Walter L. Cohen
Encyclopedia
Walter L. Cohen, Sr. was an African American
Republican
politician
and business
man in the U.S. state
of Louisiana
.
The New Orleans
native was the son of Bernard Cohen and the former Amelia Bingaman. Like his better-known compatriot Homer Adolph Plessy
, Cohen was a free black prior to passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
. He was also a Kohen
, as he himself humorously noted in coping with and explaining that he was part of the two most-hated ethnic groups and most-hated religious group by the resurging Ku Klux Klan
.
Educated in New Orleans, he was married to the former Antonia Manadé, and the couple had three children: Walter Cohen, Jr., Bernard J. Cohen, and Margot C. Farrell.
Cohen's political activity mushroomed in the 1890s, after the Reconstruction era, when he became one of the few blacks to hold appointed office into the 20th century. U.S. President William McKinley
named Cohen a customs inspector in New Orleans. McKinley's successor, Theodore Roosevelt
, appointed him register of the federal land office. (Louisiana at the time elected a register of state lands, among them the first woman in statewide elected office in the 20th century, Lucille May Grace
.)
Even when the African American-dominated Black and Tan faction
lost power after 1912 to the Lily-White Movement
within the Republican Party, Cohen obtained the position of comptroller of customs by appointment from President Warren G. Harding
. He succeeded A.W. Newlin as comptroller of customs. The New York Times
referred to the office as "one of the most lucrative federal offices" in the U.S. South. Harding's successor, Calvin Coolidge
, renewed Cohen's appointment. Though he had been a delegate to all Republican National Convention
s between 1896 and 1920, except for 1916, Cohen was later ousted as secretary of the now 144-member Louisiana State Republican Central Committee and instead headed a dissenting group. In 1928, Cohen favored U.S. Senator Charles Curtis
of Kansas
for the Republican presidential nomination, but the party selection went nearly unanimously to Herbert Hoover
, the outgoing secretary of commerce
. Curtis then became the GOP
vice presidential
nominee. In 1928, Coolidge offered Cohen the position of pointed minister to Liberia
, but he declined the offer.
A successful businessman, Cohen was the founder and president of the People's Life Insurance Company in New Orleans, a large industrial company whose clients were blacks. Cohen was a member of Corpus Christi Catholic
Church in New Orleans. He died in New Orleans and is interred there at St. Louis Cemetery III, 2022 Saint Bernard Avenue.
Cohen's death came some six years before black voters began a longstanding shift from Republican to Democratic Party
allegiance with the reelection in 1936 of Franklin D. Roosevelt
.
Walter L. Cohen Senior High School in New Orleans is named in his honor.
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
and business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
man in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
.
The New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
native was the son of Bernard Cohen and the former Amelia Bingaman. Like his better-known compatriot Homer Adolph Plessy
Homer Plessy
Homer Plessy was the American plaintiff in the United States Supreme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson. Arrested, tried and convicted of a violation of one of Louisiana's racial segregation laws, he appealed through Louisiana state courts to the U.S. Supreme Court, and lost...
, Cohen was a free black prior to passage of the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution officially abolished and continues to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. It was passed by the Senate on April 8, 1864, passed by the House on January 31, 1865, and adopted on December 6, 1865. On...
. He was also a Kohen
Kohen
A Kohen is the Hebrew word for priest. Jewish Kohens are traditionally believed and halachically required to be of direct patrilineal descent from the Biblical Aaron....
, as he himself humorously noted in coping with and explaining that he was part of the two most-hated ethnic groups and most-hated religious group by the resurging Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
.
Educated in New Orleans, he was married to the former Antonia Manadé, and the couple had three children: Walter Cohen, Jr., Bernard J. Cohen, and Margot C. Farrell.
Cohen's political activity mushroomed in the 1890s, after the Reconstruction era, when he became one of the few blacks to hold appointed office into the 20th century. U.S. President William McKinley
William McKinley
William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
named Cohen a customs inspector in New Orleans. McKinley's successor, Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
, appointed him register of the federal land office. (Louisiana at the time elected a register of state lands, among them the first woman in statewide elected office in the 20th century, Lucille May Grace
Lucille May Grace
Lucille May Grace, a.k.a. Mrs. Fred Columbus Dent, Sr., , was the first woman to attain statewide elected office in Louisiana. A Democrat, "Miss Grace," as she preferred to be called, became Register of the State Land Office in 1931 on appointment of Governor Huey Pierce Long, Jr...
.)
Even when the African American-dominated Black and Tan faction
Political faction
A political faction is a grouping of individuals, such as a political party, a trade union, or other group with a political purpose. A faction or political party may include fragmented sub-factions, “parties within a party," which may be referred to as power blocs, or voting blocs. The individuals...
lost power after 1912 to the Lily-White Movement
Lily-White Movement
The Lily-White Movement was an anti-civil-rights movement within the Republican Party in the United States in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The movement was a response to the political and socioeconomic gains made by African-Americans following the Civil War and the Thirteenth...
within the Republican Party, Cohen obtained the position of comptroller of customs by appointment from President Warren G. Harding
Warren G. Harding
Warren Gamaliel Harding was the 29th President of the United States . A Republican from Ohio, Harding was an influential self-made newspaper publisher. He served in the Ohio Senate , as the 28th Lieutenant Governor of Ohio and as a U.S. Senator...
. He succeeded A.W. Newlin as comptroller of customs. The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
referred to the office as "one of the most lucrative federal offices" in the U.S. South. Harding's successor, Calvin Coolidge
Calvin Coolidge
John Calvin Coolidge, Jr. was the 30th President of the United States . A Republican lawyer from Vermont, Coolidge worked his way up the ladder of Massachusetts state politics, eventually becoming governor of that state...
, renewed Cohen's appointment. Though he had been a delegate to all Republican National Convention
Republican National Convention
The Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...
s between 1896 and 1920, except for 1916, Cohen was later ousted as secretary of the now 144-member Louisiana State Republican Central Committee and instead headed a dissenting group. In 1928, Cohen favored U.S. Senator Charles Curtis
Charles Curtis
Charles Curtis was a United States Representative, a longtime United States Senator from Kansas later chosen as Senate Majority Leader by his Republican colleagues, and the 31st Vice President of the United States...
of Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
for the Republican presidential nomination, but the party selection went nearly unanimously to Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
, the outgoing secretary of commerce
United States Secretary of Commerce
The United States Secretary of Commerce is the head of the United States Department of Commerce concerned with business and industry; the Department states its mission to be "to foster, promote, and develop the foreign and domestic commerce"...
. Curtis then became the GOP
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
vice presidential
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...
nominee. In 1928, Coolidge offered Cohen the position of pointed minister to Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
, but he declined the offer.
A successful businessman, Cohen was the founder and president of the People's Life Insurance Company in New Orleans, a large industrial company whose clients were blacks. Cohen was a member of Corpus Christi Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
Church in New Orleans. He died in New Orleans and is interred there at St. Louis Cemetery III, 2022 Saint Bernard Avenue.
Cohen's death came some six years before black voters began a longstanding shift from Republican to Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
allegiance with the reelection in 1936 of Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
.
Walter L. Cohen Senior High School in New Orleans is named in his honor.