By Ray Hill In 1945 Senator Kenneth McKellar was seventy-six years old and had served in the United States Senate for twenty-nine years, longer than any other Tennessean. McKellar was at the peak of his influence and power in the Senate. He was the Chairman of the most powerful Senate Committee, Appropriations, through which every […]
By Ray Hill Many have long misunderstood U. S. Senator Kenneth McKellar and his complex relations with the Tennessee Valley Authority; in fact, some still perceive McKellar to have been an opponent of the TVA. The fact is the TVA proved to be so popular in Tennessee no elected official could have been legitimately hostile […]
By Ray Hill Kenneth McKellar was well established in the nation’s Capitol and by 1942 had served longer in the Senate than any of his colleagues save for E. D. “Cotton Ed” Smith of South Carolina. He still possessed the piercing blue eyes of his youth, although his once rich brown hair was now […]
By Ray Hill America’s entry in World War II brought significant changes to society and to Washington, D. C. The population of the nation’s Capitol quite nearly doubled over a period of months; rationing went into effect, affecting the availability of meat, butter, sugar, gasoline and tires for automobiles. Even fashions were affected by […]
By Ray Hill Senator Kenneth McKellar had been overwhelmingly reelected to an unprecedented (for Tennessee) fifth term in 1940. It was during the decade of the forties that K. D. McKellar earned his reputation as a feudist and reached the peak of his influence and power. There had been occasional flashes of the McKellar […]
By Ray Hill By 1940, Kenneth McKellar had represented Tennessee in the United States Senate longer than any other man. At seventy-one, the senator showed no signs of slowing down, much less retiring. McKellar loved his job and was quite good at it. It was quite clear he would seek a fifth term in […]
By Ray Hill E. H. Crump, leader of the Shelby County political machine, had been bitterly disappointed by his favored candidate for the 1936 gubernatorial nomination, Gordon Browning. Crump and U. S. Senator Kenneth McKellar had disagreed over the gubernatorial candidates, causing a momentary lapse in their alliance. Crump had demonstrated his mastery of Memphis […]
By Ray Hill Kenneth McKellar was Tennessee’s senior United States Senator and had been reelected easily in 1934 for another six-year term. McKellar had carried with him his junior colleague Nathan L. Bachman and Governor Hill McAlister. The alliance between McKellar and E. H. Crump, leader of the Shelby County political machine had again asserted […]
By Ray Hill Kenneth McKellar was sixty-five years old in 1934 as he sought reelection to a fourth term in the United States Senate. Congressman Gordon Browning had thought to challenge McKellar, but decided against it when he could get not a single pledge of significant support. Instead, Browning opted to run against junior U. […]
By Ray Hill The political partnership of U. S. Senator Kenneth McKellar and Memphis Boss Ed Crump had made them the masters of Tennessee politics by 1933. The correspondence between the two was voluminous, as they discussed appointments, political developments and strategy. The correspondence, which had once been addressed to “Mack” and “Ed”, had […]
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