Will Bryan was raised in Salem, Illinois, where he was not vastly exposed to other races or religious groups. He was raised by his parents Mariah Bryan, a member of temperance groups, and Silas Bryan, a pious Democratic judge. Will Bryan went to private school in Jacksonville and attended Illinois College, an environment that contrasted greatly with his hometown. Bryan had a passion for oratory and entered speaking contests. He married Mary Baird, who became a helpful partner in his career. He attended Union Law College in Chicago and worked for a former attorney, Lyman Trumbull. After, Bryan moved to Lincoln, Nebraska where he created a law partnership with Adolphus Talbot. At the end of the 1880s, the Democratic Party split into the conservative "Bourbons" and the group of insurgents who sympathized with the victims of corporate manipulation. After a series of calamities in Nebraska, Bryan ran in the 1890 election in support of the agrarian revolution and angry farmers. Due to his "rhetorical mastery," Bryan became the 2nd Democratic congressman in Nebraska.
Key Terms
Cumberland Presbyterians
President Grover Cleveland
"Bourbons"
Knights of Labor
Farmers' Alliance
J. Sterling Morton
Agrarian rebellion
William Connell
The Independent Party
Populists
Tammany Hall
Questions
How did Bryan's early life and education impact his political career?
Did the split of the Democratic Party correspond with regional areas? If so, which regions primarily made up each group?
How did Bryan incorporate his religious beliefs with his political career?
In what ways did the Bryan's parents affect the development of Bryan's political views?
What were Bryan's strengths and weaknesses in his campaign?
Nytett. William Jennings Bryan Boyhood Home. Digital image. from Wikimedia Commons. 2012. accessed March 1, 2015. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_Jennings_Bryan_Boyhood_Home.jpg
Kazin, Michael. "Education of a Hero." In A Godly Hero: The Life of William Jennings Bryan, 3-28. New York, NY: Anchor Books, 2006.
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