Woodrow Wilson is often remembered as one of the most influential presidents in U.S. history. Elected in 1912, he was seen as a progressive force, dismantling monopolies, advocating for workers’ rights, and laying the groundwork for the modern banking system. As a leader during World War I, he was praised for his moral conviction. However, there’s another side to his story, one that paints him as an authoritarian figure with a legacy marred by racism and civil rights violations. So, who was the real Woodrow Wilson? The truth is, he was both.
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born on December 28, 1856, into a family with Southern sympathies, despite being from the North. His father, Reverend Joseph Ruggles Wilson, was a staunch supporter of the Confederacy, serving as a chaplain during the Civil War. Wilson’s childhood was marked by the harsh realities of war and its aftermath, including the Reconstruction era, which he viewed through a lens of fear and prejudice.
Wilson’s upbringing was heavily influenced by his father’s Presbyterian faith and his love for reading, particularly British history. These elements shaped his political beliefs and ambitions. Another significant influence was Ellen Louise Axon, his wife, who inspired his progressive ideals, albeit limited to white Americans.
Wilson’s academic journey led him to earn a PhD, with a thesis advocating for a strong centralized executive government. He became the president of Princeton University in 1902, where he implemented significant reforms with a firm hand. His political career took off when he became the governor of New Jersey in 1910, where he quickly made a name for himself as a reformer.
By 1912, Wilson was a rising star in the Democratic Party, which was in desperate need of fresh leadership. He won the presidential election thanks to a split in the Republican vote, marking the beginning of the Wilsonian era.
Wilson’s presidency was marked by a clear vision of a more active and powerful executive role. He addressed Congress directly, pushing for reforms in four key areas: work, money, business, and race. He supported an eight-hour workday and tackled child labor. His administration established the Federal Reserve and introduced a permanent federal income tax.
Wilson was determined to break up monopolies, leading to tariff reforms and the creation of the Federal Trade Commission. However, his record on race was deeply flawed. Despite initially courting the black vote, he re-segregated federal departments, reflecting his ingrained racial prejudices.
Wilson’s foreign policy was tested by World War I. Initially advocating for neutrality, he eventually led the U.S. into the war in 1917 after repeated provocations. This decision expanded his centralizing powers, leading to significant changes in American life, such as the introduction of daylight saving time and the first draft since the Civil War.
Despite these efforts, Wilson’s administration was criticized for its racism, with segregated military units and discrimination against German Americans. The Espionage and Sedition Acts further curtailed civil liberties, punishing government critics.
After the war, Wilson’s focus shifted to establishing a League of Nations, but he faced strong opposition at home. A stroke in 1919 weakened him, and he failed to secure American involvement in the League. Wilson left office in 1921, and his health continued to decline until his death in 1924.
Today, Wilson’s legacy is complex. He achieved significant reforms but also perpetuated racial discrimination and curtailed civil liberties. Whether he is remembered as a success or a cautionary tale is up to each of us to decide.
Engage in a classroom debate about Woodrow Wilson’s legacy. Divide into two groups: one arguing that Wilson was a great president due to his progressive reforms and leadership during World War I, and the other arguing that his presidency was marred by racism and authoritarian policies. Use evidence from the article to support your arguments.
Conduct a research project on one of Wilson’s key reforms, such as the Federal Reserve, the Federal Trade Commission, or labor laws. Present your findings to the class, explaining how these reforms have shaped modern America and discussing their long-term impacts.
Write a short story or diary entry from the perspective of a person living during Wilson’s presidency. Consider how his policies might have affected their daily life, focusing on either the positive changes or the challenges faced due to his administration’s actions.
Create a detailed timeline of Woodrow Wilson’s life, highlighting key events from his early life, academic career, political rise, presidency, and post-war challenges. Use visuals and brief descriptions to illustrate how these events contributed to his complex legacy.
Participate in a class discussion about how personal beliefs and upbringing can influence a leader’s decisions and policies. Reflect on Wilson’s background and how it might have shaped his presidency, considering both his achievements and his failures.
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He was one of the greatest presidents in U.S. history, elected in 1912 on a platform of protecting the little man. Woodrow Wilson hit Washington like a progressive missile. Under his watch, monopolies were dismantled, protections were brought in for workers, and the basis of the modern banking system was created. As a wartime leader, he was unimpeachable, bringing moral conviction to the endgame of one of history’s bloodiest conflicts. At least, that’s one way we could open this video—an introduction that might be subtitled “The Progressive Hero.”
But there’s another, darker version—an opening we might call “The Authoritarian.” In this version, we’d start by stating that Wilson was perhaps one of the worst presidents in American history. From there, we’d list his crimes: his staggering racism, his crushing of civil liberties, and his invasions of Mexico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. In this opening, Wilson wouldn’t be a hero but a man who used a tiny mandate to trample the Constitution. So, which is it? Which one of today’s two openings is real? As we’re about to find out, it’s both.
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was born December 28, 1856, into a family of what were then known as “doe faces,” a mid-19th-century term for Northerners who sympathized with Southerners. This summed up his parents perfectly. The boy’s father, Reverend Joseph Ruggles Wilson, was an Ohio lad who moved south and became more fiercely Southern than Jefferson Davis. When the Civil War broke out, Reverend Wilson joined the Confederate Army as a chaplain. His mother, an English woman named Jesse Woodrow Wilson, spent the war tending to wounded Southern soldiers. One of Wilson’s earliest memories was watching his beloved mother care for the injured in their quaint little Georgian town.
In 1864, seven-year-old Wilson witnessed Sherman’s march to the sea, as the Union general swept through Georgia, leaving ruin in his wake. Just months later, he watched as Confederate commander Robert E. Lee slowly made his way into Augusta, weary and defeated. In later life, Wilson would say that he never forgot looking up into the general’s eyes. But, of course, hard memories didn’t end with the South’s defeat. The family lived through Reconstruction, a time Wilson remembered not as an attempt to integrate a racially divided society but as one of clawing fear in the newly freed slaves. The family saw only criminals. Recalling this era, Wilson would write that the task of ordinary labor stood untouched, and the idlers grew insolent.
Although the family moved to a racially mixed town in 1870, Wilson would never forget these moments. He never forgot the lessons taught to him by ex-Confederate soldiers in makeshift schools. Still, there were other influences in his life beyond those of the war-shattered South. His father impressed upon Wilson a firm Presbyterian faith, ensuring the boy always believed he was doing God’s work. There was also his love of reading, particularly on British history, which helped form his political beliefs. But perhaps the greatest influence was Ellen Louise Axon, the daughter of a Southern clergyman. Ellen was both an artist and a woman dedicated to social causes. It’s from her that Wilson would discover his progressive instincts and his desire to stand up for the ordinary man—well, so long as that ordinary man was white.
For now, let’s watch as Wilson graduates with his PhD, thanks to a thesis that argued for replacing the American system with a strong centralized executive, like in Britain. Let’s also see him grow into a devoutly religious man capable of great warmth to his friends and cold cruelty to anyone he thought had slighted him. This man would be offered the job of president of Princeton University in 1902, one of America’s top Ivy League schools. Princeton was in desperate need of reform, and Wilson was determined to change that, treating his role more like a dictator than a president.
In 1910, New Jersey Democrats had a problem. Previous years had seen their party beset by scandals and the corrosive influence of machine politics. They needed a new candidate, someone untainted by graft. Wilson’s one demand was that he’d be able to govern with no strings attached. Thinking this naive academic would be easy to control, the party bosses were horrified as Wilson exploded everything in both the race and his governorship. New Jersey got a crash course in all the best and worst aspects of Wilson’s style.
By 1912, Wilson’s star was rising in the larger Democratic Party, which was desperately in need of fresh blood. The last time a Democrat had won a presidential election was in 1892. Wilson took the nomination with a platform that included everything from smashing monopolies to securing independence for the Philippines. His candidacy was considered a long shot, but in the end, it wouldn’t be a black swan that saved Wilson, but a bull moose.
On November 5th, the Republican vote was split hopelessly between Roosevelt and Taft, resulting in an electoral college landslide for Wilson. On March 4th, 1913, the Southern gentleman was sworn in, marking the beginning of the Wilsonian era—eight years that would be a great success for some and a disaster for others.
From the moment he took office, Wilson had a clear vision of what the presidency should be: less ceremonial and more like an old-timey king. A month after his inauguration, he became the first president since John Adams to address Congress, firing the starting gun on a slew of reforms. These reforms can be divided into four categories: work, money, business, and race.
In the work category, you have Wilson’s support for an eight-hour workday and attempts to tackle child labor. However, it was in the other categories that he made the biggest impact, especially regarding money. Wilson’s administration established the Federal Reserve, which underpins banking in the United States today. He also pushed for Congress to establish a permanent federal income tax, marking the beginning of federal income tax as a fact of life.
Wilson had intense loathing for monopolies and a desire to break them up. He pursued tariff reform, anti-trust legislation, and established the Federal Trade Commission to investigate and punish anti-competitive business practices. However, his record on race was woeful. Despite courting the black vote in 1912, Wilson couldn’t shake his inner good old boy. A month after his inauguration, he signed off on a plan to re-segregate the mail service, which led to widespread segregation in federal departments.
Wilson’s foreign policy was marked by a crisis brewing thousands of miles away. He became a fierce champion of neutrality as World War I erupted. However, after the sinking of the Lusitania and other provocations, he asked Congress to declare war on Germany on April 2, 1917. This unleashed his centralizing power tendencies to an unbelievable degree, nationalizing swaths of American industry and creating special agencies dedicated to redirecting public life towards winning the war.
The war brought about significant changes in American life, including the introduction of daylight saving time and the first American draft since the Civil War. However, the administration’s reflexive racism persisted, with segregated army units and discrimination against German Americans. The Espionage and Sedition Acts effectively made criticism of the government illegal, leading to the prosecution of many Americans.
Despite these controversies, Wilson’s troops reached Europe in June 1917, and by November 11, 1918, World War I was over. Wilson’s goals at the peace conference included establishing a League of Nations, but he faced significant opposition at home. After suffering a stroke in 1919, Wilson’s health declined, and he was unable to secure American involvement in the League.
Wilson left office on March 4, 1921, following a landslide win by Warren Harding. He spent his retirement as a virtual hermit, dreaming of a third presidential run that would never happen. Wilson died on February 3, 1924, at the age of 67, believing his legacy was secure. However, with a century of hindsight, we can see that his star has only sunk lower, with many asserting he was one of the worst presidents ever.
In conclusion, Wilson was a complex figure who did much good while simultaneously doing much evil. Whether that makes him a success, a notable failure, or a dark warning is up to each of us to decide.
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Woodrow – Referring to Woodrow Wilson, the 28th President of the United States, who served from 1913 to 1921 and was known for his leadership during World War I and his efforts in establishing the League of Nations. – Woodrow Wilson’s vision for a peaceful world order was encapsulated in his Fourteen Points speech.
Wilson – Often used to refer to Woodrow Wilson, emphasizing his contributions to progressive reforms and international diplomacy. – Wilson’s presidency is marked by significant domestic reforms and his role in shaping post-war international relations.
History – The study of past events, particularly in human affairs, and how they shape the present and future. – Understanding history is crucial for analyzing the causes and consequences of major world events like World War I.
Government – The system or group of people governing an organized community, often a state, and responsible for creating and enforcing laws. – The structure of the United States government is defined by the Constitution, which outlines the separation of powers among the branches.
Race – A social construct that categorizes humans based on physical characteristics and has been a significant factor in historical and political contexts. – The Civil Rights Movement was a pivotal period in American history that addressed issues of race and equality.
Reforms – Changes made to improve a system, policy, or institution, often in response to social, political, or economic issues. – The Progressive Era was characterized by a series of reforms aimed at addressing the problems caused by industrialization and urbanization.
Democracy – A form of government in which power is vested in the people, who rule either directly or through freely elected representatives. – The expansion of democracy in the early 20th century included efforts to extend voting rights to women and minorities.
War – A state of armed conflict between different countries or different groups within a country. – The impact of World War I was profound, leading to significant political and social changes across Europe and the world.
Legacy – Something transmitted by or received from an ancestor or predecessor, often referring to the lasting impact of historical figures or events. – The legacy of the New Deal continues to influence American social and economic policies today.
Politics – The activities associated with the governance of a country or area, especially the debate between parties having power. – The politics of the Cold War era were dominated by the ideological struggle between capitalism and communism.
