Thomas H. Van Lear (April 26, 1869 – March 4, 1931) was an American politician who served as the 28th

Mayor of Minneapolis The mayor of Minneapolis is the chief executive officer of the City of Minneapolis, Minnesota, responsible for overseeing the city's administration. As the political and ceremonial leader of the city, the mayor also represents Minneapolis on the ...

from January 1, 1917 to January 6, 1919. Van Lear was a member of the

Socialist Party of America The Socialist Party of America (SPA) was a socialist political party in the United States formed in 1901 by a merger between the three-year-old Social Democratic Party of America and disaffected elements of the Socialist Labor Party of America ...

Early life

Van Lear was born in Maryland in 1869. As a boy, he worked in the area's coal mines and, at the age of 18, he joined the

Knights of Labor The Knights of Labor (K of L), officially the Noble and Holy Order of the Knights of Labor, was the largest American labor movement of the 19th century, claiming for a time nearly one million members. It operated in the United States as well in ...

. He later served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

(including a year during the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

) before relocating to Minneapolis to work as a machinist. He soon became active with the

International Association of Machinists The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) is an AFL–CIO/ CLC trade union representing over 600,000 workers as of 2024 in more than 200 industries with most of its membership in the United States and Canada. Origi ...

and other trade and union groups in the city.

Career

Van Lear led two unsuccessful campaigns for the mayoralty before he was elected on November 7, 1916, with over 33,000 votes. Van Lear did not win control of the city council, and Sheriff Otto Langum worked closely with the Minneapolis

Citizens' Alliance Citizens' Alliances were state and local anti-trade union organizations prominent in the United States of America during the first decade of the 20th century. The Citizen's Alliances were closely related to employers' associations but allowed p ...

, an anti-labor coalition of wealthy business magnates. In office, Van Lear welcomed the People's Council of America for Democracy and the Terms of Peace to Minneapolis and refused to approve a law that would effectively ban the

Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), whose members are nicknamed "Wobblies", is an international labor union founded in Chicago, United States in 1905. The nickname's origin is uncertain. Its ideology combines general unionism with indu ...

(IWW). The only Socialist mayor in the city's history, Van Lear was defeated for re-election in 1918, amid accusations that he and his supporters secretly desired a German victory in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. Van Lear was expelled from the

in 1918. At the time, the Socialist Party was against entering World War 1, and Van Lear was in favor, causing conflict between him and the party. He later helped to form a local section of the

Nonpartisan League The Nonpartisan League (NPL) was a left-wing political party founded in 1915 in North Dakota by Arthur C. Townley, a former organizer for the Socialist Party of America. On behalf of small farmers and merchants, the Nonpartisan League advocated ...

that firmly supported the policies of Democratic

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

. In 1919, Van Lear worked with Herbert Gaston to found the populist ''Minnesota Daily Star'' newspaper. The first issue was printed in August 1920. While the paper had some success as a political tool, it had a difficult time attracting advertisers and went bankrupt in 1924.

Death

Van Lear died on March 4, 1931.

Early life

Career

Death

See also

References

Further reading