Reconciliation - Baltimore Convention

(No.1) RECONCILIATION! BALTIMORE CONVENTION. SPEECHES OF MR. BELMONT AND MR. DOOLITTLE. PLATFORM. MR, GREELEY’S LETTERS.

The convention met on the 9th of July, at 12 o’clock m., and was called to order b. Hon. AUGUST BELMONT, Chair, spoke as follows….

Uncut, 8 pgs., A very nice copy of a scarce document.

The 1872 Democratic National Convention was held at Ford’s Opera House, Baltimore on July 9-10. Historically it is known as the shortest major political convention as it ran for only 6 hours over the two days.

It resulted in the nomination of Horace Greeley of New York for President and B. Gratz Brown of Missouri for Vice President. Greeley’s nomination was contested but he won on the 1st ballot with a vote of 686 of the 732 delegates. Gratz also won on the 1st ballot having received 713 of the 732 votes cast. Both candidates were declared unanimous.

The primary goal of the convention was how to unite the North and the South after the Civil War. The general belief by the party was that Grant could not unite the country due in part to the corruption of his administration and the perception of his ineptness.

Ths document, RECONCILIATION! Delivered by August Belmont, Sr. summarizes the Democratic National Convention’s platform. Greeley’s nomination meant Democratic endorsement of a candidate who had frequently referred to Democrats, Irving Katz as “slaveholders, slave-whippers, traitors, and Copperheads and frequently accused them of thievery, debauchery, corruption and every known form of vulgarity and sin.” (Katz – August Belmont – 1968). Accepting Greeley and the Liberal platform meant the Democrats had accepted the New Departure, rejecting the anti-Reconstruction platform of 1868.The Democrats realized to win they had to look forward, and not try to refight the Civil War. Also, they realized they would only split the anti-Gratz vote if they nominated a candidate other than Greeley. However, Greeley had a long reputation as the most aggressive attacker of the Democratic Party, its principles, its leadership, and its activists which cooled enthusiasm for the nominee. This embarrassment over Greeley’s nomination would prompt Belmont to resign his chairmanship of the Democratic National Committee.