Abstract:
William Hodge Kitchin was a former Civil War veteran and a member of the Democratic Party who pushed for radical changes within North Carolina's social structure during Reconstruction. By the late 1880s, he broke with the Democrats and joined the Populist Party movement where he had a better opportunity for leadership and influence. While with the Populist Part, Kitchin advocated to preserve conservative principles, a mixture of white conservatism and opportunism.