What is a "Know-Nothing"?

August 15, 2011 by Pat McNamara

Continued from Page 1

Catholics worried over the possibility of an anti-Catholic president. By 1856, however, other issues overshadowed anti-Catholicism. As the country divided over the issues of slavery and national union, and with the rise of a new Republican Party, the Know-Nothing platform took a backseat to the larger questions of the day. As the country advanced toward Civil War, the Know-Nothings faded into the background. With Catholic immigrants shedding their blood in defense of the Union, it seemed ludicrous to question their patriotism.

But the group's demise didn't mean the end of anti-Catholicism, which historian Arthur M. Schlesinger, Sr. calls the longest reigning prejudice in American history. In decades to come, other anti-Catholic groups would gain ground, including the Ku Klu Klan in the 1920's. But none would gain the influence or the numbers that the Know-Nothings had for a brief time in the 1850's.

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8/15/2011 4:00:00 AM

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About Pat McNamara

Dr. Pat McNamara is a published historian. He blogs about American Catholic History at McNamara's Blog.

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