Recruitment during church services was common. Powell, a charter member of the Klan, told his congregation that he stood for the same principles as those held by his hooded guests – against criminal activity, undesirable immigrants and a decline in morality. Powell of the United Brethren Church in Bowling Green. Many of the local ministers were members of the organization, like Rev. The Klan was welcomed into many local churches during Sunday morning services. They could parade around in their robes,” Brooks said. “They didn’t have to sneak around at night. No women or children were allowed.Ī 1927 phone book lists the KKK as having an address at 182½ S. Measurements would be taken at the local KKK office, and the information would be submitted to the national Klan headquarters for tailoring. Once accepted into the Klan, the new members would be fitted for robes and hoods. Membership records in the Center for Archival Collections at BGSU show that nearly 1,400 members paid dues to the Wood County KKK in 19. Brooks holds his book, “The Ku Klux Klan in Wood County, Ohio.” Newspapers told of historically high unemployment rates, declining farm incomes and sluggish postwar economic growth. The ledger, which is included in Brooks’ book, reads like a “Who’s Who” of Wood County, with familiar surnames recorded from every community.īrooks explains that economic uncertainty in the 1920s was one of the most significant factors in the rise of the reborn KKK in Ohio. Included in those records is a membership ledger that was reportedly rescued from a burn pile in 1976. “What is unique is that the records survived.” “Wood County is not particularly unique in having a history of the KKK,” said Brooks, a historian who teaches at BGSU. Brooks, author of the book, “The Ku Klux Klan in Wood County, Ohio.” There was no need to conceal their hatred since the membership roster included many local politicians, businessmen and ministers.Įvery Ohio county in the 1920s had an active Klan group, according to Michael E. When the Ku Klux Klan took root in Wood County in the early 1920s, the members wore the traditional white robes and hoods, but there was little secrecy about their activities.
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