The Three Links Odd Cast

Brother Rud

February 20, 2023 Toby Hanson, Ainslie Heilich, Mike Duminiak Season 3 Episode 16
The Three Links Odd Cast
Brother Rud
Show Notes

As a special for the Presidents Day Holiday in the US, we interviewed Dustin McLochlin, PhD of the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums.  Brother Rud is frequently maligned in popular imagination (if he's remembered at all).  Tagged unfairly with nicknames like "His Fraudulency" or "Rutherfraud" by detractors, he has earned a reputation as a self-interested, lazy president who made a crooked deal to end Reconstruction in exchange for the Presidency.  In reality, he was a highly principled and pragmatic leader who did his best to help unite a country where the scars of the Civil War were still very fresh.  His Presidency encountered many controversial situations with echoes that still reverberate in contemporary America, like the legitimacy of elections, government intervention in labor disputes, and political enfranchisement.  This episode provides a fascinating and thorough look at the life and career of our Brother, President Rutherford B. Hayes.  The Shoutout goes to Palacky Lodge #630 in Illinois for their remarkable activity and community engagement.  In the Odd Podge, Brother Ainslie talks about his latest artistic project, Brother Toby shares his excitement at the return of the Northwest Odd Fellow and Rebekah Association Meeting, Brother Mike shares a little history of Kanawha Lodge #25 on the occasion of it's 175th Anniversary, and Dustin talks a little bit about some of the firsts that Brother Rud established as President.