Ole Hanson

Ole Thorsteinsson Hanson (January 6, 1874 – July 6, 1940) was an American politician who served as mayor of Seattle, Washington, from 1918 to 1919. Hanson became a national figure promoting law and order when he took a hardline position during the 1919 Seattle General Strike. He then resigned as mayor, wrote a book, and toured the lecture circuit, earning tens of thousands of dollars in honoraria lecturing to conservative civic groups about his experiences and views, promoting opposition to labor unions and Bolshevism. Hanson later left Washington and founded the city of San Clemente, California, in 1925.

Ole Hanson was born in a log cabin in Union Grove in Racine County, Wisconsin, the son of Thorsten Hanson and Goro Tostofson Hanson. He was the fifth of six children raised by the Norwegian immigrant couple.

As a teenager, the precocious Hanson worked as a tailor during the day and studied law at night. He passed the Wisconsin bar in 1893, despite being two years too young to practice law. In the end, Hanson never did work in the legal profession, instead going into the grocery business before moving west and going into real estate.

He worked as a real estate developer and co-founded Lake Forest Park, Washington, in 1912 as a rural planned community for professionals in the Seattle area.

Entering political life, he served in the Washington House of Representatives during 1908 and 1909. In 1912 he supported Theodore Roosevelt for President of the United States. In 1914, Hanson himself ran for the United States Senate as the candidate of the so-called Bull Moose Party. Hanson garnered nearly a quarter of the vote in the five-way race, won by Republican incumbent Wesley Livsey Jones with a 37% plurality.

In March 1918, Hanson was elected the thirty-third mayor of Seattle. Both he and his opponent, James Bradford, were progressive Republicans, but Hanson was considered more pro-labor. He ran on a platform of patriotism, eight hour workday for female workers, a minimum wage, initiative and referendum, and others. Predicted to win a strong majority, Hanson won by a slimmer margin of 32,286 to 27,677 for Bradford, or about seven points. Hanson supported the recall of socialist Anna Louise Strong from her school board seat.

In February 1919, tens of thousands of workers went on strike in what would become the Seattle General Strike. In 1916 and 1918, there was nearly a general strike, but negotiations had successfully defused the situation, while in 1919 they failed. Caused by the lowering of wages of shipyard workers, almost two dozen unions joined the strike. Right before and after his election, relations had soured between Hanson and the unions, and he was intensely critical of the Industrial Workers of the World on the campaign. Hanson deputized three thousand soldiers from Fort Lewis, and threatened to impose martial law despite lacking the authority to do so. Lacking cohesion and clear demands, the general strike began to dissipate as workers went back to work. Before a full week had passed, the strike was ended. Hanson received praise and national attention for his steadfastness against the unions.

In April 1919, anarchists made him one of the targets of booby-trap bombs mailed to approximately 30 prominent American officials. Hanson survived the assassination attempt, and responded by calling for a nationwide campaign of hangings and life imprisonment for members of the I.W.W. and other radicals. He resigned as Mayor on August 28, 1919, saying: "I am tired out and am going fishing."