Merrill Keith Riddick (March 7, 1895 – March 9, 1988) was an American aviator and perennial candidate. He was a candidate for President of the United States three times, affiliated with Puritan Ethic and Epic, Magnetohydrodynamics and Prohibition Party, which he founded.

Early life

He was born on March 7, 1895, in Madison, Wisconsin. He moved to

Eastern Montana Eastern Montana is a loosely defined region of Montana. Some definitions are more or less inclusive than others, ranging from the most inclusive, which would include the entire part of the state east of the Continental Divide, to the least inclusiv ...

at the age of 11. His father, Carl W. Riddick, served two terms as a member of the United States House of Representatives. His aunt, Florence Riddick Boys, was a writer and suffragette. At the age of 16, Riddick began traveling throughout the Northwest and became interested in the emerging field of aviation. In 1917, Riddick was a member of the first graduating class from the Army Air Force Aeronautics School in San Diego. He was sent to Europe during World War I to serve as an instructor and to fly reconnaissance.

Career

After World War I, Riddick was among the first airmail pilots. Riddick and

Charles A. Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

barnstormed together and flew in the Harry Perkins Air Circus. While barnstorming, Riddick met and married his wife, Helen May Williams, from West Virginia. They had three children, Mary Ruth, Keith, and Barbara. In 1928, Riddick was an instructor at the first aviation preparatory school in Rochester, New York, where he instructed future president Franklin D. Roosevelt. Riddick re-joined the Air Force during World War II and served as a technical instructor. He was also a prospector who was involved in many different mining claims before and after the war Riddick moved back to Montana after the war but continued traveling. After his wife died in 1949, Riddick became involved in politics. He was a resident of Granite County during his political campaigns, which were centered on natural resource management and campaign finance reform. He wrote and published the ''Journal of Applied Human Ecology'', which focused on his plans for resource development. He ran for the Democratic nomination for Montana governor in 1960 and 1968, U.S. Congress in 1972, and was a presidential candidate in 1976, 1980, and 1984. Riddick ran for his self-created political party, the Magneto-hydrodynamics-Puritan Epic-Prohibition Party, and did not accept campaign contributions. Riddick campaigned across the nation, traveling only by passenger bus. After his presidential campaigns, Riddick moved to Annapolis, Maryland, and lived with his sister, Ruth.

Death

Riddick died of cancer on March 9, 1988, in

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

, two days after his 93rd birthday.

References

External links

*Guide to the Merrill K. Riddick Papers at the Mike Mansfield Library at The University of Montana http://nwda-db.wsulibs.wsu.edu/findaid/ark:/80444/xv83451 *FINAL FLIGHT - Reconstructing an Early Airmail Accident by Dave G. Stiff http://collections.mnhs.org/MNHistoryMagazine/articles/50/v50i03p099-104.pdf * PILOT STORIES: Postal Museum http://www.postalmuseum.si.edu/AMS/pilot/pilot_rest/pilot_rest_riddick.html * Montana Ghost Dance: Essays on Land and Life by John B. Wright {{DEFAULTSORT:Riddick, Merrill K. 1895 births 1988 deaths 20th-century Montana politicians Candidates in the 1976 United States presidential election Candidates in the 1980 United States presidential election Candidates in the 1984 United States presidential election American aviation pioneers Barnstormers United States airmail pilots People from Granite County, Montana Politicians from Madison, Wisconsin