Date Original
1944
Description
This collection contains campaign letters for Ben Laney.
Biographical/Historical Note
Benjamin Travis Laney Jr. (1896-1977) was born on November 25, 1896, in Jones Chapel, Arkansas the son of Benjamin Travis Laney and Martha Ellen Saxon. Laney entered Hendrix College in 1915 but left in 1916 to teach before serving in the U.S. Navy during World War I. He received a BA from Arkansas State Normal School in 1924.Laney worked in business and banking from 1925 to 1926 in Conway, where married Lucile Kirtley on January 19, 1926; they had three sons. In 1927, Laney returned to Ouachita County. He was the mayor of Camden (Ouachita County) from 1935 to 1939. A relative unknown when he ran for the 1944 Democratic gubernatorial nomination, he had the support of conservative business and financial interests. His opponents were former congressman David D. Terry and State Comptroller J. Bryan Sims. Sims withdrew ten days before the election amid accusations of a negotiated deal, and Laney easily defeated Republican opponent H. C. Stump in the general election, as was the norm in this essentially one-party political era. His re-nomination and reelection in 1946 were effortless. The governor was a leader in the States’ Rights Democrats (Dixiecrats) movement, and the Dixiecrats considered him for a presidential or vice presidential nomination. Laney died on January 21, 1977, in Magnolia and was buried in Camden Memorial Cemetery.
Physical Description
Document, 8.5" x 11"
Geographical Area
Fayetteville, Washington County (Ark.)
Language
English
Identifier
SMC.037.015
Resource Type
Text
Collection
Ben Laney campaign letters, SMC.037.015
Publisher
Arkansas State Archives
Contributing Entity
Arkansas State Archives
Recommended Citation
Ben Laney campaign letters, Arkansas State Archives, Little Rock, Arkansas.
Rights
Use and reproduction of images held by the Arkansas State Archives without prior written permission is prohibited. For information on reproducing images held by the Arkansas State Archives, please call 501-682-6900 or email at state.archives@arkansas.gov.
Disciplines
United States History
