William Jennings Bryan

William Jennings Bryan (March 19, 1860-July 26, 1925) was an American politician in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.  He was from the Midwest.  He is known for supporting causes such as the silver standard or creationism. In the 1890s, he was a Congressman from Nebraska.  He gained fame in 1896 for the "Cross of Gold Speech", a speech about the American economy he gave to the Democratic Party. He ran for President as a Democrat three times, in 1896, 1900, and 1908, but lost each time. During this time, he was the main leader of the Democratic Party. He was one of the first people who gave lots of speeches around the country while running for President, and continued to give speeches even when not running on what was called the "Chatauqua Circuit". He was United States Secretary of State from 1913 to 1915.  In his last years, he was one of the lawyers in the Scopes Monkey Trial. He is portrayed in the movie Inherit the Wind by the character Matthew Harrison Brady.


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Category:1860 births
Category:1925 deaths
Category:Lawyers from Nebraska
Category:American Presbyterians
Category:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery
Category:Creationists
Category:United States representatives from Nebraska
Category:United States Secretaries of State
Category:Democratic Party (United States) politicians
Category:Lawyers from Illinois