William McKinley, Apostle of Protectionism

281 Pages·2007·1.31 MB·English

by  Quentin R. Skrabec

W m K
illiam c inley
a p
postle of rotectionism

W m K
illiam c inley
a p
postle of rotectionism
Q r. s , J .
uentin Krabec r
Algora Publishing
New York
© 2008 by Algora Publishing.
All Rights Reserved
www.algora.com
No portion of this book (beyond what is permitted by
Sections 107 or 108 of the United States Copyright Act of 1976)
may be reproduced by any process, stored in a retrieval system,
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ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-576-8 (trade paper)
ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-577-5 (hard cover)
ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-578-2 (ebook)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data —
Skrabec, Quentin R.
William McKinley, apostle of protectionism / Quentin R. Skrabec, Jr.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-576-8 (trade paper: alk. paper)
ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-577-5 (hard cover : alk. paper)
ISBN-13: 978-0-87586-578-2
1. McKinley, William, 1843-1901. 2. Presidents—United States—Biography. 3. United
States—Politics and government—1897-1901. I. Title.
E711.6.S57 2008
973.8’8092—dc22

2007035155
Front Cover: President William McKinley speaks on a reviewing stand at the Pan
American Exposition in Buffalo on September 6, 1901. Later that day he was shot and he
died a week later. New York, USA.
Image: © CORBIS
Photographer: Frances Benjamin Johnston

Printed in the United States
To my grandmother Eleonora Skrabec
and Our Lady of Grace
acKnoWledgement
The Canton and Niles Museums and archives are wonderful resources for research
on President McKinley, as well as the congressional papers. I would particularly like
to credit the help and vast knowledge of Janet Metzger at the William McKinley
Presidential Library and Museum. The staff at both the Canton and Niles memorials
are outstanding and passionate. Special thanks also to the outstanding research of
the Stark Historical Society. Background research is critical to the success of a
focused biography, and I wish to highlight several excellent organizations that
helped me, including the Benson Ford Research Center in Dearborn, the Clement
Library of American History at the University of Michigan, the Ohio Historical
Museum in Columbus, and Heinz Historical Center in Pittsburgh.

table of contents
introduction 1
chapter 1. prologue 7
chapter 2. legacy of henry clay’s american system 2 1
chapter 3. the formative years in an industrial family 3 7
chapter 4. maJor mcKinley and War logistics 47
chapter 5. canton laWyer 5 7
chapter 6. congressman mcKinley 6 9
chapter 7. the napoleon of protection — the mcKinley tariff bill of 1890 87
chapter 8. governor mcKinley 101
chapter 9. the World turned upside doWn — the cleveland administration 115
chapter 10. pre-presidential campaign 127
chapter 11. the campaign of 1896 139
chapter 12. president mcKinley 153
chapter 13. the last term and a neW vision 165
chapter 14. a tale of tWo cities: socialism and capitalism 179
chapter 15. dinner-pail republicanism — mcKinley’s industrial legacy 191
chapter 16. mcKinley’s labor alliance — the people’s legacy 213
chapter 17. a neW middle class and the american system 225
chapter 18. mcKinley, capitalism, and trusts 237
chapter 19. mcKinley’s place in history 251
bibliography 261
index 265