A 1940 political poster for Salem native Charles McNary’s bid for vice president (WHC Collections 2004.026.0030)
With a wide open field for Oregon’s next governor, there’s no shortage of political campaigning happening around Salem these days. But 82 years ago, a local politician was vying for a much larger office.
Willamette Heritage Center curator Kylie Pine explains:
Salem native and U.S. Senator Charles Linza McNary (1874-1944) ran unsuccessfully as a Republican vice presidential candidate with Lewis Wendell Willkie (1892-1944) against an incumbent President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1940.
Willkie had won his newfound party’s nomination (he had been a Democrat up until a year before), likely because he was the only Republican candidate who supported the U.S. becoming proactively involved in World War II.
When he was selected as Willkie’s running mate, McNary was a veteran senator with 23 years under his belt. He had also been the Senate Minority Leader for seven years. As a Republican he supported many Democratic, New Deal programs.
In an odd twist of fate, both Willkie and McNary died in 1944: Willkie of a heart attack and McNary from an unsuccessful surgery to remove a brain tumor.
McNary’s legacy is very apparent throughout the state with McNary Dam, McNary dorm at OSU and Salem’s airport and a high school still bearing his name.
Editor’s note: This column is part of an effort from Salem Reporter to highlight local history in collaboration with area historians and historical organizations. If you have any feedback or would like to participate in Salem Reporter’s local history series, please contact managing editor Rachel Alexander at [email protected].
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