Thornton W. Mitchell, Editors
Historical Publications Section
4622 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-4622
Phone: (919) 733-7442
Fax: (919) 733-1439
Holden Papers
Last Updated 6/01/05
| North Carolina Office of Archives & History | Department of Cultural Resources | |
|
The Holden Papers
Thornton W. Mitchell, Editors Historical Publications Section 4622 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-4622 Phone: (919) 733-7442 Fax: (919) 733-1439 |
Holden Papers |
Last Updated 6/01/05 |
|
THE PAPERS OF WILLIAM WOODS HOLDEN Among the political leaders who have left their mark on the history of North Carolina during the Civil War and Reconstruction era, perhaps none has been more misunderstood and vilified than William Woods Holden. Born of humble origins, Holden became an important political influence as editor of the Raleigh North Carolina Standard and leader of the antebellum state Democratic Party. He served in the North Carolina House of Commons in 1846-1847 and held other minor state offices. Although labeled a secessionist, he, in fact, supported the Union until after the firing on Fort Sumter, when he endorsed North Carolina's secession. During the Civil War, Holden continued to publish the Standard and became an outspoken critic of the Confederate government. In 1864 he ran for governor on a peace platform but was soundly defeated by Zebulon B. Vance. Immediately following the war, Holden served briefly as provisional governor under President Andrew Johnson's mild plan of reconstruction, which did not provide for the safety and rights of former slaves. When the Radical Republicans in Congress gained control of Reconstruction in March 1867, he supported their program to guarantee political and civil rights for African Americans in the South. He helped organize the Republican Party in North Carolina and in July 1868 was elected governor. As North Carolina's chief executive, Holden championed the ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the establishment of a new state constitution, and the election of new state and local officers and representatives to Congress. These changes were required by the provisions of Congressional Reconstruction before North Carolina could be readmitted to the Union. These important requirements were carried out, Congress approved the new state constitution, and two new Republican senators from North Carolina were seated. The Tar Heel state was back in the Union. But Holden still faced a multitude of resistance and hostility from members of the state's Conservative Party, who wanted to regain political power by preventing white and black Republicans from voting and holding office. As the year of 1868 came to a close, the governor increasingly had to contend with the growing terror and lawlessness of the Ku Klux Klan, which had arisen during the recent elections and continually resorted to violence and ultimately murder to keep newly enfranchised blacks and their white Republican allies from the polls. In volume I of The Papers of William Woods Holden (1841-1868), editor Horace W. Raper and associate editor Thornton W. Mitchell have skillfully selected, edited, and annotated a series of documents that provide significant insight into the enigmatic Holden from the time he rose to power as leader of the pre-Civil War Democratic Party until the end of the first six months following his election as North Carolina's governor during Congressional Reconstruction. Volume I of this series is now available. A second volume is planned. For more information about this documentary project contact Donna Kelly at donna.kelly@ncmail.net. |
| North Carolina Office of Archives & History | Department of Cultural Resources | |