Biographical / Historical Notes
The Uncle Sam Republican League Club, also known as the Union League Club of San Diego, was founded in 1904. It was a socio-political organization founded in the spirit of the Union League Clubs that sprung up in support of the Republican Party in the Civil War and Post-Civil War era (these were also called “loyal leagues”). The purpose of the Uncle Sam Republican League Club, as stated in its founding documents, was “to promote the interest of good government by every honorable means, and particularly through the Republican Party” and “to furnish entertainment and to promote the social welfare of the members.” Membership requirements were simple; the candidate had to be a “straight” Republican and a resident of San Diego County. Many prominent local Republicans were board members. Among them were Leroy A. Wright, a California state Senator and founding Vice-President of the San Diego Historical Society, and William Clayton, a manager of the Spreckels companies and President of the San Diego and Cuyamaca Railway Co. Also in the group were D. B. Northrup, San Diego County Physician, C. L. Williams, President of First National Bank, and Homer Peters, President of the Marine Biological Association of San Diego (now Scripps Institute of Oceanography). A handful of Union League Clubs in major metropolitan areas survive into the 21st century and have been very influential in civic projects in the past, but San Diego’s club was short-lived. It was formally dissolved February 14, 1912, less than eight years after its inception.
From the guide to the Uncle Sam Republican League Club Records, 1904-1919, (San Diego History Center Document Collection)
