| Founded: | May 2, 1872 |
| Dissolved: | September 29, 1879 |
| Succeeded by: | National American Party |
| Ideology: | Abolitionism, radicalism, anti-reform |
The American Party was a short-lived political party in the United States that served as a transition between the Republican Party and the National American Party. It represented the former radical portion of the Republican Party, those who aimed to achieve equal rights for all races.
History[]
When the Republican Party fell in the early 1870's, former radical abolitionists were left with no party to advance their goals. The Republican name was seen as tainted beyond repair- they had led the country into what was perceived as a pointless and foolish war. The radicals thus abandoned their old movement and formed the American Party to continue pursuit of their goals with a somewhat reshuffled agenda.
The party was marketed as a return to traditional American democracy- the patriotism of the Revolutionary War era and equality for every man. They linked themselves more to the old Federalist Party than the Republicans. Most of all, they charged the Democrats with being sycophants who were still beholden to Southern slave power even with the countries now separated. The new organization was founded and based in Massachusetts, and thus Massachusetts politicians were the only ones acutely aware of their founding at the beginning. Henry Wilson was one of these people and was considered the only high profile candidate who might be persuaded to run on the party's ticket.
Henry Wilson
Wilson was nominated for the 1872 presidential election and decided to accept. He felt the party had potential to be a vigorous new movement that would remake the country in the abolitionist image, and he would be its first figurehead. He managed to win his home state in this election, a major milestone for a party founded just months before. All involved were satisfied.
Opposing the American Party was the National Party, another successor to the Republican Party that believed moderation was the way to go. The two clashed on many issues, with the Nationals believing that the Americans were too radical and would jeopardize their entire movement by refusing to let go of a failed cause. They also clashed on civil service reform- the American Party favored the traditional system of machine politics and the spoils system while the National Party was against it. Despite these issues, a potential merger was consistently floated from almost the beginning of the two parties' existence.
Henry Wilson would have been in a good position to become the party's de facto leader, but he died in 1875. Roscoe Conkling then took his place as the boss of the party machine.
In the 1876 election, the Democrats seemed vulnerable due to President Pendleton's missteps, and there was a movement to unite the opposition parties on one ticket against the Democratic candidate. At the 1876 American National Convention, around half the delegates tried to nominate James G. Blaine, who had already accepted the National Party nomination for president that year. While unity seemed to be a good idea, most of the delegates had a personal distaste for Blaine and their old rival faction in the Republican Party. He and Conkling particularly had a feud that would make it difficult to work together. Delegates who were opposed to the union asked why the National Party should be allowed to determine the candidate just because they had held their convention first. Thus, the unity ticket effort was defeated, and Conkling was instead nominated for president. There was a compromise struck with those in favor of a unity ticket- this led to the National Party vice presidential candidate, Henry L. Dawes, being nominated for vice president on the American ticket as well.
Roscoe Conkling
It was clear that, even with the Democratic Party's rising unpopularity, there was no chance of winning the election with such a split vote in the opposition. Conkling was also thought to have hurt his party's campaign. He was a controversial figure who provoked strong opinions, and it was hard for him to attract votes outside of the party's core base. He managed to win Massachusetts and Rhode Island while also being somewhat competitive in New York. It was all for naught in the end, as Tilden won an easy victory and Dawes was unable to become vice president.
This election made it clear that, whatever factional differences existed between them, it was utterly foolish for the parties to remain apart. They began to work towards a merger. There were some disagreements that led to delays in the process, but finally, in September 1879, the National and American parties officially merged into the National American Party. Their prospects for 1880 seemed to be strong, but the newly united party was unable to actually triumph until 1884.
Ideology[]
With the loss of the Southern states to the Confederacy, abolitionists hoped that they might be able to at least create a free and fair society in the North. Their efforts collapsed along with the Republican Party, and the American Party represented the continuation of their work. They hoped to remake American society into one that was truly free for all. They were uncompromising in this goal- they were tired of being beholden to states' rights conservatives and Southern sycophants who tried to halt progress at every turn.
In an America controlled by the American Party, slavery would be outlawed and suffrage would be extended to all free men, their rights guaranteed by the federal government and the rule of law. The Confederacy would be opposed at every turn and all links with their backwards society would be severed. A loss in a war was no reason to give up on worthy goals, they argued. In comparison, the National Party was less ideological, seeking to offer an alternative to the Democratic Party that could unite all Americans in a way somewhat analogous to the old Whigs. To them, slavery was now a moot issue in the Union, destined to die out, and civil rights were too divisive to focus on in the present moment, instead being an issue for the far future.
Another division between the two parties' vision for America was the question of civil service reform. The National Party was for anti-corruption measures while the American Party considered the spoils system to be beneficial for the country. The only place they agreed was that the Democrats took it too far in their one party rule of the country during the 1870's.
Legacy[]
The party is mostly remembered for being part of the formation of the National American Party. While this new party leaned towards the National way of thinking over the Americans' radicalism, their members remained strong advocates for advancing the rights of every free man in the nation. They would continue on as a faction in the new party for many years after the merger. They never gave up on pushing for abolition of slavery and civil rights, achieving major victories with the first National American administration in the White House. Slowly, their influence would disappear as the National American Party became more focused on economics than advancing civil rights.
In hindsight, they are seen as a more noble organization than the National Party, even winning admiration by the socialist government of the USCA for their unwavering commitment to basic human freedom.
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