The Republican Train to Olympia
Seattle Republicans charter a train and a brass band to support John H. McGraw's gubernatorial bid.
The news that the King county delegation to the Republican state convention had decided to put John H. McGraw forward for the nomination for governor had no sooner become generally known about the city yesterday morning than crowds of Republicans began to gather on the streets discussing the subject with great excitement. Enthusiasm was general, for almost every Republican in the city is an ardent admirer of Mr. McGraw. Among these little knots the idea was soon suggested of going to Olympia to back up the McGraw movement. It spread like wild fire and in an instant the cry was: 'To Olympia.' No sooner said than done. One man got badges printed with the motto, 'Give us McGraw and Victory,' another arranged for extra cars to be put on the Olympia train leaving at 2:55 p.m., and a third hired the First Regiment band of eighteen pieces. Just before the train left it was crowded with about 200 as enthusiastic Republicans as Seattle ever saw, while the platform at the depot was swarming with hundreds of others who were longing to go but were prevented by business or other engagements.
“The idea was soon suggested of going to Olympia to back up the McGraw movement. It spread like wild fire.”
In 1892, political conventions were raucous, mobile affairs where party loyalties were physically performed by boarding trains with brass bands. Today, while campaign events are less likely to involve spontaneous mass rail travel, the fervor and high-stakes maneuvering of delegate-heavy state conventions still drive the engines of Washington state politics.
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