Harold Luhnow
Encyclopedia
Harold W. Luhnow was an American businessman, philanthropist, and political activist. He is most well known for his management of the influential William Volker Fund
during the period between 1947 and 1964 in the United States
. Luhnow and a dedicated group of staffers directed the Fund to support libertarian
and conservative intellectuals and academics.
in 1919. In Kansas City, Luhnow began working for his uncle, William Volker
, a home furnishing manufacturer. Luhnow slowly worked his way through the ranks of the William Volker & Co. until he became president in 1937 following his uncle's retirement. During this period, Luhnow also increasingly took control of his uncle's charitable operations by directing more and more of the monies of the William Volker Fund
to libertarian and conservative causes.
political machine, and was exposed to libertarian thought through fellow reformer Loren Miller
. Miller introduced Luhnow to intellectual heavyweights and public figures who shared the businessmen’s hostility to machine politics
. Luhnow began reading F.A. Hayek's influential book The Road to Serfdom
and developed into a classical liberal. As his familiarity with and commitment to liberal economic ideas grew, Luhnow began using more and more of his influence over his uncle's charitable fund to give sizable contributions to libertarian and conservative causes.
Luhnow used Volker Fund assets to support bringing schools associated wit the Austrian School
of economics to U.S. institutions. He "paid [Ludwig von] Mises's
salary at New York University
; he paid F. A. Hayek's salary at the University of Chicago
; he funded lectures that Milton
and Rose Friedman
turned into Capitalism and Freedom and he approved the grant that enabled Murray Rothbard
to write Man, Economy and State. As early as 1946, Luhnow earmarked Volker Fund money to support Leonard Read
and agreed to fund the establishment the Foundation for Economic Education
, which became the first major post-war libertarian think-tank. By the late 1950s, Luhnow had led the Fund to provide critical support for a host of political groups, including the Intercollegiate Studies Institute
and the Institute for Humane Studies
. In the 1960s Luhnow's leadership of the Fund became more and more erratic until he eventually fired most of its staff and much of the Volker Fund's remaining assets were given to the Hoover Institution
at Stanford University
.
William Volker Fund
The William Volker Fund was a charitable foundation established in 1932 by Kansas City, Missouri, businessman and home-furnishings mogul William Volker. Volker founded the fund with the purposes of aiding the needy, reforming Kansas City’s health care and educational systems, and combating the...
during the period between 1947 and 1964 in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Luhnow and a dedicated group of staffers directed the Fund to support libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
and conservative intellectuals and academics.
Early Life and Work with the William Volker & Co.
Luhnow was a second-generation German-American born in Chicago, Illinois in 1895. He graduated from Kansas State University with degrees in agriculture and animal husbandry, and served in the U.S. Army before moving to Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
in 1919. In Kansas City, Luhnow began working for his uncle, William Volker
William Volker
William Volker was an entrepreneur who turned a picture frame business into a multimillion-dollar empire and who then gave away his fortune to shape much of Kansas City, Missouri, both through the William Volker Fund and anonymously earning him the nickname of "Mr...
, a home furnishing manufacturer. Luhnow slowly worked his way through the ranks of the William Volker & Co. until he became president in 1937 following his uncle's retirement. During this period, Luhnow also increasingly took control of his uncle's charitable operations by directing more and more of the monies of the William Volker Fund
William Volker Fund
The William Volker Fund was a charitable foundation established in 1932 by Kansas City, Missouri, businessman and home-furnishings mogul William Volker. Volker founded the fund with the purposes of aiding the needy, reforming Kansas City’s health care and educational systems, and combating the...
to libertarian and conservative causes.
Early Political Activism
During the 1930s, Luhnow became an active opponent of Kansas City's PendergastTom Pendergast
Thomas Joseph Pendergast controlled Kansas City and Jackson County, Missouri as a political boss. "Boss Tom" Pendergast gave workers jobs and helped elect politicians during the Great Depression, becoming wealthy in the process.-Early years:Thomas Joseph Pendergast, also known to close friends as...
political machine, and was exposed to libertarian thought through fellow reformer Loren Miller
Loren Miller
Loren Miller was a civic reformer and libertarian activist in the first half of the 20th century. Perhaps Miller's most lasting contribution was his success in convincing business magnates to support libertarian causes and organizations. The most notable case was William Volker who, at Miller's...
. Miller introduced Luhnow to intellectual heavyweights and public figures who shared the businessmen’s hostility to machine politics
Political machine
A political machine is a political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters and businesses , who receive rewards for their efforts...
. Luhnow began reading F.A. Hayek's influential book The Road to Serfdom
The Road to Serfdom
The Road to Serfdom is a book written by the Austrian-born economist and philosopher Friedrich von Hayek between 1940–1943, in which he "warned of the danger of tyranny that inevitably results from government control of economic decision-making through central planning," and in which he argues...
and developed into a classical liberal. As his familiarity with and commitment to liberal economic ideas grew, Luhnow began using more and more of his influence over his uncle's charitable fund to give sizable contributions to libertarian and conservative causes.
The William Volker Fund
When William Volker died in 1947, his will added $15 million of his assets to the already sizable William Volker Charities Fund. Luhnow took primary control of the trust. He also took control the William Volker & Co. In 1952, Luhnow moved the headquarters of the fund and the company to Burlingame, California.Luhnow used Volker Fund assets to support bringing schools associated wit the Austrian School
Austrian School
The Austrian School of economics is a heterodox school of economic thought. It advocates methodological individualism in interpreting economic developments , the theory that money is non-neutral, the theory that the capital structure of economies consists of heterogeneous goods that have...
of economics to U.S. institutions. He "paid [Ludwig von] Mises's
Ludwig von Mises
Ludwig Heinrich Edler von Mises was an Austrian economist, philosopher, and classical liberal who had a significant influence on the modern Libertarian movement and the "Austrian School" of economic thought.-Biography:-Early life:...
salary at New York University
New York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
; he paid F. A. Hayek's salary at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
; he funded lectures that Milton
Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman was an American economist, statistician, academic, and author who taught at the University of Chicago for more than three decades...
and Rose Friedman
Rose Friedman
Rose Director Friedman , also known as Rose D. Friedman and Rose Director was a professor at the University of Chicago Law School. She was the wife of Milton Friedman , the winner of the 1976 Nobel Prize in Economics, and sister of Aaron Director...
turned into Capitalism and Freedom and he approved the grant that enabled Murray Rothbard
Murray Rothbard
Murray Newton Rothbard was an American author and economist of the Austrian School who helped define capitalist libertarianism and popularized a form of free-market anarchism he termed "anarcho-capitalism." Rothbard wrote over twenty books and is considered a centrally important figure in the...
to write Man, Economy and State. As early as 1946, Luhnow earmarked Volker Fund money to support Leonard Read
Leonard Read
Leonard E. Read was an American economist and the founder of the Foundation for Economic Education, which was the first modern free market think tank in the United States....
and agreed to fund the establishment the Foundation for Economic Education
Foundation for Economic Education
The Foundation for Economic Education is one of the oldest free-market organizations established in the United States to study and advance the freedom philosophy. Murray Rothbard recognizes FEE for creating a "crucial open center" that he credits with launching the movement...
, which became the first major post-war libertarian think-tank. By the late 1950s, Luhnow had led the Fund to provide critical support for a host of political groups, including the Intercollegiate Studies Institute
Intercollegiate Studies Institute
The Intercollegiate Studies Institute, Inc., or ', is a non-profit educational organization founded in 1953 as the Intercollegiate Society of Individualists...
and the Institute for Humane Studies
Institute for Humane Studies
The Institute for Humane Studies is a classical liberal non-profit organization whose stated mission is “to support the achievement of a freer society by discovering and facilitating the development of talented students, scholars, and other intellectuals who share an interest in liberty and in...
. In the 1960s Luhnow's leadership of the Fund became more and more erratic until he eventually fired most of its staff and much of the Volker Fund's remaining assets were given to the Hoover Institution
Hoover Institution
The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded in 1919 by then future U.S. president, Herbert Hoover, an early alumnus of Stanford....
at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
.
External Links
- Waging the War of Ideas, a speech given by John Blundell discussing Luhnow and Volker Fund
- List of books discussing Luhnow and Kansas City politics, from the Kansas City Public Library