The 1876 Democratic National Convention assembled in St. Louis just nine days after the conclusion of the Republican National Convention in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. This was the first political convention held west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

. St. Louis was notified in February 1876 that it had been selected. Among the events was a fireworks display from the top of the Old Courthouse.

Proceedings

The convention was called to order by Democratic National Committee chairman Augustus Schell.

Henry Watterson Henry Watterson (February 16, 1840 – December 22, 1921), the son of a U.S. Congressman from Tennessee, became a prominent journalist in Louisville, Kentucky, as well as a Confederate soldier, author and partial term U.S. Congressman. A Demo ...

served as the temporary convention chairman and

John Alexander McClernand John Alexander McClernand (May 30, 1812 – September 20, 1900) was an American lawyer and politician, and a Union Army general in the American Civil War. He was a prominent Democratic politician in Illinois and a member of the United States H ...

, a retired congressman and major general, served as permanent convention president.

Platform

The Democratic platform pledged to replace the corruption of the

Grant administration The presidency of Ulysses S. Grant began on March 4, 1869, when Ulysses S. Grant was inaugurated as the 18th president of the United States, and ended on March 4, 1877. The Reconstruction era took place during Grant's two terms of office. The Ku ...

with honest, efficient government and to end "the rapacity of carpetbag tyrannies" in the South; called for treaty protection for naturalized U.S. citizens visiting their homeland, restrictions on Oriental immigration, and tariff reform; and opposed land grants to railroads.

Presidential nomination

Presidential candidates

Image:SamuelJonesTilden.png,

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Samuel J. Tilden of New York Image:Thomas Andrews Hendricks.jpg,

Thomas A. Hendricks of

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

Image:WinfieldScottHancock.png,

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of ...

Winfield Scott Hancock Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

Image:William Allen governor Brady-Handy-crop.jpg, Former

William Allen William Allen may refer to: Politicians United States *William Allen (congressman) (1827–1881), United States Representative from Ohio *William Allen (governor) (1803–1879), U.S. Representative, Senator, and 31st Governor of Ohio *William ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

Image: Thomas F. Bayard, Brady-Handy photo portrait, circa 1870-1880.jpg, Senator Thomas F. Bayard of

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

Image:JoelParker-small.png, Former

Joel Parker of

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

1876 Democratic National Convention - Missouri (cropped)

The 12th Democratic National Convention assembled in St. Louis in June 1876. Five thousand people jammed the auditorium in St. Louis, hoping for the Democrats' first presidential victory in 20 years. The platform called for immediate and sweeping reforms following the scandal-plagued Grant administration. Six names were placed in nomination: Samuel J. Tilden, Thomas A. Hendricks,

, Thomas F. Bayard, and Joel Parker. Tilden won more than 400 votes on the first ballot, a strong showing, but less than the 492 required by the convention's two-thirds rule. He won the nomination by a landslide on the second ballot. Although Tilden was strongly opposed by "Honest John" Kelly, the leader of New York's

Tammany Hall Tammany Hall, also known as the Society of St. Tammany, the Sons of St. Tammany, or the Columbian Order, was a New York City political organization founded in 1786 and incorporated on May 12, 1789 as the Tammany Society. It became the main loc ...

, he was still able to obtain the nomination. According to contemporary accounts, Tilden's nomination was received by the delegates with more enthusiasm than that of any nominee since

Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was an American lawyer, planter, general, and statesman who served as the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before being elected to the presidency, he gained fame as ...

. They Also Ran Source:
Official proceedings of the National Democratic convention, held in St. Louis, Mo., June 27th, 28th and 29th, 1876
'. (September 3, 2012).
File:1876DemocraticPresidentialNomination1stBallotBefore.png, File:1876DemocraticPresidentialNomination1stBallotAfter.png, File:1876DemocraticPresidentialNomination2ndBallotBefore.png, File:1876DemocraticPresidentialNomination2ndBallotAfter.png,

Vice Presidential nomination

Vice Presidential candidate

Image:Thomas Andrews Hendricks.jpg,

Thomas A. Hendricks of

Delegates proposed various potential candidates for vice president, including William R. Morrison of Illinois, chairman of the

House Committee on Ways and Means The Committee on Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee has jurisdiction over all taxation, tariffs, and other revenue-raising measures, as well as a number of other program ...

. The Ohio delegation considered nominating U.S. Representative

Henry B. Payne Henry B. Payne (November 30, 1810September 9, 1896) was an American politician from Ohio. Moving to Ohio from his native New York in 1833, he quickly established himself in law and business while becoming a local leader in Democratic politics. ...

. However, the feeling of unanimity was so great that the Ohio delegates instead seconded the nomination of Hendricks. Hendricks was the only nominee, and won the nomination nearly unanimously on the first ballot, with the only exceptions being eight abstentions from Ohio. Source:
Official proceedings of the National Democratic convention, held in St. Louis, Mo., June 27th, 28th and 29th, 1876
'. (September 3, 2012).
File:1876DemocraticVicePresidentialNomination1stBallot.png,

References

External links

Democratic Party Platform of 1876
at ''The American Presidency Project'' *
Official proceedings of the National Democratic convention, held in St. Louis, Mo., June 27th, 28th and 29th, 1876
' {{Authority control 1876 conferences 1876 United States presidential election 1876 in Missouri 19th century in St. Louis Conventions in St. Louis Political conventions in Missouri Missouri Democratic Party Democratic National Conventions June 1876 events