LITTLE ROCK — I recently attended a commemoration of the 100th birthday of the late Sid McMath, the post-World War II governor who dragged Arkansas into the 20th Century. As I waited for the program to begin, my mind wandered back to 1967 when I was a freshman at Henderson State and the former governor was the guest of honor at an ROTC event. Attired in his Marine Corps dress uniform, McMath made a striking impression. After giving a stirring speech on the importance of the armed services, McMath shook hands with everyone in sight. Even the students who were opposed to the war then raging in Vietnam agreed that McMath, who was a major general in the Marine Corps Reserve, was an amazingly stirring and convincing speaker. It was clear to us how this man had become governor of the state.
Sidney Sanders McMath was born June 14, 1912, to Hal P. McMath and Nettie Belle SandersMcMath in rural Columbia County. Hal McMath was an alcoholic, and young Sid’s childhood was filled with family strife and frequent relocations. The family finally settled in Hot Springs when Sid was 10.
Hot Springs must have seemed like a whole new world to Sid. Though not a large city, Hot Springs was remarkably cosmopolitan-withthousands of tourists visiting from throughout the nation, elegant bath houses and huge hotels, competing newspapers, and a city boss who would have been at home in Chicago. Mayor Leo P. McLaughlin, as colorful as he was powerful, drove around Hot Springs in a carriage drawn by two prized horses, Scotch and Soda. The McLaughlin machine not only controlled the city government, it allowed organized crime to turn Hot Springs into a gambling haven. Young Sid was disgusted by the corruption.
McMath graduated from Hot Springs High School in 1931. He enrolled at Henderson State Teachers College in Arkadelphia, transferred to the University of Arkansas after two semesters, and graduated with a law degree in 1936. He served as student body president at the UA, acted in campus plays, and as an ROTC cadet received a commission in the Marine Corps.
McMath served a six-month tour in the Marines, then resigned his commission and returned to Hot Springs to practice law. In May of 1937, he married Elaine Broughton, his longtime girlfriend. In 1940, with war clouds looming, he returned to the Marine Corps. In the summer of 1941, Elaine gave birth to their son, Sandy Sidney McMath. Elaine died less than a year later due to surgical complications. McMath left his young son with his parents when he returned to the Marine Corps.
Service in the Pacific Theater gave McMath an opportunity to demonstrate his bravery and leadership skills. At the Battle of Bougainville, McMath earned the Legion of Merit, the Silver Star, and a promotion to lieutenant colonel. He was released from active duty in December of 1945, and with his new wife, Anne Phillips of Mississippi, and their son, Philip, moved back to Hot Springs.
Sid McMath returned from the war intent on doing more than practicing law. Like many other young veterans, he came home with a deep hatred for authoritarian government-whether inImperial Japan or Hot Springs. In 1946, McMath filed for prosecuting attorney in the 18th District, comprised of Garland and Montgomery counties. He also recruited a slate of mostly veterans to file for other county offices. This became known as the GI Revolt, and similar reform tickets were put forth in other machine counties,especially Crittenden County where a young veteran named George Fisher drew cartoons in support of the GI slate.
Colorful Arkansas Gazette reporter Spider Rowland wrote that the GIs faced a slick opponent, “. . . in fact, they’re going to run into more difficulties than a guy trying to light a cigar in a revolving door.”
Despite the efforts of the reformers, the McLaughlin machine won every race-except in the campaign for prosecuting attorney. Mc-Math always believed that he won because the telephone lines between Hot Springs and Mount Ida were down during the vote count, and the machine did not know how many votes needed to be stolen in order to deny him victory. This mistake spelled the end of the McLaughlin era.
Soon after being sworn in, McMath charged McLaughlin with election fraud. In the end, McLaughlin was acquitted, but the negative publicity forced him to resign. McMath was celebrated as a giant-killer, a crusading knight, a man who was out to bring much-needed change. In the spring of 1948, after only 17 months in office, Prosecutor McMath filed for governor.
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Tom Dillard is an historian and retired archivist. Email him at [email protected].
Editorial, Pages 74 on 06/24/2012