Wife, helpmate, Pike native underpinned Bryan political dynasty

The family of William Jennings Bryan was something of a political dynasty at the turn of the 20th century, and many of its members rose to positions of national leadership.

William was Secretary of State from 1913 to 1915 and a three-time Democratic nominee for president. His brother, Charles, won three elections as governor of Nebraska and was the Democratic vice-presidential nominee in 1924.

Both brothers were born in the Marion County city of Salem and attended Illinois College in Jacksonville.

William’s daughter, Ruth, who was born in Jacksonville, served as minister to Denmark from 1933 to 1936, the first woman in U.S. history to serve in a major diplomatic position.

Overshadowed in the group, however, was William’s wife, Mary Baird Bryan, who carved a formidable career of her own. An attorney and adviser to her husband, Mary is credited with helping William rise to his place as a populist and liberal icon.

Author Willa Cather once described Mary as “a student and a thinker, a woman burning with enthusiasm.”

Daughter Ruth said, “I would like to emulate (my mother). She is a thoroughly feminine woman with the mind of a thoroughly masculine man.”

Mary was born in the Pike County village of Perry on June 17, 1861, the daughter of a wealthy merchant who owned the only two-story house in the village.

An adept writer, she attended the Jacksonville Female Academy, where she graduated first in the Class of 1881. The academy became a part of Illinois College in 1903.

While at the academy, she met her future husband at a social gathering. Gender roles became an issue during their courtship, because William insisted on not getting married until he had enough earnings to support both of them.

Mary offered to “keep separate accounts,” an idea William declined. Researcher Nancy Cole writes that William believed “no woman could love a man if she performed her domestic duties and also paid for her own support.”

The couple married on Oct. 1, 1884, and William continued his legal business in Jacksonville before the family moved to Lincoln, Nebraska. There, Mary was licensed to practice law but remained active in her husband’s endeavors. Two more children were born before William was elected to Congress in 1890.

It was the beginning of a stellar political career for William, who earned the Democratic nomination for president in 1896, 1900 and 1908, losing decisively every time. He visited 26 states during the 1896 campaign and Mary accompanied him on about half of his trips.

Not unexpectedly, Mary was subject to criticism and, in one condescending episode, was ripped in the Eastern press for her clothing.

Cather came to her defense.

“It is doubtful (Mary) ever spent ten minutes planning the construction of a gown,” Cather said. “But many and many an hour have she and her husband spent by their library fire, talking over the future of the West.”

Author Michael Kazin echoed Cather, saying William’s rise “would have been impossible without Mary’s continuous and varied labors. She managed his correspondence, helped prepare his speeches, edited his articles, and on occasion even negotiated with his fellow politicians.”

The Bryan family embarked in 1905 on a one-year tour of the world, visiting 18 nations. An Omaha, Nebraska, newspaper later claimed Mary “has probably traveled over more countries and met more kinds of people than any other woman in the United States.”

Along the way, Mary became a foremost champion of women’s suffrage. She also was a devoted member of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. The family permanently settled in Florida in 1916, and Mary emerged as a leader in that state’s suffrage association.

In the custom of the times, Mary believed a woman’s place was at home, though she chided women who did not take an active role in politics. In one speech, she declared, “If women got up a bit earlier and went to bed a little later, they might be able to cast a ballot two or three times a year” for “women are more than breeding machines as men are more than sires.”

In another oration, Mary implored women to “crochet less and read more.”

Though the 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920, Florida did not formally approve it until 1969.

Following William’s death in 1925, Mary penned nearly half of his 600 pages of memoirs. She died on Jan. 21, 1930, and is buried next to her husband in Arlington National Cemetery.

Her headstone aptly reads, “His wife and helpmate Mary Baird Bryan.”

Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville. He may be reached at 217-710-8392 or ilcivilwar@yahoo.com.