Welcome Aboard the Party Train: The Pennsylvania–Texas Power Nexus

Posted by on Jan 14, 2026 in | Comments Off on Welcome Aboard the Party Train: The Pennsylvania–Texas Power Nexus As U.S. House Speaker and Vice President John Nance “Cactus Jack” Garner (1868–1967) of Texas could attest, no congressional outing in the 1930s was complete without Pittsburgh’s Joe Guffey (1870–1959). In 1901, Guffey’s uncle, James, with money borrowed from the Mellon family, brought in Spindletop on the Gulf Coast. James Guffey midwifed the Texas petroleum industry — and provided the Mellons...
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A Voice in the Wilderness

Posted by on Nov 26, 2013 in | Comments Off on A Voice in the Wilderness In his book Henry Wallace, Harry Truman, and the Cold War, journalist-historian Richard J. Walton singled out one letter to exemplify the many messages received by Wallace in March 1947 after his speech criticizing the declaration of the “Truman Doctrine.” The letter was written by Josiah William Gitt, publisher of The Gazette and Daily in York, which would, the following year,...
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