Scandals

Introduction

The second wave of the Ku Klux Klan experienced a swift and dramatic decline in southern Illinois as scandals, corruption, and criminal activities drove disillusioned members away from this group. High-ranking Klan figures such as Edward Young Clarke, Elizabeth Tyler, and David Curtis Stephenson—who played key roles in recruitment, propaganda, and political influence—became embroiled several crimes, including murder that shattered the Klan’s reputation.

In southern Illinois, once a Klan stronghold—especially in Pulaski and Alexander counties—membership plummeted as the Great Depression worsened financial conditions, making it harder to sustain the organization. By 1940, the Klan had virtually disappeared from the region, as its association with violence, political corruption, and financial exploitation left it fractured and unpopular.

Your Task:

In this unit, you will analyze primary and secondary sources related to the decline of the Ku Klux Klan in southern Illinois during the first half of the 1900s to answer the module’s essential question:

Was it one scandal or a combination of several crimes that helped weaken the Klan’s power? Why?

 This module was inspired by the SIU Press publication, Pulling Off the Sheets: The Second Ku Klux Klan in Deep Southern Illinois (Dexter & Beadles, 2024)