National Union Convention
Encyclopedia
The National Union Convention (also known as the Loyalist Convention, the Southern Loyalist Convention, the National Loyalists' Loyal Union Convention, or the Arm-In-Arm Convention) was held on August 14, 15 , and 16 1866, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

.

The convention was called in advance of the mid-year elections of 1866 in an attempt to help president Johnson, who was under heavy fire from both Radical Republicans and more moderate Republicans. Johnson's friends tried to rally support for the lenient, pro-South Reconstruction policies of U.S. President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...

. The goal of creating a new political party was not realized.

Delegates gathered at a hastily-built temporary structure that was designed to accommodate the several thousand people expected to attend. Formally called "the Wigwam", this immense edifice was located on Girard Avenue
Girard Avenue
Girard Avenue is a major east-west thoroughfare in Philadelphia that forms sections of U.S. Route 13 and U.S. Route 30 and is named for Franco-American financier Stephen Girard. It stretches through several major neighborhoods of Philadelphia, including West Philadelphia, Fishtown, Kensington, and...

 between 19th and 20th Streets, across from Philadelphia's Girard College
Girard College
Girard College is an independent boarding school on a 43-acre campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States.Girard is for academically capable students, grades one through 12, and awards a full scholarship with a yearly value of approximately $42,000 to every child admitted to the...

.

About 7,000 prominent politicians and activists attended the convention. At its opening, representatives from Massachusetts (General Darius Nash Couch) and South Carolina (Governor James Lawrence Orr
James Lawrence Orr
James Lawrence Orr was an American politician who served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives in the United States Congress...

) paraded arm-in-arm to symbolize national reconciliation and social equity. The convention was called to order by U.S. Postmaster General Alexander Randall
Alexander Randall
Alexander Williams Randall was a lawyer, judge and politician from Wisconsin. He served as the sixth Governor of Wisconsin from 1858 until 1861. He was instrumental in raising and organizing the first Wisconsin volunteer troops for the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Biography:Randall...

. General (and former New York Governor and Senator) John Adams Dix
John Adams Dix
John Adams Dix was an American politician from New York. He served as Secretary of the Treasury, U.S. Senator, and the 24th Governor of New York. He was also a Union major general during the Civil War.-Early life and career:...

 served as the temporary chairman and Wisconsin Senator James R. Doolittle served as permanent convention president.

In the end, the convention was not successful in unifying the country behind President Johnson. He then launched a speaking tour (known as the "Swing Around the Circle
Swing Around the Circle
Swing Around the Circle refers to a disastrous speaking campaign undertaken by U.S. President Andrew Johnson August 27 - September 15, 1866, in which he tried to gain support for his mild Reconstruction policies and for his preferred candidates in the forthcoming midterm Congressional election...

") hoping to regain public and political support. On this speaking tour, Johnson at times attacked his Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 opponents with crude and abusive language and on several occasions appeared to have had too much to drink. Ultimately, the tour was a disaster for Johnson, emboldening the Congress to override him and to impeach him in 1868.

Notable attendees of the National Union Convention include:
  • Augustus C. Baldwin
    Augustus C. Baldwin
    Augustus Carpenter Baldwin was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan.Baldwin was born in Salina and attended the public schools. He moved to Oakland County, Michigan, in 1837 and taught school. He studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1842 and commenced practice in Milford, Michigan...

    , U.S. Representative from Michigan
    Michigan
    Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

  • John Minor Botts, U.S. Representative from Virginia
    Virginia
    The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

  • Ralph P. Buckland
    Ralph P. Buckland
    Ralph Pomeroy Buckland was a U.S. Representative from Ohio, as well as a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and an executive of the Union Pacific Railroad following the war....

    , U.S. Representative from Ohio
    Ohio
    Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

  • Darius Couch, U.S. Army General
  • John Covode
    John Covode
    John Covode was a United States Congressman and abolitionist.-Early life:Covode was born in West Fairfield, Pennsylvania. After serving an apprenticeship to a blacksmith, he became involved in the Westmoreland Coal Company, serving as the first president of the company in 1854...

    , U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
    Pennsylvania
    The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

  • Edgar Cowan
    Edgar Cowan
    Edgar Cowan was an American lawyer and Republican politician from Greensburg, Pennsylvania. He represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate during the American Civil War....

    , U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania
    Pennsylvania
    The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

  • James A. Cravens
    James A. Cravens
    James Addison Cravens was a nineteenth century politician from Indiana. He was the second cousin of James Harrison Cravens.-Biography:...

    , U.S. Representative from Indiana
    Indiana
    Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

  • William Earl Dodge, U.S. Representative from New York
    New York
    New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

  • James Rood Doolittle
    James Rood Doolittle
    James Rood Doolittle was an American politician who served as a senator from the state of Wisconsin from March 4, 1857, to March 4, 1869. He was a strong supporter of President Abraham Lincoln's administration during the American Civil War.-Early life and career:Born in Hampton, New York,...

    , U.S. Senator from Wisconsin
    Wisconsin
    Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

  • William McKee Dunn, U.S. Representative from Indiana
    Indiana
    Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...

  • Joseph Barton Elam
    Joseph Barton Elam
    Joseph Barton Elam, Sr. , was a two-term Democratic U.S. representative from Louisiana.-Early life and education:...

    , U.S. Representative from Louisiana
    Louisiana
    Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

  • James Edward English, U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Connecticut
    Connecticut
    Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...

  • Nathan A. Farwell
    Nathan A. Farwell
    Nathan Allen Farwell was a politician, businessman and United States Senator from Maine.-Biography:Born in Unity, Maine, he attended the common schools, and then taught school 1832–33. He moved to East Thomaston, Maine, in 1834 and engaged in the manufacture of lime and in shipbuilding....

    , U.S. Senator from Maine
    Maine
    Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...

  • Thomas W. Ferry
    Thomas W. Ferry
    Thomas White Ferry was a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from the state of Michigan.Ferry was born in the old Mission House on Mackinac Island. The community on Mackinac at that time included the military garrison, the main depot of John Jacob Astor's American Fur Company, and the mission....

    , U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Michigan
    Michigan
    Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

  • Horace Greeley
    Horace Greeley
    Horace Greeley was an American newspaper editor, a founder of the Liberal Republican Party, a reformer, a politician, and an outspoken opponent of slavery...

    , publisher and U.S. Representative from New York
    New York
    New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

  • William S. Groesbeck
    William S. Groesbeck
    William Slocum Groesbeck was a U.S. Representative from Ohio.Born in Kinderhook, New York, Groesbeck moved with his parents to Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1816.He attended the common schools and Augusta College....

    , state legislator from Ohio
    Ohio
    Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

  • Andrew Jackson Hamilton, U.S. Representative from Texas
    Texas
    Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

  • Aaron Harding
    Aaron Harding
    Aaron Harding was a United States Representative from Kentucky. He was born near Campbellsville, the seat of Taylor County, where he attended rural schools. He became familiar with the classics, studied law, was admitted to the bar in 1833, having commenced his practice in Greensburg, Kentucky...

    , U.S. Representative from Kentucky
    Kentucky
    The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

  • James K. Holland, state legislator from Texas
    Texas
    Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

  • Samuel Hooper
    Samuel Hooper
    Samuel Hooper was a businessman and US congressman from Massachusetts, USA.Hooper was born in Marblehead, Massachusetts. He received a common school education and was employed as an agent for an importing firm and traveled extensively in foreign countries...

    , U.S. Representative from Massachusetts
    Massachusetts
    The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

  • Reverdy Johnson
    Reverdy Johnson
    Reverdy Johnson was a statesman and jurist from Maryland.-Early life:Born in Annapolis, Johnson was the son of a distinguished Maryland lawyer and politician, John Johnson . He graduated from St. John's College in 1812 and then studied law...

    , U.S. Senator from Maryland
    Maryland
    Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

  • James Harlan
    James Harlan (senator)
    James Harlan was a member of the United States Senate and a U.S. Cabinet Secretary.-Biography:Harlan represented the state of Iowa in the United States Senate as a member of the Free Soil Party in 1855. In 1857 the Senate declared the seat vacant because of irregularities in the legislative...

    , U.S. Senator from Iowa
    Iowa
    Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...

  • Jacob Merritt Howard, U.S. Senator from Michigan
    Michigan
    Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

  • Henry Jarvis Raymond
    Henry Jarvis Raymond
    Henry Jarvis Raymond was an American journalist and politician and founder of The New York Times.-Early life and ancestors:...

    , U.S. Representative from New York
    New York
    New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

  • William Lawrence
    William Lawrence (Ohio)
    William Lawrence was a Republican politician from Ohio. He was most noted for being a US Representative, and was influential in attempting to impeach Andrew Johnson, creating the United States Department of Justice, helping to create the American Red Cross, and ratifying the Geneva...

    , U.S. Representative from Ohio
    Ohio
    Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

  • John Wesley Longyear, U.S. Representative from Michigan
    Michigan
    Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

  • Samuel S. Marshall
    Samuel S. Marshall
    Samuel Scott Marshall was a U.S. Representative from Illinois.Born near Shawneetown, Illinois, Marshall attended public and private schools in McLeansboro, Illinois, and Cumberland College, Kentucky.He studied law....

    , U.S. Representative from Illinois
    Illinois
    Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

  • Horace Maynard
    Horace Maynard
    Horace Maynard was an American educator, attorney, politician and diplomat active primarily in the second half of the 19th century...

    , U.S. Representative from Tennessee
    Tennessee
    Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

  • Robert Mallory
    Robert Mallory
    Robert Mallory was a nineteenth century politician and lawyer from Kentucky.Born in Madison Court House, Virginia, Mallory attended private schools and graduated from the University of Virginia in 1827...

    , U.S. Representative from Kentucky
    Kentucky
    The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

  • Thomas Amos Rogers Nelson
    Thomas Amos Rogers Nelson
    Thomas Amos Rogers Nelson was an American attorney, politician, and judge, active primarily in East Tennessee during the mid-19th century. He represented Tennessee's 1st Congressional District in the 36th U.S. Congress , where he gained a reputation as a staunch pro-Union southerner...

    , U.S. Representative from Tennessee
    Tennessee
    Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...

  • Richard Oglesby, Governor of Illinois
    Illinois
    Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

  • James Lawrence Orr
    James Lawrence Orr
    James Lawrence Orr was an American politician who served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives in the United States Congress...

    , Governor of South Carolina
    South Carolina
    South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

  • George Hunt Pendleton, U.S. Senator from Ohio
    Ohio
    Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

  • Cyrus L. Pershing, jurist and later candidate for Governor of Pennsylvania
    Pennsylvania
    The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

  • Thomas G. Pratt
    Thomas Pratt
    Thomas George Pratt was a lawyer and politician from Annapolis, Maryland. He was the 27th Governor of Maryland from 1845 to 1848 and a U.S. Senator from 1850 to 1857.-Early life and career:...

    , Governor and U.S. Senator from Maryland
    Maryland
    Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

  • James S. Rollins
    James S. Rollins
    James Sidney Rollins was a nineteenth century Missouri politician and lawyer. He helped establish the University of Missouri, led the successful effort to get it located in Boone County, and gained funding for the University with the passage of a series of acts in the Missouri Legislature...

    , U.S. Representative from Missouri
    Missouri
    Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

  • Robert Cumming Schenck, U.S. Representative from Ohio
    Ohio
    Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

  • James Speed
    James Speed
    James Speed was an American lawyer, politician and professor. In 1864, he was appointed by Abraham Lincoln to be the United States' Attorney General. He previously served in the Kentucky Legislature, and in local political office.Speed was born in Jefferson County, Kentucky, to Judge John Speed...

    , U.S. Attorney General
  • John Dodson Stiles
    John Dodson Stiles
    John Dodson Stiles was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania....

    , U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania
    Pennsylvania
    The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

  • Byron Gray Stout, U.S. Representative from Michigan
    Michigan
    Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

  • William Barrett Washburn, U.S. Representative from Massachusetts
    Massachusetts
    The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

  • Peter Godwin Van Winkle, U.S. Senator from West Virginia
    West Virginia
    West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...

  • Fernando Wood
    Fernando Wood
    Fernando Wood was an American politician of the Democratic Party and mayor of New York City; he also served as a United States Representative and as Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means in both the 45th and 46th Congress .A successful shipping merchant who became Grand Sachem of the...

    , copperhead
    Copperheads (politics)
    The Copperheads were a vocal group of Democrats in the Northern United States who opposed the American Civil War, wanting an immediate peace settlement with the Confederates. Republicans started calling anti-war Democrats "Copperheads," likening them to the venomous snake...

     Mayor of New York City
    New York City
    New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

  • Clement Vallandigham
    Clement Vallandigham
    Clement Laird Vallandigham was an Ohio resident of the Copperhead faction of anti-war Democrats during the American Civil War. He served two terms in the United States House of Representatives.-Biography:...

    , copperhead
    Copperheads (politics)
    The Copperheads were a vocal group of Democrats in the Northern United States who opposed the American Civil War, wanting an immediate peace settlement with the Confederates. Republicans started calling anti-war Democrats "Copperheads," likening them to the venomous snake...

     from Ohio
    Ohio
    Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...


Further reading

  • McKitrick, Eric. Andrew Johnson and Reconstruction (1960) pp 394-420
  • Thomas Wagstaff. "The Arm-in-Arm Convention," Civil War History 1968 14(2): 101-119
  • The proceedings of the National union convention, held at Philadelphia, August 14, 1866 at Internet Archive
    Internet Archive
    The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...

    . primary sources

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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