Digital Bob Archive

Alaska Elections, IV: Alaska's first Primary Election was on Tuesday, April 30, 1918, and it saw the first woman's name on the legislative ballot. She was Grace V. Bishop who some years later would become Mrs. James Wickersham. Running for the House against nine men in the First Division Democratic Primary, she placed fifth with four to be nominated.

As for Wickersham, in this, his 6th campaign for the office of Delegate in Congress from Alaska, he filed for the first time as a party Republican and easily won the nomination, beating a write-in candidate from Nome. His 1916 rival Charles Sulzer, also had opposition in the Primary but won handily. It was a hard fought and sometimes vicious campaign during that summer and fall.

General Election day in 1918 was on November 5, just six days before the Armistice. An influenza epidemic was sweeping the nation; many were ill and several had died in Juneau, and several Juneau men had died in military camps around the country. And Juneau was still suffering an additional shock: just 10 days earlier the Princess Sophia had rolled over at Vanderbilt Reef with the loss of at least 398 lives. As Juneauites went to the polls the bodies of victims crowded local morgues. One of them was John F. Pugh, Collector of Customs and member of the Canvassing Board.

When all the ballots had been counted and the Canvassing Board made its report, on March 3, 1919, the winner was Sulzer, by 33 votes. The count was 4487 to 4454. The 65th Congress began on March 4, 1919, but the members were not to convene until May 19. Sulzer was at his mine near Ketchikan. A longstanding stomach ailment flared up on April 14 and the following day he started for Ketchikan on the mail boat and died aboard the boat.

There was no provision for filling a vacancy in the office of Delegate but the Legislature was in session and quickly passed the necessary bill. Governor Riggs signed it and called a special election for June 3. The Democrats held a special convention on May 2 and picked George Grigsby as their candidate. Wickersham did not run and the Republicans did not nominate another candidate. At Ketchikan a Labor group put up J.L. Jones. Grigsby won handily and claimed the seat in the House of Representatives on July 1.

Wickersham meanwhile collected evidence of election irregularities and fraud in the 1918 General Election. It was not easy; at Valdez he was brutally beaten by Tom Selby, a man nearly 40 years his junior. When he recovered he went to Washington and contested the 1918 election of Sulzer. The House again acted slowly but awarded him the seat on March 1, 1920, three days before the term expired. Both Grigsby and Wickersham were paid full salaries for the two year term, plus travel and expenses.

[Next week: More names added to the ballot.]