Francis Griffith Newlands (August 28, 1846December 24, 1917) was a
United States representative
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 ...
and
Senator from
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
and a member of the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to:
*Democratic Party (United States)
Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to:
Active parties Africa
*Botswana Democratic Party
*Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea
*Gabonese Democratic Party
*Demo ...
.
A supporter of westward expansion, he helped pass the
Newlands Reclamation Act
The Reclamation Act (also known as the Lowlands Reclamation Act or National Reclamation Act) of 1902 () is a United States federal law that funded irrigation projects for the arid lands of 20 states in the American West.
The act at first covere ...
of 1902, which created the Bureau of Reclamation and boosted the agricultural industry by building dams to support irrigation in the arid Western states.
An avowed
white supremacist
White supremacy or white supremacism is the belief that white people are superior to those of other races and thus should dominate them. The belief favors the maintenance and defense of any power and privilege held by white people. White s ...
,
Senator Newlands argued publicly for racial restrictions on immigration and repealing the
15th Amendment.
As land developer, Newlands founded the neighborhoods of
Chevy Chase, Washington, D.C.; and
Chevy Chase, Maryland, and took steps to prevent non-white people from moving there.
Early life
Newlands was born in
Natchez, Mississippi, on August 28, 1846 (or 1848; sources differ). He was the fourth of five children born to Jessie and James Newlands, immigrants from
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
.
His father, trained as a physician in Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
, died in 1851.[ Newlands was raised in ]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 ...
and Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
[
In 1867, he went to ]Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
but left after his first year. In 1869, he graduated from Columbian College, which is now George Washington University Law School, and was admitted to the bar
An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...
in 1869.[ In 1901, he received an honorary M.A. degree.][
]
Career
In 1870, Newlands moved to San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
, California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. He married Clara Adelaide Sharon, the daughter of future Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
senator William Sharon
William Tang Sharon (January 9, 1821November 13, 1885) was a United States senator, banker, and business owner from Nevada who profited from the Comstock Lode.
Early life
Sharon was born in Smithfield, Ohio, January 9, 1821, the son of Willi ...
, in 1874.[ They had three daughters.][ Newlands helped William Sharon to reopen the ]Bank of California
The Bank of California was opened in San Francisco, California, on July 4, 1864, by William Chapman Ralston and Darius Ogden Mills. It was the first commercial bank in the Western United States, the second-richest bank in the nation, and considered ...
, and supervised the management of the Palace Hotel, San Francisco
The Palace Hotel is a landmark historic hotel in San Francisco, California, located at the southwest corner of Market and New Montgomery streets. The hotel is also referred to as the "new" Palace Hotel to distinguish it from the original 1875 ...
.[ When Newlands’ wife died, he inherited the Sharon estate.][ Newlands married Edith McAllister and moved to Nevada in 1888.
]
Land developer
In the late 1880s, Newlands and his partners began to acquire farmland in northwestern Washington, D.C., and southern Montgomery County, Maryland, in order to develop a residential streetcar suburb for the nation's capital. On June 23, 1888, Newlands chartered the Rock Creek Railway The Rock Creek Railway was one of the first electric streetcar companies in Washington, D.C., and the first to extend into Maryland. It was incorporated in 1888, started operations in 1890, and by 1892 ran some five miles from the Cardoza/Shaw nei ...
for a single-track streetcar. Two years later, Newlands and his partners purchased more than 1,700 acres and formed the Chevy Chase Land Company. Between 1890 and 1892, the Land Company built five miles of Connecticut Avenue
Connecticut Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., and suburban Montgomery County, Maryland. It is one of the diagonal avenues radiating from the White House, and the segment south of Florida Avenue was on ...
from Rock Creek past the District line and into Maryland, erected two bridges, and laid streetcar tracks along the road.[ The Rock Creek Railway opened in 1892.][ To supply the electricity to the streetcars, the company dammed Coquelin Run, a small tributary of Rock Creek, just east of ]Connecticut Avenue
Connecticut Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the Northwest quadrant of Washington, D.C., and suburban Montgomery County, Maryland. It is one of the diagonal avenues radiating from the White House, and the segment south of Florida Avenue was on ...
; the resulting Chevy Chase Lake supplied water for an electric generating plant.
Newlands' development companies attached covenants to lots in Chevy Chase, D.C.; Chevy Chase, Maryland; and later Burlingame, California. These covenants did not explicitly forbid their sale to people of specific races or religions. Instead they forbade buyers to build homes that cost less than certain amounts — e.g., $3,000 and $5,000 — effectively preventing their sale to members of minority populations with less access to wealth.
Newlands created the Chevy Chase Springs Hotel (later the Chevy Chase School for Girls, now the 4-H
4-H is a U.S.-based network of youth organizations whose mission is "engaging youth to reach their fullest potential while advancing the field of youth development". Its name is a reference to the occurrence of the initial letter H four times i ...
Youth Conference Center). Newlands ensured the community included schools, churches, country clubs, tree-lined streets, a water supply and a sewage system. Groceries and daily purchases were brought from Washington, D.C., on the railway at no charge to residents. From 1894 to 1936, the Land Company operated an amusement park on the lake as a means to draw prospective buyers to the development and to keep the streetcars supplied with evening and weekend passengers.
In 1893, Newlands began to subdivide some property he inherited in Burlingame, California. He started with the Burlingame Country Club and five cottages. The following year, he added the Burlingame train station.
U.S. Representative
Newlands represented Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...
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 1893 to 1903 as a member of the Silver Party
The Silver Party was a political party in the United States active from 1892 until 1911 and most successful in Nevada which supported a platform of bimetallism and free silver.
In 1892, several Silver Party candidates were elected to Nevada p ...
. In 1898, he created the Newlands Resolution
The Newlands Resolution was a joint resolution passed on July 7, 1898, by the United States Congress to annex the independent Republic of Hawaii. In 1900, Congress created the Territory of Hawaii.
The resolution was drafted by Representative Fr ...
, which annexed the Republic of Hawaii, creating a new territory.[ He supported a greater federal role in conservation and pushed for federal funding of western arid land irrigation projects.][ He helped pass the ]Reclamation Act
The Reclamation Act (also known as the Lowlands Reclamation Act or National Reclamation Act) of 1902 () is a United States federal law that funded irrigation projects for the arid lands of 20 states in the American West.
The act at first covere ...
of 1902, also called the Newlands Act, which created what would become the Bureau of Reclamation
The Bureau of Reclamation, and formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and opera ...
.[
]
U.S. Senator
Newlands entered the United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and pow ...
in 1903 as a Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
. He supported the protection of the National Forests under the United States Forest Service
The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...
in 1905, and the creation of the National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...
in 1916.[ He was a member of the Senate subcommittee that investigated the 1912 sinking of . In 1916, he was the only Democratic senator to vote against the nomination of Louis Brandeis to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Newlands held white supremacist beliefs and spoke publicly in favor of restricting the rights of African-Americans.][ This pamphlet, consisting mostly of a transcript of a speech by Gary, includes an extract of a statement given by Newlands on February 7, 1909, to the Washington Post that includes the "race of children" assertion.]
He died in office on December 24, 1917. He died of heart failure in his home in Washington, D.C. He was interred at Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
Legacy
The Francis Griffith Newlands Memorial Fountain is in Chevy Chase Circle, a federal park that divides D.C. and Maryland. In 2014, a member of the Chevy Chase advisory neighborhood commission proposed a resolution calling for the removal of Newlands’ name from the fountain because of his white supremacist views on race, including his desire to remove the vote for African-Americans. Others argued that Chevy Chase should not alter the monument because the change would belittle Newlands' legislative accomplishments.
On July 27, 2020, the Advisory Neighborhood Commission
Advisory Neighborhood Commissions are bodies of local government in District of Columbia, in the United States. The ANC system was created in 1974 through a District referendum (73 percent voted "yes") in the District of Columbia Home Rule Act. ...
of Chevy Chase, D.C., voted unanimously to ask the National Park Service
The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...
(NPS) to remove the plaque bearing his name from the Francis Griffith Newlands Memorial Fountain and create an exhibit documenting Newlands's racism.
A similar renaming effort has begun around Newlands Park in Reno, Nevada
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...
.
Newlands' former mansion in Reno
Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...
is one of six properties in Nevada designated as a National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
. Many notable people, including Barbara Hutton
Barbara Woolworth Hutton (November 14, 1912 – May 11, 1979) was an American debutante, socialite, heiress, and philanthropist. She was dubbed the "Poor Little Rich Girl"—first when she was given a lavish and expensive debutante ball in 1930 a ...
in 1935, stayed at the house while waiting for their divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
paperwork to be finalized by George Thatcher, a local divorce lawyer who purchased the home in 1920.
Racial views
Newlands was an outspoken white supremacist who advocated for those beliefs as a senator, and a white nationalist
White nationalism is a type of racial nationalism or pan-nationalism which espouses the belief that white people are a raceHeidi Beirich and Kevin Hicks. "Chapter 7: White nationalism in America". In Perry, Barbara. ''Hate Crimes''. Greenwoo ...
who sought to secure the United States as a homeland for whites. In 1905, he advocated for the paid resettlement of African Americans to the Caribbean. In a 1909 journal article, "A Western View of the Race Question" published in the ''Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science'', Newlands wrote that Black people were “a race of children” who threatened the United States. The country, he wrote, "should start immediately upon the serious consideration of a national policy regarding the people of the black race now within our boundaries, which, with a proper regard for humanity, will minimize the danger which they constitute to our institutions and our civilizations." He also expressed fear that people from Asia would take over the West Coast: "Asia, with nearly a billion people of the yellow and brown races, who, if there were no restrictions, would quickly settle upon and take possession of our entire western coast and intermountain region." He distinguished between Chinese and Japanese people using stereotypes: "the Chinese, who are patient and submissive, would not create as many complications as the presence of the Japanese, whose strong and virile qualities would constitute an additional element of difficulty."
In a June 17, 1912, article in the ''New York Times'', Newlands wrote, “I believe this should be a white man’s country and that we should frankly express our determination that it shall be.” At the 1912 Democratic National Convention
The 1912 Democratic National Convention was held at the Fifth Regiment Armory off North Howard Street in Baltimore from June 25 to July 2, 1912.
The Convention
The convention was held at the Fifth Regiment Armory in Baltimore from June 25 t ...
, he proposed that the party's platform include a “White Plank" calling for the repeal of the 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution and the restriction of immigration to whites.
See also
* National Irrigation Congress
The National Irrigation Congress was held periodically in the Western United States beginning in 1891 and ending in 1916, by which time the organization had changed its name to International Irrigation Congress. It was a "powerful pressure group." ...
* List of United States Congress members who died in office (1900–49)
References
External links
Francis Griffith Newlands papers MS 371
Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library.
Video
"A Closer Look at Chevy Chase Founder Francis G. Newlands," the Spring 2021 Chevy Chase Historical Society Lecture by historian and author William Rowley, emeritus professor of history at the University of Nevada-Reno
Memorial addresses
for Francis G. Newlands delivered in the Senate on Jan. 3, 1918, and in the House on September 2, 1918.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Newlands, Francis
1846 births
1917 deaths
19th-century American politicians
American people of Scottish descent
American white supremacists
Burials at Oak Hill Cemetery (Washington, D.C.)
Columbian College of Arts and Sciences alumni
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Nevada
Democratic Party United States senators from Nevada
History of racism in Maryland
Nevada lawyers
Politicians from Natchez, Mississippi
Politicians from Reno, Nevada
Silver Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Nevada
Yale University alumni