Harold Montgomery - Revision history

BHathorn: /* Further political developments */

2022-10-13T11:21:13Z

Further political developments

DavidB4-bot: Spelling, grammar, and general cleanup, typos fixed: 1964-1968 → 1964–1968

2021-06-07T21:15:05Z

Spelling, grammar, and general cleanup, typos fixed: 1964-1968 → 1964–1968

BHathorn: /* The battle of the Montgomerys, 1967 */

2021-04-21T19:36:11Z

The battle of the Montgomerys, 1967

BHathorn: /* Election to state Senate */

2021-04-11T23:27:51Z

Election to state Senate

BHathorn: /* Further political developments */

2021-04-11T23:26:55Z

Further political developments

BHathorn: /* Further political developments */

2021-04-11T23:25:39Z

Further political developments

BHathorn: /* Legacy */

2021-04-02T11:24:19Z

Legacy

BHathorn: /* Further political developments */

2020-11-12T18:14:09Z

Further political developments

BHathorn: /* Legacy */

2020-09-02T17:51:11Z

Legacy

BHathorn at 14:40, August 11, 2020

2020-08-11T14:40:36Z

@@ Line 72: / Line 72: @@
 In 1963, Montgomery had supported Louisiana Public Service Commissioner [[John J. McKeithen]] in the Democratic  runoff election against Chep Morrison. Then he quietly supported McKeithen's Republican opponent, [[Charlton Lyons]], a Shreveport [[oil]]man, in the general election held on  March 3, 1964. In time, Montgomery and McKeithen were consistently at political odds.
-The next year, Montgomery was elected chairman of the Louisiana Committee for Free Electors, an organization that grew from a meeting of some two hundred conservative Democrats in the capital city of [[Baton Rouge]]. Two representatives from each congressional district were chosen. The free elector movement, however, was abandoned with the nomination in July 1964 of [[U.S. Senator]] [[Barry Goldwater]] of [[Arizona]] as the Republican presidential nominee.<ref>Glen Jeansonne, ''Leander Perez of Louisiana,'' pp. 322-327, for discussion on free elector movement.</ref>
+The next year, Montgomery was elected chairman of the Louisiana Committee for Free Electors, an organization that grew from a meeting of some two hundred conservative Democrats in the capital city of [[Baton Rouge]]. Two representatives from each congressional district were chosen. Among those pushing for free electors was [[Leander Perez]], the segregationist political boss of Plaquemines and St. Bernard parishes. The free elector movement, however, was abandoned with the nomination in July 1964 of [[U.S. Senator]] [[Barry Goldwater]] of [[Arizona]] as the Republican presidential nominee.<ref>Glen Jeansonne, ''Leander Perez of Louisiana,'' pp. 322-327, for discussion on free elector movement.</ref>
 In a state Senate speech, Montgomery excoriated [[U.S. President]] [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] after Johnson signed into law the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. The address highlighted Johnson's long political life and declared him a "political thief," an "habitual liar," and "not worthy of your respect or mine." Montgomery said that Johnson should run for election under the skunk symbol, instead of the Democratic donkey emblem (the rooster in Louisiana).<ref name=blastjohnson>"Montgomery blasts Johnson in speech on Senate floor," ''Shreveport Journal,'' July 8, 1964, p. 1.</ref> Montgomery's Senate colleague, [[Jamar Adcock]] of [[Monroe, Louisiana|Monroe]], disputed the remarks: "Lyndon Johnson is our president, and I will respect him and the office of President."<ref name=blastjohnson/> Montgomery pitched a tent on the state Capitol grounds to protest the public accommodations section of the Civil Rights Act after he learned that the hotel in which he had been staying had admitted an African-American couple.<ref name=blastjohnson/><ref>Montgomery-tent photo caption, ''Shreveport Journal,'' July 9, 1964, p. 4A.</ref>

@@ Line 9: / Line 9: @@
 | term_end2=1976
 | preceded2= [[Jack Montgomery (Louisiana politician)|John Willard "Jack" Montgomery, Sr.]]
-| succeeded2=Foster Lonnie Campbell, Jr]
+| succeeded2=Foster Lonnie Campbell, Jr
 | birth_date=April 19, 1911
 | birth_place=Humble,  Harris County,<br> [[Texas]], [[United States|USA]]
@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 (aged 84)
 | spouse=Azalee Wilson Montgomery (married 1945-1985, her death)
-| children=A Harold Montgomery, Jr. (1946-2015)<ref name=halmobit>{{cite web|url=http://press-herald.com/a-harold-hal-montgomery-jr/|title=A Harold Montgomery, Jr.|publisher=''[[Minden Press-Herald]]''|date=September 10,
+| children=A Harold Montgomery, Jr. (1946-2015)<ref name=halmobit>{{cite web|url=http://press-herald.com/a-harold-hal-montgomery-jr/|title=A Harold Montgomery, Jr.|publisher=''[[Minden Press-Herald]]''|date=September 10, 2015|accessdate=July 15, 2020}}</ref>
 Two granddaughters
 | party=[[Democratic Party|Democrat]]
@@ Line 25: / Line 24: @@
 [[University of Colorado]] (Boulder)
 | footnotes='''Note''':<br>
-*Despite his alliance in his last term with [[Governor]] [[Edwin  Edwards]], Montgomery was considered among the most [[conservative]] members of the Louisiana State.
+*Despite his alliance in his last term with [[Governor]] [[Edwin Edwards]], Montgomery was considered among the most [[conservative]] members of the Louisiana State.
 }}
-−
-'''A Harold Montgomery, Sr.''' (April 19, 1911 &ndash; December 17, 1995), was an [[agriculture|agricultural]] [[business]]man and a [[Louisiana]] state senator who is remembered as an outspoken [[conservative]] within his state's dominant [[Democratic Party]]. He represented District 36 -- Bossier and Webster parishes and, later, part of Bienville Parish—in three nonconsecutive terms in the Senate, 1960 to 1968 and 1972 to 1976.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://senate.la.gov/Documents/Membership/1880membership.pdf|title=Senate Directory, 1880 - Present|publisher=Louisiana State Senate|accessdatse=July 14, 2020}}</ref>
+'''A Harold Montgomery, Sr.''' (April 19, 1911 &ndash; December 17, 1995), was an [[agriculture|agricultural]] [[business]]man and a [[Louisiana]] state senator who is remembered as an outspoken [[conservative]] within his state's dominant [[Democratic Party]]. He represented District 36—Bossier and Webster parishes and, later, part of Bienville Parish—in three nonconsecutive terms in the Senate, 1960 to 1968 and 1972 to 1976.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://senate.la.gov/Documents/Membership/1880membership.pdf|title=Senate Directory, 1880 - Present|publisher=Louisiana State Senate|accessdatse=July 14, 2020}}</ref>
 ==Background==
@@ Line 42: / Line 41: @@
 ==Patent on the rotary blade mower==
-−
 Montgomery renamed his feed and seed store the "Montgomery Distributing Company" when he began to specialize in [[gasoline]] lawnmowers. Montgomery held the first [[patent]] on a rotary blade mower. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, mowers were equipped with a rotating reel assembly that was either pushed by hand or was propelled by a small [[gasoline]] engine. This kind of mower worked well in short grass, but it clogged up in tall grass. Montgomery did not invent this mower, but he obtained the patent from a frustrated inventor in [[Chicago]], [[Illinois]]. The first commercially produced rotary mower, the Yazoo Master Mower, was then produced by a small manufacturing plant in the capital city of [[Jackson]], [[Mississippi]]. Montgomery was the Louisiana distributor of Yazoo until 1981, when he closed his lawnmower business in Ruston.<ref name=obit/>
@@ Line 58: / Line 57: @@
 In the primary held on December 7, 1963, Jones failed in a comeback attempt against Montgomery. Calling himself an "[[Independent voter|Independent]]", Jones endorsed the unpledged elector movement for the 1964 presidential campaign, a position originally held by Montgomery himself.<ref>''Minden Press,'' December 9, 1963, p. 1.</ref>
-Oddly, Montgomery and colleague [[Danny Roy Moore]], a surveyor who represented Claiborne and Bienville parishes, had side-by-side desks in the far right corner of the Senate chamber. Moore noted too that he and Montgomery were the most conservative members of the chamber during the 1964-1968 term.<ref>Statement of Danny Roy Moore, Arcadia, Louisiana, January 5, 2011.</ref>
+Oddly, Montgomery and colleague [[Danny Roy Moore]], a surveyor who represented Claiborne and Bienville parishes, had side-by-side desks in the far right corner of the Senate chamber. Moore noted too that he and Montgomery were the most conservative members of the chamber during the 1964–1968 term.<ref>Statement of Danny Roy Moore, Arcadia, Louisiana, January 5, 2011.</ref>
 According to Montgomery's obituary in ''The  Shreveport Times,'' he was indeed "known as a staunch conservative. Fellow conservatives loved him, and even those who disagreed with his views respected him. All who knew him either personally or by reputation respected him for his impeccable veracity, honesty, patriotism, fairness, dedication, and his love of [[God]], family, home, and country."<ref name=obit/>
@@ Line 73: / Line 72: @@
 In 1963, Montgomery had supported Louisiana Public Service Commissioner [[John J. McKeithen]] in the Democratic  runoff election against Chep Morrison. Then he quietly supported McKeithen's Republican opponent, [[Charlton Lyons]], a Shreveport [[oil]]man, in the general election held on  March 3, 1964. In time, Montgomery and McKeithen were consistently at political odds.
-The next year, Montgomery was elected chairman of the Louisiana Committee for Free Electors, an organization that grew from a meeting of some two hundred conservative Democrats in the capital city of [[Baton Rouge]]. Two representatives from each congressional district were chosen. The free elector movement, however, was abandoned with the nomination in July 1964 of [[U.S. Senator]] [[Barry  Goldwater]] of [[Arizona]] as the Republican presidential nominee.<ref>Glen Jeansonne, ''Leander Perez of Louisiana,'' pp. 322-327, for discussion on free elector movement.</ref>
+The next year, Montgomery was elected chairman of the Louisiana Committee for Free Electors, an organization that grew from a meeting of some two hundred conservative Democrats in the capital city of [[Baton Rouge]]. Two representatives from each congressional district were chosen. The free elector movement, however, was abandoned with the nomination in July 1964 of [[U.S. Senator]] [[Barry Goldwater]] of [[Arizona]] as the Republican presidential nominee.<ref>Glen Jeansonne, ''Leander Perez of Louisiana,'' pp. 322-327, for discussion on free elector movement.</ref>
 In a state Senate speech, Montgomery excoriated [[U.S. President]] [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] after Johnson signed into law the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. The address highlighted Johnson's long political life and declared him a "political thief," an "habitual liar," and "not worthy of your respect or mine." Montgomery said that Johnson should run for election under the skunk symbol, instead of the Democratic donkey emblem (the rooster in Louisiana).<ref name=blastjohnson>"Montgomery blasts Johnson in speech on Senate floor," ''Shreveport Journal,'' July 8, 1964, p. 1.</ref> Montgomery's Senate colleague, [[Jamar Adcock]] of [[Monroe, Louisiana|Monroe]], disputed the remarks: "Lyndon Johnson is our president, and I will respect him and the office of President."<ref name=blastjohnson/> Montgomery pitched a tent on the state Capitol grounds to protest the public accommodations section of the Civil Rights Act after he learned that the hotel in which he had been staying had admitted an African-American couple.<ref name=blastjohnson/><ref>Montgomery-tent photo caption, ''Shreveport Journal,'' July 9, 1964, p. 4A.</ref>
-−
 ===The battle of the Montgomerys, 1967===
@@ Line 107: / Line 106: @@
 Hargis and Montgomery were critical of [[Martin Luther King]]'s leftist ties within the [[civil rights movement]].
-−
 By Montgomery's last Senate term, segregation had legally ended, the issue ceased to be a viable political matter, and Montgomery avoided discussion of racial matters. Instead, he concentrated on getting state projects into northwest Louisiana. And it helped to have a friend in the governor's office during Montgomery's last term in office.
@@ Line 138: / Line 137: @@
 ==References==
 {{reflist}}
-−
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, Harold}}
 [[Category:Louisiana People]]

@@ Line 89: / Line 89: @@
 In a 1975 interview in [[Alexandria, Louisiana|Alexandria]], Harold Montgomery said that he thought that [[Tom Colten]], the [[Republican Party|Republican]] mayor of Minden, had done a good job in office, but he never understood Colten's reported favoritism toward Jack Montgomery, a loyal Democrat, in that Harold Montgomery had sometimes supported Republican candidates, including Barry Goldwater.
-Harold Montgomery's loss was attributed to the pro-McKeithen sentiment in the district, but also to the impact of the [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]], which applied in Louisiana state senate elections for the first time in 1967. Large numbers of previously unregistered [[African-American]] voters came to the polls, and most of them chose the McKeithen-endorsed Jack Montgomery. Opposing McKeithen in the primary was segregationist [[U.S. Representative]] John Richard Rarick of St. Francisville in West Feliciana Parish. Rarick ran so poorly both statewide and in the Bossier-Webster district that his candidacy offered no help for Harold Montgomery's reelection prospects even though  Montgomery concentrated on his own race and was not involved in the gubernatorial primary.
+Harold Montgomery's loss was attributed to the pro-McKeithen sentiment in the district, but also to the impact of the [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]], which applied in Louisiana state senate elections for the first time in 1967. Large numbers of previously unregistered [[African-American]] voters came to the polls, and most of them chose the McKeithen-endorsed Jack Montgomery. Opposing McKeithen in the primary was segregationist [[U.S. Representative]] [[John Rarick]] of St. Francisville in West Feliciana Parish. Rarick ran so poorly both statewide and in the Bossier-Webster district that his candidacy offered no help for Harold Montgomery's reelection prospects even though  Montgomery concentrated on his own race and was not involved in the gubernatorial primary.
 ===The battle of the Montgomerys, 1971===

@@ Line 58: / Line 58: @@
 In the primary held on December 7, 1963, Jones failed in a comeback attempt against Montgomery. Calling himself an "[[Independent voter|Independent]]", Jones endorsed the unpledged elector movement for the 1964 presidential campaign, a position originally held by Montgomery himself.<ref>''Minden Press,'' December 9, 1963, p. 1.</ref>
-Oddly, Montgomery and colleague Danny Roy Moore (born 1925), who represented Claiborne and Bienville parishes, had side-by-side desks in the far right corner of the Senate chamber. Moore noted too that he and Montgomery were the most conservative members of the chamber during the 1964-1968 term.<ref>Statement of Danny Roy Moore, Arcadia, Louisiana, January 5, 2011.</ref>
+Oddly, Montgomery and colleague [[Danny Roy Moore]], a surveyor who represented Claiborne and Bienville parishes, had side-by-side desks in the far right corner of the Senate chamber. Moore noted too that he and Montgomery were the most conservative members of the chamber during the 1964-1968 term.<ref>Statement of Danny Roy Moore, Arcadia, Louisiana, January 5, 2011.</ref>
 According to Montgomery's obituary in ''The  Shreveport Times,'' he was indeed "known as a staunch conservative. Fellow conservatives loved him, and even those who disagreed with his views respected him. All who knew him either personally or by reputation respected him for his impeccable veracity, honesty, patriotism, fairness, dedication, and his love of [[God]], family, home, and country."<ref name=obit/>

@@ Line 71: / Line 71: @@
 In 1962, Montgomery introduced a resolution in the state Senate which condemned the activities of the [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] in Louisiana. "We are outraged by the prostitution of the once great FBI, and its present misuse as a political police force, not dissimilar in method and result to the [[Gestapo]] or the NKVD", the Soviet secret police. [[United States Department of Justice|Attorney General]] [[Robert F. Kennedy]], not FBI Director [[J. Edgar Hoover]], was especially singled out for responsibility. Montgomery in fact admired Hoover for his strongly [[Communism|anticommunist]] stance.<ref>''The New Orleans Times-Picayune,'' July 4, 1962.</ref>
-In 1963, Montgomery had supported Louisiana Public Service Commissioner [[John J. McKeithen]] in the Democratic  runoff election against [[Chep Morrison]]. Then he quietly supported McKeithen's Republican opponent, [[Charlton Lyons]], a Shreveport [[oil]]man, in the general election held on  March 3, 1964. In time, Montgomery and McKeithen were consistently at political odds.
+In 1963, Montgomery had supported Louisiana Public Service Commissioner [[John J. McKeithen]] in the Democratic  runoff election against Chep Morrison. Then he quietly supported McKeithen's Republican opponent, [[Charlton Lyons]], a Shreveport [[oil]]man, in the general election held on  March 3, 1964. In time, Montgomery and McKeithen were consistently at political odds.
 The next year, Montgomery was elected chairman of the Louisiana Committee for Free Electors, an organization that grew from a meeting of some two hundred conservative Democrats in the capital city of [[Baton Rouge]]. Two representatives from each congressional district were chosen. The free elector movement, however, was abandoned with the nomination in July 1964 of [[U.S. Senator]] [[Barry  Goldwater]] of [[Arizona]] as the Republican presidential nominee.<ref>Glen Jeansonne, ''Leander Perez of Louisiana,'' pp. 322-327, for discussion on free elector movement.</ref>

← Older revision		Revision as of 11:24, April 2, 2021
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	The Montgomery obituary defines his legacy as one of "love, honor, integrity, and love to God and country. The state and nation share in this legacy. Harold Montgomery was a true southern gentleman and statesman. ... He loved his God and his family with a deep and profound love. In addition to his love for his family, he loved his state. This love inspired him to ask the people of his district to elect him to be their state senator. They did so, and he served in this capacity for twelve years ... with honor and distinction."		The Montgomery obituary defines his legacy as one of "love, honor, integrity, and love to God and country. The state and nation share in this legacy. Harold Montgomery was a true southern gentleman and statesman. ... He loved his God and his family with a deep and profound love. In addition to his love for his family, he loved his state. This love inspired him to ask the people of his district to elect him to be their state senator. They did so, and he served in this capacity for twelve years ... with honor and distinction."
		+	[[File:Harold Montgomery Road sign in LA.jpg\|right\|thumb\|300px]]

	While the senior Montgomery was still living, the Webster Parish Police Jury (equivalent of county commission in other states) named the "Harold Montgomery Road" in Doyline in his honor.		While the senior Montgomery was still living, the Webster Parish Police Jury (equivalent of county commission in other states) named the "Harold Montgomery Road" in Doyline in his honor.

@@ Line 125: / Line 125: @@
 Harold and Azalee Montgomery and their son are interred at the Haughton Cemetery (established 1945) in Bossier Parish.<ref name=halmobit/> Harold Montgomery was survived by his son, Hal, Jr., and daughter-in-law, Linda Burge Montgomery, two granddaughters, Leigh Ann Montgomery Bates of Doyline and Tara Montgomery Madison of Baton Rouge, and three sisters, Audrey Rodes of Benton, Jean Morgan of [[Lake Charles]], and Bobbie Steele of [[Memphis]], [[Tennessee]], and numerous nephews and nieces.<ref>Billy Hathorn, "Same Surnames, Different Perspectives: Harold and Jack Montgomery in the Louisiana State Senate, 1960 to 1976," ''[[North Louisiana History]]'' Vol 51 (Winter/Spring 2020, pp. 27-61.</ref>
-In addition to Governor Edwards, pallbearers included then Republican U.S. Representative James Otis "Jim" McCrery, III, who then represented Louisiana's 4th congressional district, former state legislative colleague Parey Pershing Branton, Sr. (1918-2011), a Democrat from Shongaloo in Webster Parish, [[dairy]]man Roy Donald "Don" Hinton (1912–2011) of Minden,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/shreveporttimes/obituary.aspx?n=r-d-hinton-don&pid=150300909|title=R. Don Hinton|publisher=''Shreveport Times'', April 18, 2011|accessdate=April 19, 2011}}</ref> and attorney and then Webster Parish Library Board president Henry Grady Hobbs (1923-2012) of Minden,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/shreveporttimes/obituary.aspx?n=henry-hobbs&pid=162069317#fbLoggedOut|title=Henry Hobbs obituary|publisher=''Shreveport Times'', January 2, 2013|accessdate=January 3, 2013}}</ref> who lost the 1960 and 1967 state House elections to Branton, and a Minden [[banker]], Ralph Williams.<ref name=obit/>
+In addition to Governor Edwards, pallbearers included then Republican U.S. Representative James Otis "Jim" McCrery, III, who then represented Louisiana's 4th congressional district, former state legislative colleague [[Parey Branton]], a Democrat from Shongaloo in Webster Parish, [[dairy]]man Roy Donald "Don" Hinton (1912–2011) of Minden,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/shreveporttimes/obituary.aspx?n=r-d-hinton-don&pid=150300909|title=R. Don Hinton|publisher=''Shreveport Times'', April 18, 2011|accessdate=April 19, 2011}}</ref> and attorney and then Webster Parish Library Board president Henry Grady Hobbs (1923-2012) of Minden,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/shreveporttimes/obituary.aspx?n=henry-hobbs&pid=162069317#fbLoggedOut|title=Henry Hobbs obituary|publisher=''Shreveport Times'', January 2, 2013|accessdate=January 3, 2013}}</ref> who lost the 1960 and 1967 state House elections to Branton, and a Minden [[banker]], Ralph Williams.<ref name=obit/>
 The Montgomery obituary defines his legacy as one of "love, honor, integrity, and love to God and country. The state and nation share in this legacy. Harold Montgomery was a true southern gentleman and statesman. ... He loved his God and his family with a deep and profound love. In addition to his love for his family, he loved his state. This love inspired him to ask the people of his district to elect him to be their state senator. They did so, and he served in this capacity for twelve years ... with honor and distinction."

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{Infobox officeholder
 | name=A Harold Montgomery, Sr.
-| office=[[Louisiana]] State Senator for<br> District 36 (Bossier and Webster parishes)
+| office=[[Louisiana]] State Senator<br>for District 36 (Bossier<br> and Webster parishes)
 | term_star=1960
 | term_end=1968