User:Philipnelson99/EnWikiTranslations/Benjamin Tillman
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Benjamin Ryan Tillman (August 11, 1847 – July 3, 1918) was an American politician of the Democratic Party who was the governor of South Carolina from 1890 to 1894. He was a United States Senator from 1895 until he died in 1918. He was a white supremacist who opposed civil rights for black Americans. Tillman led a paramilitary group called the Red Shirts during South Carolina's violent 1876 election. As he senator, he defended lynching. He made fun of black Americans in his speeches and he bragged about helping kill them during that campaign.[1]
Ben Tillman | |
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United States Senator from South Carolina | |
In office March 4, 1895 – July 3, 1918 | |
Preceded by | Matthew Butler |
Succeeded by | Christie Benet |
84th Governor of South Carolina | |
In office December 4, 1890 – December 4, 1894 | |
Lieutenant | Eugene B. Gary (1890–1893) Washington H. Timmerman (1893–1894) |
Preceded by | John Peter Richardson III |
Succeeded by | John Gary Evans |
Personal details | |
Born | Benjamin Ryan Tillman Jr. (1847-08-11)August 11, 1847 Trenton, South Carolina, U.S. |
Died | July 3, 1918(1918-07-03) (aged 70) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Sallie Starke (m. 1868) |
Children | 7 |
Relatives | George Dionysius Tillman (brother) James H. Tillman (nephew) |
Signature |
In the 1880s, Tillman was a wealthy landowner. He thought the Democratic leadership of South Carolina was not as good as it should be and led a movement of white farmers calling for reform. At first, he was unsuccessful, though he was important in the creation of Clemson University as an agricultural land-grant college. In 1890, Tillman took control of the state Democratic Party, and was elected governor. During his four years in office, 18 black Americans were lynched in South Carolina; in the 1890s, the state had its highest number of lynchings of any decade. Tillman tried to prevent lynchings as governor but also spoke in support of the lynch mobs, alleging his own willingness to lead one. In 1894, at the end of his second two-year term, he was elected to the U.S. Senate by vote of the state legislature, who elected senators at the time.
Tillman was known as "Pitchfork Ben" because of his aggressive language, as when he threatened to use a pitchfork to prod that "bag of beef", President Grover Cleveland. Considered a possible candidate for the Democratic nomination for president in 1896, Tillman lost any chance after giving a disastrous speech at the convention. He became known for his virulent oratory—especially against black Americans—but also for his effectiveness as a legislator. The first federal campaign finance law, banning corporate contributions, is commonly called the Tillman Act. Tillman was repeatedly re-elected, serving in the Senate for the rest of his life. One of his legacies was South Carolina's 1895 constitution, which disenfranchised most of the black majority and many poor whites, and ensured white Democratic Party rule for more than six decades into the 20th century.