Kirk–Holden war
The Klan was using murder and intimidation to prevent formerly enslaved people and members of the Republican Party from exercising their right to vote in the aftermath of the American Civil War.
Holden was the first governor in the United States to be removed in such fashion, and his campaign against the Klan and the impeachment crippled the image of the Republican Party in North Carolina for many years.
The conflict caused intense political divisions within North Carolina, as many of its residents, particularly those in the mountains and coastal regions, were opposed to the war and maintained Unionist sympathies.
The issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation during the conflict meant that the federal government recognized the freedom of over 330,000 enslaved blacks in North Carolina; this came into effect in most of the state with the end of the war.
[4] The opposing Democratic Party, also known during this time as the Conservatives,[5] encompassed a range of opinion but generally advocated for the withholding of certain rights from non-whites and forcing blacks to work menial jobs.
In 1867, several Klan chapters met in Nashville and produced a constitution endorsing white supremacy and requiring potential members to support "the restitution of the Southern people to all their rights".
[14] State Senator T. M. Shoffner of Alamance County introduced a bill to Holden's request on December 16, titled "An Act to Secure the Better Protection of Life and Property".
The coroner's report ultimately concluded that the state senator was murdered by "persons unknown",[35] and the circumstances of the killing remained unclear until Lea's signed confession to participation in the events was published posthumously in 1935.
He was initially wary of more forceful moves, fearing a political backlash, but by early June had formulated plans to call forth a state militia to occupy Alamance and Caswell County.
Richard Badger, one of the governor's closest advisers, suggested that this was politically risky and that arrested Klansmen should be handed over to a specially-appointed judge and tried in regular courts.
Rollins declined but advised Holden to seek the services of George Washington Kirk, who had previously commanded a militia contingent in suppressing the Klan in Tennessee.
[45] Command of the eastern and Piedmont militia was given to William J. Clarke of New Bern, and Holden dispatched him to Washington, D.C., to obtain federal materiel assistance from Grant and the Secretary of War,[40] which he secured.
[55] In addition to Republican and Unionist sympathies, historian Samuel B. McGuire speculated that the men that enlisted in the militias probably hoped to benefit from the pay offered.
[61] The arrestees encompassed persons from various social backgrounds, including former United States Congressman John Kerr Jr., the sheriffs of both Alamance and Caswell, and smallholding farmers.
On July 27, Major General George Meade established the temporary military District of North Carolina and placed it under the command of Colonel Henry Jackson Hunt.
[67] Kirk became increasingly fearful of Klan attack in Caswell and asked for artillery, but the local army commander, Captain George Rodney, thought these concerns were unfounded and dismissed the request.
[71] Almost immediately after the suspected Klansmen were arrested, they began appealing to Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court Richmond Mumford Pearson to write writs of habeas corpus for them.
Pearson was a Republican and sympathetic Holden's efforts, but recognized that North Carolina's constitution forbade the suspension of the writ and thus saw the failure for these to be issued as unlawful.
"[73] The attorneys of prisoner A. G. Moore suggested that Pearson issue a writ of attachment to a county sheriff to arrest Kirk, but the chief justice refused, fearing such an action would precipitate a civil war-like scenario in Alamance and Caswell.
[75] With Pearson declaring his inability to act, the detainees sought the assistance of United States District Court Judge George Washington Brooks.
Historians have concluded that this was due to Klan intimidation, accusations of financial corruption levied at Republicans, and the view that Holden's deployment of the militias was tyrannical.
[98][a] In preparation for the impeachment trial scheduled to begin in January 1871, Holden handed over governing authority to Lieutenant Governor Tod Robinson Caldwell.
He defended his decision to proclaim a state of insurrection in Caswell and Alamance counties, arguing it was necessary to protect the lives of citizens, and included a 12-page supplement documenting Klan actions in the Piedmont.
During proceedings taken against men suspected of killing Outlaw in 1873, he publicly came out against their conviction, saying, "Those crimes were not committed in ordinary times [...] I am in favor of amnesty, oblivion, and mercy to the guilty.
Caldwell, who had assumed the governorship upon Holden's removal, was wary of taking any harsh measures and instead simply made public appeals to reject the Klan.
[62] In 1873 the General Assembly passed the Amnesty Act, which pardoned persons found responsible for political violence in the preceding years;[107] the Conservative-backed measure was designed to protect members of the Klan,[108] and ended Tourgée's efforts.
[110] Testimony about Klan activity in Alamance and Caswell before congressional committees also informed the passage of the Enforcement Act of 1871, and the seriousness of events there convinced Grant to pursue more direct federal action that year.
Every citizen, no matter of what color, or how poor or humble, has a right to labor for a living without being molested; to express his political opinions without let or hindrance; and to be absolutely at peace in his own house.
[115] In 1936, the state of North Carolina erected a highway historical marker in front of the Caswell County Courthouse, noting Stephens's murder and its role in sparking the Kirk–Holden war.
[112][119] The Caswell County Historical Association lobbied to delay the passage of the resolution, with its president arguing that the impeachment was justifiable due to Holden's illegal actions and that Klan pressure and racial tensions were not a significant factor in the proceedings.
