Harold Knutson (October 20, 1880 – August 21, 1953) was an American politician and journalist, who represented

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

from 1917 to 1949 as a member of the Republican Party. From 1919 to 1923 he was the Republican

majority whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology ...

Early life

Knutson was born in

Skien Skien () is a city and municipality in Vestfold og Telemark county in Norway. In modern times it is regarded as part of the traditional region of Grenland, although historically it belonged to Grenmar/Skiensfjorden, while Grenland referred the ...

, in

Telemark Telemark is a traditional region, a former county, and a current electoral district in southern Norway. In 2020, Telemark merged with the former county of Vestfold to form the county of Vestfold og Telemark. Telemark borders the traditional ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

. At the age of 6 he and his family moved to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. They initially settled in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, but later moved to Sherburne County,

Journalist career

Knutson became the editor for the '' St. Cloud Daily Journal-Press''. Later, he was president of the Northern Minnesota Editorial Association.

U.S. House of Representatives

From 1917 to 1949 he served as a Republican Party Congressman in the 65th, 66th, 67th, 68th, 69th, 70th, 71st, 72nd, 73rd, 74th, 75th, 76th, 77th, 78th, 79th, and 80th congresses. On April 5, 1917, he voted against declaring war on Germany. He served as the

from 1919 to 1923. From 1947 to 1949 he headed the

House Ways and Means Committee 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 progra ...

. Knutson was a leading isolationist. He was known for being overtly sympathetic to Nazi Germany, and even after Pearl Harbor he gave an address that was condemned as "defeatist." Nazi Germany described him as "an asset" for the Nazi cause in their own documents.Nazi Germany and the American Hemisphere, 1933-1941 by Alton Frye Yale University Press, 1967 pg. 162

Later life

Knutson was defeated for re-election in 1948 and returned to editing, which he continued to do until his death in

Wadena, Minnesota Wadena ( ) is a city in Otter Tail and Wadena counties in the State of Minnesota. It is about one hundred sixty miles northwest of the Minneapolis – Saint Paul metro area. The population was 4,325 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat ...

in 1953.

Personal life

Knutson was a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

. Camp Knutson (Cross Lake, Minnesota) is an accepting and nurturing camp environment for children with special needs. The camp was donated in 1953 by Minnesota Congressman Harold Knutson to be used as a summer retreat for "neglected, unfortunate, deprived and handicapped children." For over 50 years, thousands of children have taken part in the summer programs offered at Camp Knutson. Over the years, others who have been touched by Harold Knutson's vision continue to support, sustain and improve Camp Knutson for the future. Knutson was a member of the Freemasons, the

Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks The Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks (BPOE; also often known as the Elks Lodge or simply The Elks) is an American fraternal order founded in 1868, originally as a social club in New York City. History The Elks began in 1868 as a soci ...

, and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.

Legacy

Knutson Dam on 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 ...

at Cass Lake is named after him.

References

External links

Bioguide

Additional Resources

* The
Papers of Harold Knutson
are available for research use at th
Minnesota Historical Society.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Knutson, Harold American Lutherans 1880 births 1953 deaths Norwegian emigrants to the United States People from Telemark Politicians from Skien American newspaper editors Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Minnesota 20th-century American politicians 20th-century Lutherans