration.InlatenineteenthcenturyTexas,the

campmeetingwasanattractiveformforruralpeople,andthemissionariesmade

themostofit.AcampmeetingbyaforestspringoronthebanksoftheBrazosRiver

providedacoolplaceforfarmfamiliestorestandsocializeduringthesummer

heat.23Theyalsogavefarmerstheopportunitytobeentertainedandinformedby

talentedspeakersonbehalfofawidechoiceofcreedsandbeliefs.Underthecamp

meetingtent,farmersmightlistentothePresbyterianministerWilliamB.Bloys.

TrainedfortheministryinIllinois,Bloyshadhoped“toservetheLordinIndia,”but

becauseofhispoorhealthhischurchhadsenthimtoTexasinstead.Heheldhisfirst

campmeetingatSkillmanGroveoutsideofFortDavis,reportingthatofforty‐six

participants,onlyoneadultmanandfivewomenwere“professingChristians.”24

ExactlywhatBloysmeantbytheclaimthattheotherfortywerenot“professing

Christians”isunclear.Theclaimsuggests,however,thatanelementofnoveltyand23“RevivalNews,”TexasChristianAdvocate(Galveston,TX),August25,1883.24“TheTrueStoryAbouttheFirstCampMeetingHeldOctober10th,1890,atSkillmanGrove,”unpublishedms.,and“CoveSpringCampMeetin,”in“Campmeetings”verticalfile,CenterforAmericanHistory,Austin,Texas.


discoverywasoneoftheattractionsofthecampmeeting.Indeed,theSpiritualists,

heldwell‐attendedruralcampmeetingsincentralTexasthatwerenotexplicitly

Christianatall,butdrewalargeruralfollowingtowitnesspresentationsbyboth

maleandfemalemediumsexplainingthescienceandpracticeofcommunicating

withthedead.25

Thecampmeeting,withitslowoverheadcostsandwithcleanwaterandcool

shadeprovidingtheessentialinfrastructure,allowedtheSpiritualistsandother

unorthodoxgroupstocompetewiththemoreorthodoxBaptists,Methodists,and

otherevangelicals.Theunorthodoxmovementshadoneotherfactorworkingfor

them.Duringthelatenineteenthcenturythemainlineevangelicalchurcheswere

consumedbyinternalconflict.In1891,ThomasDewittTalmagethefamed

PresbyterianclergymannotedfromhisBrooklyn,NewYork,ministrythat:“thisisa

timeofresoundingecclesiasticalquarrel.Neverwithinyourmemoryorminehas

theairbeensofullofmissiles.”26TheProtestantchurcheshadtheirusualinter‐

denominationaldisputesovertheusualissuessuchasthetechniquesandtimingof

baptism,theroleoftheclergy,andwhetheritwasapreorpost‐millennialage.But

the“resoundingecclesiasticalquarrel”thatTalmagereferencedinvolvedwhatthe

Texaschurchesconsideredthepressingissuesofthetime.

InstructionssenttotheMethodist’sInternationalSundaySchoolwenttothe

heartofthecrisis.HowwerethefaithfultoteachchildrentheGospelinatimewhen

“skepticalcriticshaveattemptedtoprovetheMosaicbookstobetheproductofthe

25“InCamp.TheDayWiththeSpiritualistsatOakCliff,”DailyTimesHerald(Dallas,TX),September1,2,4,6,1896.26Caucasian(Clinton,NC),September28,1893.


priestlyage”?Howtoconfront“theso‐calledmodernscientificandcritical

objectionstothebookofGenesis”?Assuchviewscouldnolongerbekeptfromthe

students,oreasilyrefutedexceptbytheologiansofhighertraining,theinstructions

suggestedthatSundayschoolteachersberemindedthat“everythoughtfulchild

knowsbyhisconsciencethatheisasinner,”andtherebychangethesubject.Butthe

subjectcouldnotbesoeasilychanged.27Discoveriesinbiologyandphysics,andthe

influenceofsocialevolutionarythinking,gaveanewmoralauthoritytoempirical

evidenceandrationalinquiry.Scienceandreasonwerelookedonasthenew

arbitersofmoralityandtruth.TheresonanceofHigherCriticismmeantthatthe

Biblewasincreasinglysubjecttothesamecriticalstandard,which,amongother

things,meantthatJesusasmanlyGodhadtocontendwiththenotionofJesusasa

godlyman.Meanwhile,astheTexasMethodistswarned,“Infidelityisfondof

comparingChristianitywithotherreligions,”asglobalinterconnectionsalsospread

knowledgeofnon‐Christianbeliefs.In1893,theProtestantchurchesorganizeda

WorldParliamentofReligionstocoincidewiththeChicagoWorldsFair.Overa

hundredandfiftythousandpeopletookpartinitssessions,comparingnoteswith

representativesfromacrossAsiaandtheMiddleEastaboutBuddha,Zoroaster,

Confucius,andMohammed.28

Moreover,thesocialcrisesofthe1880sand90sfurtherexacerbatedthe

“ecclesiasticalquarrel.”Theyawninggapbetweenrichandpoor,andthepowerful

27TexasChristianAdvocate,January13,1887.28TexasChristianAdvocate,August25,1883;MaxMuller,“TheRealSignificanceoftheParliamentofReligions,”Arena11(1894),1‐14;RichardHughesSeager,TheWorld’sParliamentofReligions:TheEast/WestEncounter,Chicago,1893(Bloomington:UniversityofIndiana,1995).


riseofplebiansocialmovementsposedthepoliticaldilemma:werethechurches

aboutthefutureafterlifeorsavinghumanityinthehereandnow?WasJesusthe

saviorofindividualsoulsorwashethecarpenterwhosoughtsocialjusticeforthe

poor?Theconflictsoverhowtoadapttothisnewintellectualandpolitical

environmentplayedoutwithinnationaldenominations.Theyragedintheelite

seminariesinChicago,NewYork,andPrinceton,producingthe“NewTheology,”as

urbanmiddleclassreformersalignedwithaSocialGospel.

ThesameforceswereatworkwithintheevangelicalmovementsinTexas,

stimulatingsharppolemics,heresytrials,reforms,andschisms,aswellasreligious

indifferenceandunbelief.TheclergyatBaylorUniversityfeared“graveand

dangerous”hereticsworkingtheir“ruinousteaching”withinthechurch.29The

Universityitselffacednotonlythecompetitionfrom“cheapandshowy”Catholic

schools,butespeciallyfromthesystemofpubliceducation,that“isbeing

manipulatedbyInfidels&GodlessmenfortheruinofourChildren&Texas.”30At

rootoftheproblemsconfrontingChristianityinTexas,accordingtotheBaptist

leadership,wastheabilityofinfidelstoexploitignoranceofDivineRevelation.The

Rev.BenajahH.CarrolltaughtatBaylor,ministeredtheFirstBaptistChurchin

Waco,andwasthemostpowerfulBaptisttheologianinthestate.Asayoungerman,

Carrollridiculedreligionandconsideredhimselfa“committedinfidel”priortoa

campmeetingconversion.Asalateconverttothecause,hewadedintoonereligious

29W.E.Penn,Trenton,TN,toRev.B.H.Carroll,Waco,TX,April18,1889,B.H.CarrollPapers,TexasCollection,BaylorUniversity.30RufusC.BurlesonandT.E.Muse,undatedlettertoCommitteeonSchoolsandEducation,RufusC.BurlesonPapers,TexasCollection,BaylorUniversity.


controversyafterthenextto“raisethestandard”oforthodoxy.31In1884he

deliveredamuch‐publicizedsermonentitled“TheAgnostic,”hundredsofcopiesof

whichwerehandedoutfreeonthestreetsofWaco.InthesermonCarrollanalyzed

an“infideltidewhichpushesitschillingwavesovertheearth.”Thesourceofthis

tidewasthepromiscuousspreadofthe“evolutionhypothesis.”Hidingbehindthe

fashionableviewsofSpencer,Darwin,Huxley,Buckle,andJohnStuartMill,Carroll

warned,“theenemy”keptthepeopleinignoranceoftheirGod.32

Indifference,however,compoundedignorance.ToomanyTexansdrifted

awayfromreligionandbeliefbecauseoflackofinterest.ThemissionaryRev.H.S.

Thrallviewedreligiousindifferencetobethemostchallengingobstacletowinning

soulsinTexas.Healsorealizedthatthespreadofunbeliefwasthedangerous

corollarytoagrarianandlaborunrest.“Suchcrimesasboycotting,fencecuttingand

strikes,”Thrallnoted,“arenewphasesinTexassociety.Thisisnotall.Thereisa

constantlyincreasingclassofpeopleindifferenttothegospel.”“Indifference,”Thrall

concluded,“wastheenemytobeconquered.”33

OnesuchconquesttookplaceinthesmallBowieCountytownofIngersollin

thenortheastcornerofthestate.Inthe1870s,theoriginalsettlersnamedtheir

towninhonoroftheagnosticRobertG.Ingersoll,whomadehisnameasafiery

criticofChristianityandother“superstitiousreligions.”AdiscipleofVoltaire,

31KeithLynnCogburn,“B.H.CarrollandControversy:AStudyofHisLeadershipamongTexasBaptists,1871‐1899,”MAthesis,BaylorUniversity,1983.32BenajahH.Carroll,“TheAgonistic.ASermon.DeliveredintheBaptistChurch,Waco,Texas,Sunday,June1,1884(Gatesville,TX:Advance,1884),4,21.JamesB.Cranfill,“Shaw:FreeThinkerandBiographerofBrann,”unpublishedmsc1929,TexasCollection,BaylorUniversity.33TexasChristianAdvocate(Galveston,TX),January27,1887.


IngersolltranslatedEnlightenmentrationalismintotheAmericanvernacular.He

wasperhapsthesinglemostpopularoratorinthecountry,andhishighlymoralistic

messageofhumansolidarityresonatedwithintheranksofruralandlaborreform.34

EugeneDebswoulddescribeIngersoll’sfaithas“loveandserviceandconsecration

ofhumanity.”35AshistorianJamesTurnerexplainedthegeneralcontext,“moralism

wasthepeakthatstoodstill,prominentinitsisolation,afterotherbeliefshad

eroded.”36HereitmustbestressedthatintheeyesofmanyTexansIngersollhad

significantstrikesagainsthim.HewasaformerabolitionistandcolonelintheUnion

Army,afriendofFrederickDouglassandadvocateofcivilrightsforAfrican

Americans,aRepublicanPartypowerbroker,andaNewYorkcorporatelawyer

employedbysomeofthemostresentedrailroadcorporations.Notsurprisingly,to

nameatownafter“theGreatAgnostic”wasaredflagtoProtestantmissionaries,

whoin1886successfullytargetedthetownforarevival,inthewakeofwhichthe

townwasrechristenedRedwater.37ButtheIngersollphenomenoncontinuedto

attractattentionintheLoneStarstate.In1896,IngersolltookhiscrusadetoTexas,

andfamiliespiledintowagonsandtraveledfromdistantfarmstohearhissecular

messageofhumanloveandhissharp‐tonguedrefutationsoftheBible.38

34KansasFarmer(Topeka),July7,1887;Farmer&Mechanic(Raleigh),December6,1877;Caucasian(Clinton,NorthCarolina),February18,1892.35EugeneV.Debs,“RecollectionsofIngersoll,”Pearson’sMagazine(April1917).36JamesTurner,WithoutGod,WithoutCreed:TheOriginsofUnbeliefinAmerica(Baltimore:JohnsHopkins,1985),203.37HandbookofTexasOnline,s.v.","http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/RR/hlr8.html(accessedNovember4,2009).38DallasMorningNews,February2,1896.


Ingersoll’spresenceinTexasprovidesawindowintothereligiouspoliticsof

thetime,apoliticsthathasbeenlargelymissedinthestudyofruralandworking

classAmericans.FollowingtheleadofE.P.Thompson,socialandlaborhistoriansof

the1970sand1980srediscoveredthereligiosityofthecommonfolkofthenation’s

fieldsandworkshops.JustasE.P.ThompsondemonstratedthatMethodismwasthe

traditionalreligionoftheLondonlaborer,itwasunderstoodthatthetoilersinthe

Americanheartlandwererearedinthetraditionofthechurchesandsteepedinthe

conventionsofpiety.39Buttoooftentheruralworldtheypaintedtendedtowards

staticandessentialisttraditionalism.TheinvocationoftheProtestantevangelical

traditionbecamesomethingofatalismanofhistoricalanalysis.Theconflictive,

dynamic,innovative,modernelementsthatproducedtheideologicalstorms

sweepingacrossagrarianlandscapessimplydidnotfitintowhatmightbecalleda

Thompsonianframeworkoftraditionalruralresistancetosecularmodernity.

HereanotherkeyinsightofE.P.Thompson’scomesintoplay.Referringto

EnglishMethodism,Thompsonobservedthatevangelicalswere“highlypolitically

consciousreligions.”Withtheemergenceofplebianpolitics,henoted,therewasa

“drasticreorientationofhatred,”awayfrom“SinandthePope”andtowards

unbelief,freethought,andTomPaine,whohelduparadicalismwithamoral

religion“todogood.”PopularMethodisminEnglandevolvedintensionwiththis

pole.40ItmightbesaidthatIngersollwasnoTomPaine;hesurelywasmore

39E.P.Thompson,TheMakingoftheEnglishWorkingClass(NewYork,1963),350‐400;HerbertGutman,“ProtestantismandtheAmericanLaborMovement,”WorkCultureandSocietyinIndustrializingAmerica(NewYork,1966),79‐117;RobertC.McMath,Jr.,“PopulistBaseCommunities:TheEvangelicalRootsofFarmProtestinTexas,”Locus1(1988),53‐63.40E.P.Thompson,TheMakingoftheEnglishWorkingClass,96,391‐2.


conservativepolitically.Buttheparallelisstillsuggestive:the“ecclesiastical

quarrels”withinruralevangelicalismevolvedinasimilartensionwiththepoleof

freethoughtandunbelief.41

JamesD.Shaw,asaformerMethodistminister,lackedIngersoll’sfame,biting

witandfloridoratory.Buthehadasimilarreputationformoralintegrity,andwas

theLoneStarState’smostrespectedandinfluentialsecularist.Shawhadministered

overWaco’sFifthStreetChurch,themostprominentMethodistcongregationin

centralTexas.InSeptemberof1882hegaveasermonthatheadlinedthe

newspapersandcreatedasensationfromthestreetsofWacototheremotecorners

ofruralTexas.42ThenewspapersreportedthatShaw,“rejectstheabsolute

inspirationofthescripture,theatonement,thesavingpoweroffaith,etc.,and

acceptstheteachingsofChristasahigherhumanphilosophy.”InNovemberof

1882,theNorthwestConferenceoftheMethodistChurch,meetinginCleburne,

Texas,accusedShawofadvocatingviews“detrimentaltoreligionandinjuriousto

thechurch,”andproceededtostriptheconvictedhereticofhischurchpositions.In

December,ShawsetupaReligiousandBenevolentAssociationforthepurposesof

conductingcharitableworkandofdiscussingliberalideasaboutreligionand

41Inrecentdecades,RobertIngersollhasbeeneffectivelyairbrushedfromhistorybooksorreducedtoacomicfootnote,butnopersonloomedlargeroverthepost‐CivilWarreligiousconflicts.MargaretSangerobservedthatthehundred‐yearbattleforreligiousliberty“cametoaclimaxinthecareerofRobertG.Ingersoll.”MargaretSanger,WomanandtheNewRace(NewYork:Truth,1920),187‐88.EugeneDebsdescribedIngersollas“themosttalkedaboutmaninAmerica,”whohaddonemoretoimprovethehumanconditionthananymaninanyage.EugeneV.DebstoEvaParkerIngersoll,July23,1906,inLettersofEugeneV.Debs,vol.1,(Urbana:UniversityofIllinois,1990),185‐86,229;EugeneV.Debs,“RecollectionsofIngersoll,”Pearson’sMagazine(April1917).42JamesB.Cranfill,“Shaw:FreeThinkerandBiographerofBrann,”unpublishedmsc1929,TexasCollection,BaylorUniversity;VirginiaMing,“J.D.Shaw:Freethinker,”WacoHeritage&Historyvol.10,no.2(summer1979,1‐21.


morality.SympathizingwithShaw’sefforts,theCountyJudgeGeorgeBruceGerald

invitedthenewassociationtoholditsSundaymeetingsinhiscourtroom.In1884

ShawconstructedLiberalHallforhiscongregation,andherehepublishedthe

IndependentPulpit,ajournaldevotedtofreethought.Shaw’sreputationgrewacross

thestateandthecountry.HesharedthestagewithRobertIngersollatthe1885

nationalconventionoftheAmericanSecularUnionheldinCleveland.Inwhatthe

Texasclergydescribedastheclashbetweenthe“Calvinists”andthe“Ingersollites,”

Shawhademergedasakeyfigureontheliberalside.43

LiberalHallsponsoredlecturesandsymposiacoveringabroadterrainof

history,philosophy,andscience.GuestsincludedSpiritualistmediumsandJewish

rabbis.TheIndependentPulpitreportedontheworkofElizabethCadyStantonand

debatesontherelationshipbetweenreligionandwomen’srights.Itdiscussedthe

latestworksofSpencerandcomparativeandworldreligions.Withthreethousand

subscribers,theIndependentPulpitwasoneofWaco’smostsuccessfulreligious

publicationsandLiberalHallhousedoneofitslargestcongregations,whose

membershipincludedJudgeGeorgeandotherrespectedprofessionals.Shaw

meanwhilelecturedacrossthestatetopromotehiscause.Hespokeinthesenate

43Griggs,FreeThoughtontheTexasFrontier,120‐23;“CalvinandIngersoll,”IndependentPulpit(Waco,TX),vol.6,no.4(August1883),5,vol.2,no.2(January1885),127,vol.3.,no.9(November1885),98‐116. Variationsontheterm“Ingersollite”or“Ingersollism”werecommonlyusedinTexasatleastsince1880,whentheMethodistRev.G.W.Briggsdeliveredawidelypublicizedlecturetitled“IngersollandIngersollism.”ADefenseofFreeThought:BeingaProtestandReplytoaLectureDeliveredintheGalvestionOperaHouse,May13,1880,bytheRev.G.W.Briggs,ByanAgnostic(Galveston,TX,1890).


chamberoftheTexaslegislatureinAustin,andhislecturespackedcourthousesand

operahousesincitiesandtownsthroughoutTexas.44

Shawalsotraveledextensivelytothesmalltownsandvillagesofcentral

Texas,meetinginfarmers’homesandruralschoolhouses.HevisitedtheCross

Timbersdistrict,thebirthplaceoftheFarmers’Alliance,tohelpcelebratetheeighth

anniversaryofthe“AssociationofFreethinkersofBellCounty,”whichwasthefirst

organizationoffreethinkersinTexas.Associationscommittedtowhatwasknown

as“liberalism,”“secularism,”or“freethought”flourishedinsuchplacesduringthe

post‐CivilWardecades,despiteoccasionalhostilityofProtestantcitizens.In1877,

thepresidentoftheBellCountyassociation,Dr.LeviJamesRussell,hadbeen

captured,stripped,andsavagelywhippedbyagroupofhisChristianneighbors.45

Shaw’slecturecircuitaimedtoencouragetheruralassociations.Atypicalnotefrom

“TheLectureField”reportedonavisittoMoscowinPolkCounty,where“onSunday

morningthecrowdwastoolargefortheschoolhouse”sothefreethinkerswere

invitedtousetheBaptistchurch.Onthatsametrip,Shaw“drovetothehouseofMr.

T.S.Gay,asturdyfarmerwhoevolutedintoLiberalismfromPrimitiveBaptist

Faith.”46TheIndependentPulpitregularlyreportedonsuchconversionstories.“I

formerlybelievedinthedoctrinestaughtbytheMethodists,”explainedN.D.Morris

ofDuncanville,“butthroughaprocessofreasoningIbecameconvincedthatIwas

44IndependentPulpit,vol.1,no.6(August1883),4,vol.1,no.10(January1884),8,vol.3,no.1(March1885),7,10‐11,vol.3,no.12(February1886),137,vol.4,no.1(March1886),4‐6,30‐32,vol.4,no.5(July1886),104.45BlakeW.Barrow,“FreethoughtinTexas:J.D.ShawandtheIndependentPulpit,”MAthesis,BaylorUniversity,1983,133;WilliamClarkGriggs,ParsonHenryRenfro:FreeThinkingontheTexasFrontier(Austin,1994),118‐1946IndependentPulpit,vol.4,no.7(October1886),187.


travelinginthewrongcoursetoobtainhappiness.”47Aneighty‐fouryearoldman

fromLamarCountywrote“IfoundtheMethodistchurchwhenIwasfifteen….I

thoughtthatitwasmydutytorelyonthebloodofJesus.Iam,now,ashamedofsuch

adoctrine.”48M.M.ClackofBastropCountywrotetoShaw,“whilstIhaveever

respectedtheearnestnessofyourconvictions,Ihavebeentooreligioustocastmy

nickelsinyourmissionarybox.Butitisaprogressiveage–timeschangeandwe

change…Hereisadollar.”49

OneofthemostcompellingconversiontestimoniescamefromtheRev.

HenryRenfro,theformerBaylorstudentwhobythe1880swasawell‐respected

ministerandfarmerinJohnsonCounty.InaMay1884lettertotheIndependent

Pulpitheexplainedhistrajectoryoutofthechurch:

HereIamfarming,attendingtohorses,cattle,sheepandhogs,mymindstillmoreburdenedthanmybody,askingandansweringathousandquestionsabouttheBible,Christianity,churchtrials,orthodoxyandheterodoxy,tillIhavenothadonemomenttosparetoletyouknowhowIamgettingalongwithmysorewarfareagainsttheworld,thefleshandthedevil….IamoutoftheBaptistchurch.Regularlytrieduponthechargeofinfidelity,Iwasturnedovertothebuffetingofsatan….Myhabitwastoreadbutlittle,workhardalltheweek,andthentrusttothereflectionsandmeditationsofamorning’sride…tohelpmethrough…sermononSunday.Forthelasttwoorthreeyears,Ihavebeenreadingconsiderablyforamanofmyhurriedlife,andallthatwhilemydoubtshavebeengrowingstrongerandstronger,tillnow,Iamwoefullyskeptical.Ihavelearnedthisfact,thattoreadistothink,tothinkistoinvestigate,toinvestigateistodoubt,andtodoubtistobedamnedbyorthodoxchurches.50

RenfrohadsearchedforanswersintheworksofSpinoza,Paine,and

Ingersoll.Hisreputationformoralcourageonlygrewamonghisneighborswhenhis47IndependentPulpit,vol.2,no.7(September1884),68.48IndependentPulpit,vol.1,no.7(September1883),10.49IndependentPulpit,vol.1,no.12(February1884),5.50IndependentPulpit,vol.2,no.3(May1884),34.


readingledtohisexpulsionfromthechurch.Afterhistrial,farmersinthedistrict

packedintotheAlvaradooperahousein“thelargestaudienceevergatheredthere”

tohearwhathehadtosay.51

FreethinkerssuchasJamesShawandHenryRenfrotoppledorthodoxies,but

theyalwaysdidsowithapoliterespectforbothfriendandfoe.Bycontrast,William

CowperBrannattackedthereligiouslyorthodoxbywayoffiercejournalisticassault.

BroughtuponafarmindownstateIllinois,asayoungmanheworkedasafireman

onTexasfreighttrainsandasapitcheronasemi‐professionalbaseballteam.He

foundhiscallingwritingcolumnsforanumberofTexasnewspapers.Althoughhe

hadlittleformaleducation,hisstudyofliteratureextendedfromtheancientclassics

toMcCauley,Carlisle,andTomPaine.Takinganinterestinfinancialreform,he

popularizedasemi‐Populistsystemforanexpandedcurrency.Histalentsand

passions,however,ledhimtofocusonliterary,social,andreligiouscriticism.In

1895,fromhisWacooffice,helaunchedtheIconoclastasamonthlymagazine

devotedtotheseissues.52

Brannemployedasystemofbitingsarcasmanddestructiveinsult,whichhe

regularlyaimedatthe“pharisaicalplutocrats”oftheProtestantchurches.Heabused

DeWittTalmageas“amonstrousbagoffetidwind,”observingthat“themanwho

canfindintellectualfoodinTalmadge’ssermonscouldacquireacaseofdelirium

tremensbydrinkingthefrothoutofapopbottle.”Forhisownspiritual

51WilliamClarkGriggs,ParsonHenryRenfro:FreeThinkingontheTexasFrontier(Austin,1994),118‐19,123‐25,190;IndependentPulpit,vol.2,no.1(March1884),5.52Brannreportedlylost$27,000inbetswhenhiscandidateWilliamJenningsBryanlostthe1896presidentialelection.AndyKopplin,“W.C.Brann,ATexasIconoclast,”TexasHistorian(May1981),Wm.CowperBrannverticalfile,CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin;Carver,BrannandtheIconoclast,18‐26.


nourishment,Brannpointedtothe“SacredBooksofallcenturies[which]are

essentiallythesame–thehalfarticulatevoiceoftheworldcryingforlight...theold

testamentandthenew,theKoranandthesacredVedas,thenorthernSagasandthe

southernmythologies…IsitwithSiddarthabeneaththeBodhitreeandfollowthe

prophetofIslaminallhispilgrimages;IstandwithMosesonSinai’sflamingcrest

andlistentotheprayerofChristintheGardenofGehtsemane.”53Suchchallengesto

religiousorthodoxyalarmedWaco’sBaptistofficialdom,butdrewafascinated

readership.TheIconoclastquicklyemergedasapublishingphenomenon.Withover

90,000subscribers,BrannwouldclaimtheIconoclastwas“TheonlyAmerican

magazinethatsecured100,000readersinasingleyear.”Somesubscriptionswere

mailedtoaddressesacrossthecountryandaroundtheglobe,buttensofthousands

ofbundledcopiesoftheIconoclastarrivedinhundredsofruralpostofficesacross

Texas.54

BrannbefriendedJamesShaw,JudgeGeorgeandotherfreethinkers,yethe

viewedhimselfasanadvocateofabroad‐mindedChristianity.Inapublicletter

addressedtoRobertIngersoll,Brannrejectedasa“foolishfalsehood”that“because

AlmightyGodhasnotseenpropertorevealhimselfinallsupernalsplendorto

Messrs.HumeandVoltaire,PaineandIngersolltheworldhasnogoodreasonfor

beliefinhisexistence.”Atthesametime,headdedthatIngersollhad“donemoreto

53Carver,BrannandtheIconoclast,41‐3.54MartinJosephDawson,“Image‐BreakerBrannSixDecadesAfter,”SouthwestReview(Spring1958),148‐58;FredWhiteheadandVerleMuhrer,FreethoughtontheAmericanFrontier(Buffalo,NY:Prometheus,1992),155.


intellectualizeandhumanizeman’sconceptionofAlmightyGod,thananyreformer

sincethedaysofChrist.”55

DespitethebitternessofhisjournalisticattacksontheBaylorUniversity

hierarchy,Brannalsowantedto“makeBaylorbetter.”HeadmiredtheBaptist

ministerThomasDixon,Jr.,who,likeBrann,embraceda“broad‐minded”andself‐

consciouslyprogressivefaith.BornandraisedinNorthCarolina,Dixonwouldlater

gainfameandfortuneastheauthorofthewhitesupremacistnovels,TheClansman

andTheLeopard’sSpots,onwhichD.W.GriffithwouldbasehisepicfilmBirthofa

Nation.Butintheearly1890sDixonwasatthezenithofhiscareerasareform‐

mindedevangelical.Withhisservicesmuchindemand,heministeredtheDudley

StreetChurchinBostonandthe23rdStreetBaptistChurchinManhattan.From

thesehigh‐profilevenuesheadvocatedrecastingreligionin“thelanguageof

modernlife,gratefulforallofthelightofscience,philosophy,andcriticism.”56Dixon

definedhisprogressivefaithasbeing“inlifeanddeathstrugglewithtraditionand

bigotry.”HereitmustbestressedthatwhenDixonattackedbigotry,hemeant

religiousintolerance.Asforhisvirulentracismandwhitenationalism,Dixon

justifiedwhitesupremacyasthedictateofprogressandmodernscience.Sodid

Brann,whowroteblood‐curdlingjeremiadsabout“theNegrorape‐fiend.”For

Brann,too,AfricanAmericanswereperceivedasaroadblocktoprogress,“theBete

NoireoftheSouth,amillstoneaboutherneck.”57

55“BranntoBob.TheApostleWritesthePagan,”Iconoclast,vol.5,no.1(February1895),15.56ThomasDixon,Jr.,“Progress,”inLivingProblemsinReligionandSocialScience(NewYork:Dillingham,1889),129‐43.57Carver,BrannandtheIconoclast,43‐4.


Asahighlypoliticaltheologian,Dixon’sextensiveexchangeswithRobert

Ingersollshowedthathewaskeenlyattunedtothenecessitytoadaptand

innovate.58Hewasalsoprofoundlyinfluencedbytheriseofplebianpolitics.Hetook

partinthe1891nationalPopulistconventioninCincinnati,andadmiredthe

PopulistsasmuchasmanyPopulistsadmiredhim.By1895,Dixon’sheterodoxyhad

takenhimoutsidetheBaptistchurchtofounda“People’sTemple”committedto

socialjusticeandhumansolidarity.59ManyTexanssympathizedwithasimilar

liberalorhumanistfaith.Suchideaswerewidespreadamongthelargenumberof

unaffiliatedChristians.Theyalsotookorganizedformintheliberalorprogressive

wingoftheDisciplesofChristandother“Campbellite”or“restorationist”churches

seekingtoreclaimChristianityonthemoralfoundationofdoinggood.

TheAfrican‐Americanchurches,however,madeupbyfarthelargest

evangelicalcontingentseekingamoreliberalpolicy.Mostlyfarmers,tenants,and

farmlaborersonlyoneortwogenerationsremovedfromslavery,blackTexans

facedintensepovertyandpoliticalrepressionunderthe“redeemed”regimeof

58In1892,Dixonpublishedabookwith200pagesofhissermonstreatingtheviewsofIngersoll.CommentingonDixon’sbook,EugeneDebsobservedatthetime:“IintroducethetestimonyofRev.ThomasDixon,ofNewYork,whodeclaresthatMr.Ingersoll‘hasdonemuchtoridtheworldofthesuperstitions,lies,shams,humbugs,traditions,andpretensesthatusedtopasscurrentasorthodoxtruth.’Suchistheadmissionofanorthodoxclergyman,whohaspublishedabook…toarresttheconqueringmissionofMr.Ingersoll.”ThomasDixon,Jr.,DixononIngersoll(NewYork:Alden,1892);EugeneV.Debs,“RobertIngersoll,”AmericanJournalofPolitics(February1893),198‐203.AnditwasnotjustDixon,asreform‐mindedtheologiansfromDavidSwingtoHenryWardBeecherfeltcompelledtoengagethe“mistakesofIngersoll,”J.B.McClure,editor,MistakesofIngersollandHisAnswersComplete(Chicago:Rhodes&McClure,1884).59W.FitzhughBrundage,“ThomasDixon:AmericanProteus,”inThomasDixonJr.andtheBirthofModernAmerica,ed.MicheleK.GillespieandRandalL.Hall(BatonRouge:LouisianaStateUniversity,2006),23‐45;Caucasian,May21,28,June4,11,18,1891,February11,18,March3,April14,21,1892;MaryElizabethLease,“Mrs.MaryE.Lease,”unpublished,KansasStateHistoricalSociety,Topeka,1912.


whitesupremacy.Theruralblackchurcheshadmeagerresources,yetthey

increasinglyplayedaroleinneighborhoodsocialandpoliticalnetworks.The

majorityofthesenetworkswereassociatedwiththeBaptists.TheblackBaptist

churchesreceivedaidfromtheNewYorkHomeMissionSociety,andthepaternalist

tutelageofthewhiteclergyinWaco.ButAfricanAmericansjoinedBaptistchurches

becausetheyenjoyedrelativeautonomyfromchurchauthorities,whichmeantthat

churchmembersworshippedinthewaystheywanted,andmadeuseoftheir

churchesforthesocial,educational,andpoliticalfunctionstheyneeded.Thewhite

Baptistleadershipfearedthisautonomy.60TheblackBaptistleadership,however,

strovetoadapt,recognizingthatthefateofthechurchesrestedontheirabilityto

addresstheacutesocialproblemsoftheirimpoverishedruralmembership.

Inthelate1880sandearly1890s,theAfrican‐AmericanpastorLeeLewis

CampbellwasresponsibleformuchofthemissionaryworkamongblackTexans.

BorninMilamCounty,CampbellgainedaneducationandattendedtheUniversityof

Chicago.FromhisministryinAustin,hewouldbecomepresidentoftheGeneral

BaptistStateConvention,andmoderatoroftheSt.John’sAssociationthatclaimed

230,000membersinthestate,andthatheldannualcampmeetingsfivetoten

thousandstrong.Regardingthepoliticsofrace,Campbellpreachedaccommodation.

“TheracesintheSoutharegettingalongsmoothly,”henoted,“andwherethenegro

acceptstheadviceofhiswhiteneighborprosperityisinevidence.”61Butonmatters

ofreligion,Campbelladvocatedinnovation.Hearguedifreligionweretoaddress60LawrenceD.Rice,TheNegroinTexas,18741900(BatonRouge:LouisianaStateUniversity,1971),232,171‐75.61“EncampmentofNegroes,”“NegroLeaderInvitesStudyRaceProblem,”“DeathClaimsDr.L.L.Campbell,”NegroScrapbooks,CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin.


theneedsofthepeople,itneededtobealignedwiththelatestinhumanthought,

takingintoaccountDarwinandAgassiz,EmersonandLowell.Reflectinghisinterest

incomparativereligion,hedescribedthe1893WorldParliamentofReligionsheld

inChicagoas“likeanawakening.”Mostsignificantly,Campbellemphasized“social

service”over“savingsouls.”HeeditedtheSundaySchoolHeraldthatcovereda

broadrangeofsocialandpoliticaltopics,includingtheprosandconsofthe

emergingPeople’sPartyfortheblackfarmer.Giventhatthechurch’sfollowingwas

overwhelminglycomposedofblackfarmersandfarmlaborersfacingcruelpoverty

andhardships,forthechurchtosurvivepoliticallyithadto“savemen’sbodiesand

brightenandenrichtheirlives.”62PerhapsCampbell,muchlikeMartinLutherKing,

Jr.halfacenturylater,hadlearnedelementsoftheSocialGospelfromhisnorthern

education.Atthesametime,theSocialGospelemergingfromnorthernuniversities

andseminariesresembledinitsessentialsthereligiousadaptationsandinnovations

undertakenbyabroadsectionofruralTexans,blackandwhite,seekingtoimprove

thehereandnow.

AcrossTexas,ruralfolkandtownspeople,thechurchedandunchurched,

engagedatmultiplelevelsinthereligiouscontroversies.Asakeenjournalist,

WilliamCowperBrannunderstoodthepopularsentimentsrunningagainstthe

entrenchedBaptistleadership.TotheextentthattheIconoclastfeaturedexposesof

Baptistscandalandintrigue,itservedareadershipdeeplyresentfulof“plutocratic

preachers.”Brann’smostsensationaleditorialsinvolvedthepregnancyofateenage

BraziliangirlwhohadbeeninthecareofaBaylorofficialand,accordingto

62SundaySchoolHerald(Austin,TX),May21,June4,June25,July30,1892.


testimonyofthegirl,theembraceoftheofficial’sbrother.IntheeyesoftheBaylor

community,Brann’ssarcasticharpingonthecasehadcrossedthelineoftolerance.

OnOctober2,1897,anangrymobofBaylorstudentsabductedBrannwith

planstotarandfeatherthe“atheist,”andwhenthoseplansfellthroughthey

decidedtohanghimfromatreeontheedgeofcampus.Thetimelyinterventionof

twoBaylorprofessorspreventedalynching.Beforehiswoundshealed,Brannwas

againabductedandhorsewhippedbytwoBaylorstalwarts.Inresponsetothe

assaultsonhisfriend,JudgeGeraldsubmittedaprotestnotetoaWaconewspaper

thatledtotheassassinationattemptontheJudge.Fourmonthslater,Brannhimself

wasmurdered,silencingtheIconoclast,andclosinganepochofintensereligious

conflict.63

Intheverysameruraldistrictsthathadwitnessedagenerationofreligious

strife,Texasfarmersalsounleashedapoliticalrevoltagainstcorporatepower.They

launchedtheFarmers’Alliance,whichprovidedtheorganizationalandideological

impetusforthenationalPopulistmovement.Theconnectionsbetweenthesetwo

developmentsarenotimmediatelytransparent.TheFarmers’Allianceandthe

PopulistPartymaintainedabanondiscussionofreligiousmatterswithintheir

organizations.Religiousorganizations,suchasShaw’sassociationoffreethinkers,

tendedtoavoiddiscussionofpolitics.ThesamewastrueofBrann’sIconoclast,

althoughitcommentedfavorablyonthePopulistsandtheirreforms,andexpressed

63Carver,BrannandtheIconoclast,142‐80.


solidaritywhenPopulistnewspapersfacedchurchboycottsmuchastheIconoclast

did.64Yet,abundantevidencepointstoaconnection.

Countybycountymappingsuggestsacorrespondencebetweenthepresence

ofmembersofliberalorheterodoxreligioussocietiesandPopulistvoting.65Other

evidencehelpstofillinthemap.Forexample,enthusiastsfortherationalist

philosophyofEmanuelSwedenborghadaspecialplaceintheTexasPopulist

leadership.ThisincludedThomasKingwhoservedasajudgeandledthethirdparty

movementinErathCounty,andhisfriendAlbertFrancisco,whowasbotharural

PopulistandaruralmissionaryfortheSwedenborgianNewChurch.Thomas

Nugent,thePeople’sPartycandidateforgovernor,wasperhapsthemostrespected

ofallTexasPopulists.AlthoughsympathetictoSwedenborg’sphilosophy,Nugent

wagedhisownstruggleagainstwhatheconsideredthetyrannyand“thumbscrew”

methodsoftheProtestantreligion,andpursuedahumanistphilosophyoutsideof

churchorcreed.66

TheSouthernMercury,thenewspaperoftheTexasFarmers’Alliance,mainly

avoidedreligiousquestions,butacarefulreaderwouldpickupitsliberalmessages

andprotestsagainstostracismofthereligiouslyheterodox.Thisincludedadefense

oftheSpiritualists,aconsiderablenumberofwhomwerealsoTexasPopulists.

“Certainreligiousfanatics”thatsoughttopersecutetheSpiritualists,theSouthern

Mercurynoted,“forgetthatitwasthepersecutionsofthehandfulofearlyChristians

64Iconoclast,vol.5,no.8(September1895),141‐2,vol.5,no.9(October1895),155,vol.5,no.11(December1895),216.65King,“ReligiousDimensionsoftheAgrarianProtest,”112.66CatherineNugent,ed.,LifeWorkofThomasL.Nugent(Stephenville,Tex.:C.Nugent,1896),161.


whichgavesuchanimpetus”totheirreligion.67EbenLaFayetteDohoney,the

People’sPartycandidateforstatechiefjusticewasthePopulistsmostfamous

SpiritualistinTexas.Itismoredifficulttomeasuretheconnectionsbetween

SpiritualismandPopulismatthelocallevel.Butweknow,forexample,thata

hundredpercentofalllistedmembersofSpiritualistorganizationsinTexaslivedin

Populiststrongholds.ThatincludedthebackwoodsofGrimesCounty,wherethe

localSpiritualistorganizationhadtwenty‐ninemembers.68Thatmayormaynot

haveincludedJohnW.H.Davis,apoorcottonfarmerwhoranin1894asthe

People’sPartycandidateforcountytaxcollector.WhatwedoknowisthatDavis,

cametoquestionaChristianitythatignoredthehereandnowwithitsmisplaced

focuson“yourdeadcarcassafterdeath,”andthatbythePopulistdecadehestudied

metaphysicalliteraturethatrejectedtheperceivedfallaciesofreligionandbeliefin

agod,infavorof“mentalscience”in“thelightofamorescientificday.”69

AsforthepresenceofagnosticismorfreethoughtintheranksoftheTexas

Populists,thatisperhapsthemostdifficulttomeasure,asthechargeof“atheism”

carriedapoliticalprice.Nonetheless,here,too,wecanfindrevealingconnections.J.

N.ColwickandT.TheoColwick,thepresidentandsecretaryoftheNorseFarmers

Alliance,forexample,werealsosupportersofJamesShawandfreethought.70And

associationsoffreethinkerstookpartinPopulistpoliticsinlessdirectways.In

September1896,thePopuliststurnedtheLaborDayParadeinDallasintoaPeople’s

67SouthernMercury,July12,1888.68King,“ReligiousDimensions,”166‐69.69“NotesofJ.W.H.Davis,”JohnB.RushingCollection,CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin.70IndependentPulpit,vol.9,no.1(March1891),9.


Partymarch.TomWatson,thewell‐known“agrarianrebel”andPopulistleader

fromGeorgialedtheparade.RightbehindWatsonmarchedthecontingentofthe

DallasFreethinkers’Association.71Presumably,whileorganizershadnotwelcomed

contingentsofthereligious,agnosticswereaspecialcasepreciselybecauseoftheir

irreligion.AsforTomWatson,itisunclearwhetherornothehadtiestotheDallas

agnostics.Watsonhimselfshowednoparticularinterestinreligion,withthe

possibleexceptionofhisworshipofNapoleon.However,oneofWatson’sclosest

comradesinGeorgia,theeditorofhisPeople’sPartyPaperandstateleaderofthe

PopulistParty,wasCharlesC.Post,whowasregularlybrandedan“atheist”byhis

politicalenemies.Infact,Postandhiswifewereadvocatesof“mentalscience,”and

contributedarticlestothemetaphysicalliteraturestudiedbytheGrimesCounty

PopulistorganizerJ.W.H.Davis.72

ThehighprofileofNugent,King,Francisco,Dohoney,andotherreligious

iconoclastsearnedtheTexasPopulistsregularattacksfromtheirDemocraticParty

opponentsasthepartyof“infidels”and“cranks.”73Atthesametime,itwaswell

knownthatformerevangelicalpreachershadaprominentplaceintheranksof

Populistlecturersandorganizers.InruralTexas,theministrywasoneofthefew

professionsavailabletoeducatedyoungmen,anditwasnotunusualforfarmersto

alsoserveasitinerantpreachers.AreporterfromtheGalvestonDailyNewsqueried:

“Howmanypreachersarethereinthepopulistparty.Whoknows?”Thereporter

71DailyTimesHerald(Dallas),September7,1896;DallasMorningNews,September6,1896.72“MentalScience,”Freedom:AJournalofRealisticIdealism(December1,1896),in“NotesofJ.W.H.Davis,”JohnB.RushingCollection,CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin.73RoscoeC.Martin,ThePeople’sPartyinTexas:AStudyofThirdPartyPolitics(Austin:UniversityofTexas,1933),82‐88.


thenaddedthat,“Itisapopularbeliefthatmorethantwo‐thirdsofthepopulist

oratorshaveatsometimeorotherbeenconnectedtotheministry.”Thisincluded

twosecretariesofthestateFarmers’Alliance,theMethodistcircuitriderHarrison

“Stump”AshbyandtheBaptistparsonS.O.Daws.Whenaskedwhyhequitthe

church,Ashbyexplainedthathecoulddomoreforthehumanraceworkingforthe

PopulistParty,“preachingthegospelofuniversalemancipation,”and“tryingto

liberatethemindsandbodiesofmen.”74

Similarly,theAfrican‐AmericanPopulistJohnB.RaynerlefttheBaptist

ministrytobecomethemostrenownedPopuliststumpspeakerinthecotton

districtsofeasternTexas.OrdinationasapreacherhadallowedRaynerto

supplementhisearningsasaschoolteacher.ButhebridledatProtestantdogmas

andwhathedecriedas“emotionalisminthepews.”Rejecting“emotionalreligion”

andthechurch,Rayneradoptedwhatheunderstoodasthetruereligionofservice

forthegoodofthepeople.75Fromthatperspective,thepresenceofformer

preachersinthePopulistranksdidnotindicatetheholdoftraditionalreligionon

themovementasmuchasitcorrespondedtoE.P.Thompson’sobservation

regardingtheriseofplebianpoliticsasachallengetotheevangelical

cause.

Ruralwomen’sclaimstoequalrightsrepresentedapowerfulforcewithin

thisplebianpolitics.Populistwomenhadtheirownreasonstoresentmale

dominatedchurches.WithintheFarmers’Alliancewomencomprisedmorethana74“PopulistPreachers,”GalvestonDailyNews,September28,1894.75JohnB.Rayner,“GoodCitizenshipandtheNegro,”undatedms.,“SomeofJ.B.Rayner’sWiseSayings,”undatedms.,and“RacialGrowth,”undatedlettertotheDallasMorningNews,JohnB.RaynerPapers,CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin.


quarterofthemembership,wheretheyenjoyedatleastnominalequalitywithmen,

andwidelydiscussedanddebatedtheproblemsofwomen’srights.Thisincluded

sharpcritiquesofthechurchesandthedenominationalwarfarethatledthe

individualfarmerto“hisspecialchurchforthepurposeofhearinghisownpeculiar

doctrines,”resultinginthefurthersocialisolationofruralwomen.76Populist

womenalsoresentedthehaughtyandsuperiorattitudesthatchurchmembers

expressedtowardstheruralfolk.SusanLuscombeoftheFarmers’Alliancecriticized

thosewho“professtobeChristians,buttheydonotinhabitthisworldtohelpliftup

thefallen,”adding,“ifthereisanythingwehatewithamostcordialhatreditisa

‘holierthanthou’spirit.“77

BettieGay,whomanagedacottonplantationnearColumbus,Texas,was

perhapsuniqueamongtheleadersofTexasPopulisminthatshemaintainedher

standingintheBaptistchurch.Butherrelationswiththechurchcooleddramatically

asherPopulistactivismgrew.Sheexpresseddiscontentwithchurchpoliciesthat

“discourageintellectualeffort”amongwomenandsilencedtheiropinions.78As

farmwomengainedtheirvoicewithintheFarmers’Alliance,theysubjectedthe

churchestocriticismfordenyingtheirequalrights.Asone

femalememberoftheFarmers’Allianceasked,“Ifpoliticsarecorrupt,whatisthe

matterwithourchurchesthatourgreatMethodistconferencerefusedtoseatthe

ladydelegatessent?Isit,too,toocorruptforwomen?”Theanswertothisquestion,

76“WomanintheAlliance,”W.L.GarvinandS.O.Daws,eds.,HistoryoftheNationalFarmers’AllianceandCoOperativeUnionofAmerica(Jacksboro,TX:J.N.Rogers&Co.,1887).77SouthernMercury(Dallas),November13,1888.78BettieGay,“TheInfluenceofWomenintheAlliance,”N.A.Dunning,ed.,TheFarmers’AllianceHistoryandAgriculturalDigest(Washington,D.C.:Alliance,1891),308‐12.


shewentontoexplain,layintheeffortsofmentokeepwomenintheireconomic

place.“Whenchurchdebtsaretobepaidorministers’salariestoberaised,thenthe

ministersthinkthereisnoharminwoman’scounselandwoman’senergeticwork

butwhenitcomestoadmittingwomendelegatestheyfearthismayprovea

steppingstonetothepulpitandthusthesalariesofmen.”79

NotallProtestantchurchesinTexasprovedasunaccommodatingoreven

hostiletoPopulismasthemainstreamMethodistsandBaptistsdid.SamJohnson,

thefraternalgrandfatherofthethirty‐sixthPresident,lefttheBaptistsforthe

Christadelphians,whohadnoordainedministry,didnotbelieveinadevil,and

rejectedtheemphasisonpersonalimmorality.ThisprovedcongenialforJohnson,

whodranktoomuchandloudlyengagedinPopulistpolitics,includingan

unsuccessfulrunin1892forthestatelegislatureonthePeople’sPartyticket.80The

liberalorprogressivewingoftheDisciplesofChristalsohadamoreaccepting

attitudetowardsPopulistactivism.TheCampbellitepreacherJ.W.BiardofParis,

Texas,amemberofthePeople’sPartyNationalCommittee,hadoriginallyjoinedthe

Farmers’Allianceto“servehispeoplebetter.”Whenhewasnotlecturingfor

Populistreformshecontinuedtopreachparttime.Hemaintainedafriendly

correspondencewithaC.C.Perrin,afacultymemberattheDisciplesofChrist’s

Add‐RanCollegeinnearbyHoodCounty,inwhichtheyprobedthemeaningof

79SouthernMercury(Dallas),June6,1888.80Caro,PathtoPower,27‐33;M.Phelan,HandbookofAllDenominations,(Nashville&Dallas:M.E.Church,1916),38.


AgassizandDarwinandtheproposition,“ItdoesnotdishonorGodtothinkhe

worksthroughthelawsofnatureinallpossibleways.”81

Indeed,religious‐mindedPopuliststendedtoembraceabroad,adaptive

socialChristianity.WritingontheroleofreligionwithintheFarmers’Alliance,the

ReverendIsomP.Langleynotedthestrainingofthetiesbetweenthefarmersand

thereligiousleadership,as“menandwomenhavebecomemoreexactingastothe

conductoftheleadersinbothChurchandState.”Thepeopledemandedscience‐

basedpolicies,accordingtoLangley,because“scienceiswhatweknow.”Ifthe

ChristianevangelicalsweretosucceedintheconquestofruralTexas,Langley

proposed,“letourpastorsandpriestsstudythephysicalneedsofthepeoplemore,

andgivethemlesstheology.”“Oneofthemainreasonswhywehavesomanyempty

seatsinourchurches,”Langleyexplained,“istheabundanceofemptystomachsand

uncladlimbs.”SuchwastherationalistsocialChristianityofreligiouslyminded

TexasPopulists.82

81“PopulistPreachers,”GalvestonDailyNews,September28,1894;C.C.Perrin,ThorpSpring,Texas,toW.(Bustah)Biard,Biardstown,Texas,February24,1886,Biard(JamesW.)Papers1882‐1913,CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin. AlthoughtheDisciplesofChristmayhavebeenmoretoleranttowardsPopulistpolitics,theykepttheirdistanceasdistinctmovement.Forexample,aredRivercottonfarmerrecordedinhisdiarythatonTuesday,August9,1892,the“biggestmobthatevermetatourCourtHouse”gatheredtohearadebatebetweenPopulistandDemocraticspeakers,withthefarmerstronglydisapprovingoftheformer.Fourdayslater,hereportedapprovingly“theCampellitescommencedabigmeetingonSaturdaynight,”thathadnoapparentconnectiontothepoliticalevents.W.M.Bower(Diary),CenterforAmericanHistory,UniversityofTexas,Austin.

TheDisciplesofChristmovedAdd‐RanCollegefromThorpSpring(HoodCounty)toWacoin1895whereitwasrenamedTexasChristianUniversitybeforerelocatingtoForthWorth.IamindebtedtoProfessorGreggCantrellofTCUforbringingtomyattentiontherolethattheDisciplesofChristplayedwithinTexasPopulism.(CantrellispresentlywritingahistoryofTexasPopulismforYaleUniversityPress.)82Rev.IsomP.Langley,“ReligionintheAlliance,”Dunning,Farmers’AllianceHistory,313‐17.


ThesizeandsignificanceofthisreligiouselementwithinPopulismisdifficult

tomeasure.RobertMcMath,Jr.,arguesthatitwaslargeandhighlysignificant.He

drawsaparallelbetweenPopulismastherevitalizationofaradicalevangelical

traditionandtheChristianbasecommunitiesofLatinAmerican“Liberation

Theology.”Healsodrawsaparallelwiththeblackchurchinthecivilrights

movementofthe1950sand60s.83UnlikeeitherLatinAmericanbasecommunities

orchurch‐basedcivilrightsmobilizations,however,thewhitefarmersofthe

Populistmovementdidnotorganizethroughthechurches.Elsewhereinthe

country,urbanPopulistsmadeafewisolatedandunsuccessfulattemptstosetup

“People’sChurches”or“People’sTemples”withaPopulistorientation.84Nosuch

effortwasmadeinruralTexas,wherewhitePopulistsmetinpublicschoolhouses

orotherpublicbuildings,andissuedtheirdemandsfromcourthousesteps.Good

politicalreasonsledthePopuliststomeetonsuchsecularterrain.Acentralfocusof

Populistpoliticswastheexpansionofthepublicsphereintherealmsofeducation,

commerce,transportation,telecommunications,andfinance.Anditonlymadesense

toleveragepublicspacetoachievesuchpublicaims.

ButtherewerealsogoodreligiousreasonswhythePopulistsdidnotwork

throughthechurches.Thefirstofthesewastheruralcontextinwhichonlya

fractionofTexasfarmerswereconnectedtoanorganizedchurch.Moreover,within

theframeworkofthereligiouswarfareofthe1880sand1890s,thosefarmerswho

83RobertC.McMath,Jr.,“PopulistBaseCommunities:TheEvangelicalRootsofFarmProtestinTexas,”Locus1(1988),53‐63.84Nonconformist(Indianapolis),January26,1893.


supportedPopulismalsotendedtofavorwhattheyperceivedtobetheliberalside

ofthereligiousconflict.Theytendedtoseekspiritualreformstoaligntheir

cosmologywithwhattheyperceivedasscientificandmodernrealities,andwhich

wouldalsoreinforcemoralcertaintiesabouthumanimprovementandtheabilityof

reformerstoeffectsocialprogress.Significantly,theliberal,humanist,and

scientisticsideofthespectrumofbeliefandunbeliefalsotendedtowards

atomizationandweakenedcommitmenttoreligiousorganization.Inshort,the

heterodoxadmixtureoffaithswithinPopulistrankspointedawayfromthe

churchesandtowardssecularspace.

AfricanAmericanfarmers,meanwhile,confronteddifferentpolitical

contingencies.Inpost‐ReconstructionTexas,itwasofteneitherdangerousor

impossibleforblackcitizenstoorganizeopenlyinpublicortoissueeconomicand

politicaldemandsonthecourthousesteps.Blacksusuallylackedaccesstoa

schoolhouseworthyofthename;schoolsforblackchildrenwereoftenwoefully

inadequatefarmstructures,andwhatschoolstherewereoftendoubledaschurches.

TheColoredFarmers’AllianceemergedinTexasduringthe1880sparalleltothe

whiteFarmers’Allianceandwithsimilarstatedgoals.Butinthefaceofpolitical

repression,thechurchrepresentedthesafestoptionforblackstotakepartinrural

associationallife.Indeed,oneofthereasonswhythewhiteFarmers’Alliance

reluctantlyacceptedtheexistenceoftheColoredFarmers’Alliancewasassurance

thatitwouldstayoutofthepublicsphereandremainundertheroofofthechurches


andthewatchfuleyesofthewhitepreacherswhosupervisedtheColoredAlliance.85

Thebroadextensionoftheneighborhoodnetworksthatmadeuptheruralblack

churchesindicatesthatinTexasAfricanAmericanfarmershadperhapsastronger

commitmenttoorganizedreligionthantheirwhitecounterpartsdid.Butdidunlike

politicalcircumstancesmainlyaccountforthisapparentlyreligiousdifference?

Possiblyso,butmoretellingly,thevariationsbeliefadoptedbytheBaptistRev.Lee

LewisCampbellandbytheiconoclasticPopulistoratorJohnRaynersuggestthat

bothblacksandwhitessharedaruralenvironmentsubjecttothesamereligious

storms.

Itneedstobestressedthat,althoughPopulistfarmerstendedtoalignonone

endofthespectrumofbelief,ruralTexansmoregenerallyincludedafareshareof

peoplewhoconsideredthemselvestobeorthodoxandconservativeevangelicals.

Butthatdoesnotmeanthattheywereinsomequalitativewaymoreconservative

thantheirmoreurbancounterparts.TownstendedtobestrongholdsoftheBaptist

andMethodistchurches.BaylorUniversitymeantthatWacoservedasthe

institutionalheadquartersoftheorthodoxBaptistsinthestate.ButWacowasalsoa

townwithextensiveinteractionswiththesurroundingruralenvironment.

Anotherwaytoexaminetherural/urbandividewouldbetotakeinto

accountthatTexaslayundertheurbanshadowsofbigcitiessuchasSt.Louis,

Chicago,andNewYork.AndjustasruralTexansfelttheliberalandheterodox

influencesofthelikesofRobertIngersollorThomasDixon,Jr.,theywerealso

subjecttothemissionaryeffortsofDwightMoody’sChicagobasedconservative85RichardManningHumphrey,“TheHistoryoftheColoredFarmers’NationalAlliance,”Dunning,Farmers’AllianceHistory,288‐92.


crusades.BaptistmissionaryworkinTexaslanguisheduntilreinforcementsarrived

fromtheHomeMissionSocietyinNewYork.Fromhiscorporateofficesin

Manhattan,JohnD.RockefellersentbigcheckstoaidhisembattledBaptistbrethren

atBaylor.Rockefeller’scontributionsweremadeinstrictsecrecyasitwas

apparentlyviewedasimportanttohidetheroleofYankeedollarsinthebuildingup

oftheTexaschurch.86ThepowerandinfluenceinTexasofRockefeller,Moody,and

theNewYorkandChicagobasedmissionssuggestsagapinthestandard

teleologicalnarrativeoftheliberalizingorsecularizingurbanNorthleavingbehind

aruralSouthclingingtoitsBiblesandtraditions.

Therealignmentsandshiftsinreligiousandpoliticalcontextfromone

generationtothenextrevealevenlargergapsinthestandardnarrative.Thepolitics

ofteachingevolutionisinstructiveinthisregard.Inthe1880sand90s,theTexas

Farmers’Alliance,constitutedaformidablepoliticalandintellectualforce.The

Alliancemovementformedthebaseofpublicsupportfortheimprovementofthe

commonschools,emphasizingscience‐basededucationasthekeytothefarmers’

progress.Atthesametime,evolutionarytheorywasastapleoftheAlliance

movement’sowneducationalprojects.TheFarmers’Alliancepressurgeditsreaders

that“NofarmhouseinAmerica”shouldbewithoutEdwardClodd’sbookTheStoryof

Creation:APlainAccountofEvolution,explainingtheideasofDarwin,Huxley,and

86B.F.Riley,HistoryoftheBaptistsofTexas(Dallas,1906),265;Forexample,RockefellersentfifteenthousanddollarstoBaylorUniversityinJuneof1892.Apparently,thedealingsbetweenRockefellerandBaylorweremade“instrictconfidence,”asbeingbankrolledbytheStandardOiltycooninvolvedpoliticalcomplications.J.D.RockefellerandF.T.GatestoB.H.Carroll,June23,1892.B.H.CarrollPapers,TexasCollection,BaylorUniversity.


Spencer.87Inthatscientistichistoricalmoment,evolutionarytheorywasmilitantly

wieldedasatoolofsurgingagrarianandlaborpolitics.Legislativeactiontobarthe

teachingofevolutionintheschoolswasnowhereonthehorizon.EventheBaptists

inWacoandothermoreorthodoxevangelicalssoughttoavoiddirectclashesover

evolutionandscience,andmainlytackedbeforetheprevailingwinds.

The1898murderofWilliamCowperBrannandthesilencingofthe

Iconoclastwasatelltalesignofashiftingclimate.Twoyearsbefore,TexasPopulism

hadreceivedastunningblowwithdevelopmentsinnationalelectoralpolitics.The

endorsementoftheDemocraticWilliamJenningsBryanbythenationalconvention

ofthePeople’sPartyrenderedTexasPopulismintosharplywarringfactionsthat

succumbedtoevenfurtherdemoralizationwithBryan’sdefeatinthegeneral

election.Inthenewcentury,someoftheformerPopuliststookpartinnewfarmer

associationsorfollowedEugeneDebsintoSocialism,butmuchoftheenergyofthe

earlieragrarianrevolthaddissipated.ManyformerPopulistsrebuiltbroken

connectionstheyhadseveredduringthehightideofprotest,reconcilingwiththe

DemocraticPartyestablishment,andsomealsowiththechurchestablishment.

Meanwhile,thesensationaltechniquesofmodernmassevangelicalismthathad

beenintroducedbysuchevangelicalentrepreneursasSamJones,oftentotheshock

anddismayoftheWacoclergy,madesteadyheadway.88Risingwiththe

87NationalEconomist,March14,1889,August3,1889;EdwardClodd,TheStoryofCreation:APlainAccountofEvolution(London:Longman’sGreen,1888).88DwightMoodyofChicagoperfectedthemoderntechniquesofcelebrityevangelismbywayofmasspublicity.SamJonesofGeorgiacarriedthesetechniquesintocentralTexas.AlthoughhisfolksyandtheatricalsermonsridiculedtheBaptistoldguard,Jonespreachedapoliticallyandreligiouslyconservativemessage.“ItmakestohispecuniaryinteresttoabusethePops…withhisoratoricalstinkpots,”asBrannexplainedthepoliticsof“SlangySam”


conservativepoliticaltideofthe1920s,anewandmilitantProtestant

“fundamentalism”emergedasapowerfulforceinTexaspolitics.Inthefallof1925,

Texas’sfirstfemaleGovernorMiriamFergusonorderedthestate’stextbook

commissiontoprohibitmentionofevolutioninhighschooltextbooks,anorderthat

wouldhavebeeninconceivableagenerationprevious.

Inpurgingthetextbooks,GovernorFergusontookinspirationfromWilliam

JenningsBryan’sperformanceattheScopesTrialandBryan’smartyr‐likecollapse

anddeathfivedaysafterthetrialended.ThetrialclimaxedwithDarrow

questioningBryanasanexpertwitnessontheBible:WhatofBuddha,Confucius,

andZoroaster?HowdidthephysicsworkintheBiblicalstoryofthesunstanding

still?Journalistsatthetime,andhistoricaltextbookssince,havedescribedDarrow’s

mercilessquestioningasthecityslickerabusingthecountryrube,themodern

secularistbullyingthedefenderoftheoldfaith.Butlookingaheadfromthe

perspectiveofthelatenineteenthcenturyDarrow’squestioningtakesonawhole

differentmeaning.Acluetothedifferenceisthatinthe1890s,itwasDarrow,not

Bryan,whowasthePopuliststumpspeaker,rallyingIllinoisfarmerstothePeople’s

Party.89DarrowandBryanhadmuchincommon:rootsinsmalltownevangelical

environments;Chicagoeducations;comradeshipinreformpolitics;andcloseat

andthe“modernpreacher.”“ThePreacherinPolitics,”Iconoclast,vol.5,no.8(September1895),141‐42;“TheBlackMoodyofTexas,”and“Rev.Collier,theSamJonesofTexas,”SundaySchoolHerald(Austin),July2,1892;“ReligiousRevolution,”WacoDailyExaminer,June21,25,and26,1885;IndependentPulpit,vol.3,no.5(July1885),54,vol.3,no.7(September1885),75;BruceJ.Evensen,God’sManfortheGildedAge:D.L.MoodyandtheRiseofModernMassEvangelism(NewYork:Oxford,2003).89ChicagoSearchlight,July19,August9,16,1894;ChesterMcArthurDestler,AmericanRadicalism,18651901(NewLondon:ConnecticutCollege,1946,reprint,Chicago:Quadrangle,1966),181,194,197.


handexperiencewiththereligiouscontroversiesofthe1880sand90s.Darrow

followedRobertIngersolltofreethought.BryanexchangedletterswithIngersollin

acrisisoffaith,butdecidedtostaywiththePresbyterians,adenominationwracked

withconflictincludingthefamous1892heresytrialoftheliberaltheologianCharles

Briggs.Bryannevershowedmuchinterestinthereligiouscontroversies,butlater

twentiethcenturyshocks,includingthemodernhorrorsofimperialistwarinthe

Philippines,theNorthwestPacific,andlaterWWI,turnedBryanintoacriticof

evolutionarytheoryandasupporterofanti‐evolutionlaws.

Significantly,inhislineofquestioningattheScopesTrial,includingverbatim

phrasingaboutthephysicsofthesunstandingstill,Darrowplagiarizedfromawork

ofRobertIngersoll’stitled“ProfessorBriggs.”Thecontext,however,wasreversed.A

nationalherotoreligiousliberals,includingthosewithintheagrarianmovement,90

IngersollquestionedBriggsonlytoencouragehiscriticaloutlook.91Bycontrast,

Darrow’squestioningofBryanaimedatexposinghisformercomradeforbetraying

thecriticaloutlookthatBriggsandlike‐mindedevangelicalshadonceembraced.

HencetheheatofDarrow’sgrillingattheScopesTrial.Theaimwasnottoridicule

ruralornineteenth‐centurybackwardness,buttwentieth‐centuryapostasy.Bryan’s

effortsonbehalfofevangelicalfundamentalismthreatenedtoclosethedooron

whatDarrowandBryanhadexperiencedastherationalistandhumanistic

possibilitiesinthereformcampaignsoftheiryouth.

90Caucasian(Clinton,NC),May21,28,1891.91RobertG.Ingersoll,“ProfessorBriggs,”WorksofRobertG.Ingersoll,vol.12,(NewYork:Dresden,1909),301‐13.


BythetimeGovernorFergusonorderedwritingevolutionoutofthe

textbooks,theTexaseconomyhadshiftedintohighgearoftechnological

modernization.Theblackgoldofpetroleumoutstrippedthewhitegoldofcotton.

TexasfarmersdroveFordsandChevys,andtheluckyoneshadelectricityanda

radio.MostofthemforgotorneverheardofJamesShaw,WilliamCowpersBrann,

andthereligiouswarsthathadconvulsedtheLoneStarstateduringthelast

decadesofthenineteenthcentury.Yet,thosewarshadprovidedessentialcontext

fortheagrarianrevoltofthe1880sand90s.ThePopulistmovementtookonthe

featuresofahighmodernism,embracinga“musclebound”beliefinscience,state

power,andprogress,preciselybecauseitemergedinanintellectualenvironment

whenscientificrationalismhadunprecedentedmoralauthorityinsuchplacesasthe

cottondistrictsofcentralandeasternTexas.Thatthisauthoritywouldwanein

futuregenerationsunderscorestheweaknessesinteleologicalnarrativesabout

agrariantraditionalismandurbanmodernity.Italsopointstotheroleofpolitical

andsocialcontingencyintheshiftingconfigurationsofbeliefandunbelief.

Inotherwords,tounderstandwhyattheoutsetofthetwentyfirstcentury

theevangelicalchurchesexertsucheffectivepowerincentralTexas,referencing

ruraltraditiononlyexplainssomuch,andpoliticaldevelopmentsexplainmuch

more.Inthewakeofthecivilrightsrevolution,forexample,theprofusionofracially

separateChristianacademieshasgiventhechurchesanewandextraordinary

educationalandinstitutionalrole.Similarly,therisingpoweroftheevangelical

entrepreneurcorrespondstothepoliticaltransitionfromthepublicandsecular

idealsoftheGreatSocietytothetriumphantmarketfundamentalismoftheearly


twentyfirstcentury.Fromthatperspective,itiseithercoincidenceoranactof

divineinterventionthatLyndonB.JohnsonandGeorgeW.Bushbothhavecloseties

tothecentralTexasfarmcountryatthecenteroftheagrarianrevoltofthe1880s

and90s.Johnson’sfather,thesonofaPopulistpolitician,was“broad‐minded”on

religiousquestionsanddespiteostracismfromthe“church‐goingpeople,”wouldsit

bythefirewithaninfidelneighborandtalkallnight“aboutDarwinandother

things.”92Healsohatedcottonfarming,taughtinaone‐roomschoolhouseintheold

PopuliststrongholdofGillespieCounty,wentintopolitics,andshapedthe

worldviewofthefuturepresident.TheambitionsofLyndonJohnson’sGreatSociety

wouldcomeclosertohighmodernismthanthoseofanypresidentbeforeorsince.

Almostfortyyearslater,GeorgeW.Bush,scionoftheEastCoastfinancialand

politicalelite,productofYaleandHarvard,madeCrawford,Texas,twentymiles

outsideofWaco,thesiteofthe“WesternWhiteHouse.”Thatiswherehefounda

congenialenvironmentforhistwinbeliefsinevangelicalorthodoxyandthemagicof

privatemarkets.SuchisClio’scaprice.

92Caro,PathtoPower,63.