| Repository: | Western Reserve Historical Society |
| Creator: | Franklin Club |
| Title: | Franklin Club Records |
| Dates: | 1895-1901 |
| Extent: | 0.20 linear feet (1 container) |
| Abstract: | The Franklin Club was a discussion and debate club in Cleveland, Ohio, at which Leon Czolgosz heard Emma Goldman elucidate her anarchical views on May 5, 1901. Four months later Czolgosz assassinated President William McKinley. The collection consists of meeting minutes. |
| MS Number | MS 0445 |
| Location: | closed stacks |
| Language: | The records are in English |
The Franklin Club was founded in Cleveland, Ohio, as the Union Labor club sometime between 1893 and 1895. the club was devoted to the discussion of all topics of public interest. Believing that "error is harmless if truth is free to combat it," members debated the most controversial subjects of the period, including the philosophy of anarchy. Club members were politically active in questions associated with Progressive politics.
Late in 1900, the club reorganized as the Progressive Liberty Association. It was under these auspices that noted anarchist Emma Goldman addressed the membership on May 5, 1901. This speech is believed to have incited Leon Czolgosz to assassinate President William McKinely later that year. Following the assassination, the club's records were seized by the Cleveland police, and the organization declined in importance.
View the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for the Franklin Club
View the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Leon Czolgosz
The Franklin Club Records, 1895-1901, consist of meeting minutes.
This collection will be useful to researchers studying the history of Cleveland, Ohio, and the Franklin Club located there in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Those interested in the history of Emma Goldman, Leon Czolgosz, and the assassination of United States President William McKinley will find this collection useful.
While there are no access restrictions on this collection, researchers will be asked to use the microfilm of this collection.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 445 Franklin Club Records, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of the United States Marshal in 1907.
Franklin Club Records 1895-1901 undated |
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| Box | Folder | ||||||||||
| 1 | 1 | Minute book 1895-1899 | |||||||||
| 1 | 2 | Minute book 1899-1901 | |||||||||
| 1 | 3 | Enclosures removed from minutes in Folders 1 and 2 undated | |||||||||