Power of the County · Episode 2 of 7 · 16 min
From Mines to Militias: How Rural North Idaho Turned Against Washington
A corner of the rural Northwest moved in one generation from resentment of federal land rules to armed anti-government movements. The episode traces the Idaho Panhandle's arc, from the 1941 State of Jefferson secession through the John Birch Society, the Posse Comitatus, the Aryan Nations at Hayden Lake, Ruby Ridge and Greater Idaho. The common thread is rejection of distant federal authority.
Who's who
- Richard Butler+2 more episodesKootenai Posse leader; founded Hayden Lake church
- Henry Beach+3 more episodesCredited founder of the Posse Comitatus
- William Potter Gale+3 more episodesCredited founder of the Posse Comitatus
- Robert Welch+1 more episodeFounded the John Birch Society in 1958
- Gordon KahlPosse tax protester involved in 1983 killings
- Randy WeaverCentral figure at Ruby Ridge, 1992
- Christopher Boyce+1 more episodeConvicted spy who hid near Bonners Ferry
Where it happens
- Idaho PanhandleRegion of the movements
- Hayden Lake, Idaho+1 more episodeHome of Butler's church and the Aryan Nations
- Elk City, Idaho+5 more episodesArea of the Patrin mining claims
- Ruby Ridge, IdahoSite of the 1992 standoff
- Bonners Ferry, Idaho+1 more episodeWhere Boyce hid in 1980-81
Timeline
- November 27, 1941Armed roadblocks near Yreka proclaim a State of Jefferson
- 1958John Birch Society founded
- 1969Posse Comitatus organized
- August 27, 1976Armed Patrin confrontation in Nez Perce National Forest
- April 20, 1978Ninth Circuit reverses the Patrin convictions
- 1992Ruby Ridge
Still debated
Scholars dispute whether Beach or Gale founded the Posse Comitatus. The Birch Society and the Aryan Nations share a milieu but not an organizational line, Randy Weaver's Aryan Nations tie is adjacent rather than formal, and the State of Jefferson and Greater Idaho efforts are mostly mainstream and nonviolent.
← PreviousWhy Armed Idaho Miners Walked Free: The Patrin Case & a Federal LoopholeNext →How the Aryan Nations Hijacked Rural Anger at Hayden Lake
Connected episodes in other series
The Constitutional Sheriff Movement: Why a County Sheriff Claims to Outrank the PresidentHomemade Sovereignty · Episode 1Also features Henry Beach, William Potter Gale
The Law in Their Heads: Elk City, 1976Free and Open: The 1872 Mining Law · Episode 3
Measuring Trees at GunpointGround Truth: Forest Service Research · Episode 9