Gordon Olson — The Klan in Grand Rapids

Gordon Olson is Grand Rapids’ City Historian emeritus. He had served as the historian for 24 years. He is the coeditor of Thin Ice: Coming of Age in Grand Rapids. He has served on the board of the National Council on Public History and has been president of the Historical Society of Michigan. Among his other books are Beads: Their Use by Upper Great Lakes Indians and A Grand Rapids Sampler.” He also is the author of the Civil War history The Notorious Isaac Earl and His Scouts: Union Soldiers, Prisoners, Spies.

He knows the history of the Klan in that fair city, including the big rallies of 1925 and 1970.

Here is the transcript of the interview with Dr. Olson.

Here are pages about the Klan lawsuit in the Grand Rapids Herald:

Here are reports of the 1925 Klan rally:

And here are the Wonderland Magazine pages about the 1970 Klan rally.