Knowing Nothing, Doing Plenty: How One Party Influenced America In The 1850s

A nativist, anti-Catholic poster published in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1854.

In the nineteenth century, the United States saw a dramatic influx of immigrants. Millions of individuals were fleeing Europe due to famine, crop failures, declining economies, and political unrest. During the early 1800s, hundreds of thousands of Irish immigrants arrived in America, building communities in the port cities in which they docked, including Boston, Philadelphia, and New York City. Since the Irish communities in these coastal cities were primarily Roman-Catholic, their views contrasted with those of most Americans, who mostly practiced Protestantism. This religious difference, paired with the general belief that immigrants wanted to “steal” American jobs sparked widespread discrimination and resentment against Irishmen in the following decades. German immigrants, many of whom were Lutheran or Catholic, also faced suspicion and prejudice as they settled across the country and established their own distinct customs. The number of Irish and German immigrants steadily increased through the 1840s, and concerns about their roles in American society gave rise to the Order of the Star Spangled Banner in 1849.

The Order of the Star-Spangled Banner was a secret nativist society created by Charles B. Allen, a New Yorker who was disgruntled with the number of Catholic immigrants settling in the country. For context, a nativist is someone who favors “native” inhabitants rather than immigrants. The Order united smaller anti-immigrant and anti-catholic groups that arose in the 1840s, transforming into the American Party, also known as the Know-Nothing Party. Its members were sworn to secrecy, used coded rituals, and when asked about their activities by outsiders, were required to respond “I know nothing,” hence the party’s name. Members opposed Catholic immigration from Ireland and Germany, arguing that loyalty to the Pope was incompatible with American democracy.

In 1854, Know-Nothings consolidated political power in the legislatures of Massachusetts and other New England states. They also penetrated the mayor’s offices in Philadelphia, Chicago, and San Francisco. By this point, the party sought to translate the Order’s anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic principles into political action and legislation. The party couldn’t survive on nativist rhetoric alone though; instead, leaders opted for a more all-encompassing approach. Know-Nothings adopted the temperance movement and moderate stances on slavery to expand their political base. Temperance laws—restrictions on alcohol consumption—were supported by most voters, who were Protestant and middle class. This movement also fit their anti-immigrant ideology, since the Irish and Germans were stereotyped as heavy drinkers.

An anti-immigrant political cartoon depicting an Irishman and a German—each wearing an “Irish Whiskey” barrel and a “Lager Bier” barrel respectively—taking control of the ballot box.

The Know-Nothing Party’s political goals began to formalize into policy proposals shortly before their 1856 national convention in Philadelphia. There, they created a political platform, or list of principles, which emphasized barring non-native-born citizens from government, increasing the naturalization period for immigrants, and disallowing immigrants’ voting rights. Although few of these objectives became federal law, the party successfully implemented similar policies in several states, where they tightened voter registration laws and investigated Catholic organizations.

Most of the Know-Nothings’ changes occurred in Massachusetts, which had the highest percentage of Irish immigrants. Once the Know-Nothing Party took hold of the Massachusetts government, they immediately set out to suppress the strength of the Irish population in Boston. Governor Robert Gardner and various state legislators proposed a constitutional amendment requiring immigrants to complete a twenty-one-year naturalization process before getting the right to vote. Even though the bill was never adopted (Know-Nothings didn’t hold a national majority), it foreshadowed future laws that would limit immigration. The Massachusetts state legislature also attempted to redraw district lines so that rural, native-born populations would have more representation in Congress, reducing the political influence of urban, immigrant communities. This was only partially implemented, but nevertheless, immigrant participation in the state government decreased rapidly.

The Massachusetts legislature, which was dominated by the Know-Nothing Party and often referred to as the Know-Nothing General Court, passed an act in the 1850s establishing a “Nunnery Committee” to investigate Catholic churches and schools. The committee was tasked with examining institutions where, according to the act, women were allegedly “forever barred from leaving, however much they desired to do so,” and where “acts of villainy, injustice, and wrong” were supposedly committed with impunity due to their “immunity from public inspection.” Later, in the same legislative session, the School Law of 1855 was passed. It required daily reading of the Protestant King James Bible in public schools. These actions were part of the Know-Nothing campaign to assert Protestant dominance across the nation and marginalize Catholics socially and politically.

A drawing showing one of the Know-Nothing Party’s rallies taking place at night.

While Massachusetts was the backbone of the Know-Nothing Party, their influence extended beyond New England. In Baltimore, Maryland, Know-Nothing officials fired Irish and German Catholic city employees and used cooping—forcing immigrant voters between polling places or holding them captive—to control elections. Similar anti-immigrant measures appeared in New York City and Philadelphia, where the party pushed for “American-only” hiring in public jobs and voter registration laws designed to suppress immigrant participation in city politics.

Anti-immigrant sentiment didn’t remain confined to the meetings of state legislators; it often spilled over into everyday life, with native-born citizens taking matters into their own hands. Events like the “Bloody Monday” riots in Louisville, Kentucky, show how nativist anger turned into violent extremism. On August 6, 1855, German and Irish Catholics were forcibly prevented from casting their vote at the ballot box. Their businesses were burned and looted, they were beaten, and their cathedrals were set on fire. After a day’s worth of barbarity, only 2% of eligible Catholics were able to cast their vote. The political stances of leaders and legislators not only shaped policy but also influenced the masses to take direct action, resulting in the disenfranchisement of immigrant voters.

The Know-Nothing Party dissolved in 1860 as regional tension over slavery amped up, overshadowing nativism. Despite the party’s brief existence, the ideas it championed continued to influence American politics for decades, and they sometimes even resonate in today’s debates. Discussions around immigration policy, voter ID laws, and citizenship requirements are important to have, but if political extremism increases, we face the danger of allowing intolerance to shape law and society as the Know-Nothings once did.