Roger MacBride facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Roger MacBride
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| Member of the Vermont House of Representatives |
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| In office 1963–1965 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Roger Lea MacBride
August 6, 1929 New Rochelle, New York, U.S. |
| Died | March 5, 1995 (aged 65) Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (before 1972, 1980s–1995) Libertarian (1972–1980s) |
| Alma mater | Princeton University Harvard University |
Roger Lea MacBride (born August 6, 1929 – died March 5, 1995) was an American lawyer, politician, writer, and television producer. He was the candidate for president for the Libertarian Party in the 1976 election. MacBride made history in the 1972 presidential election. He was the first presidential elector in U.S. history to cast a vote for a woman. He voted for the Libertarian Party candidates John Hospers for president and Theodora "Tonie" Nathan for vice president.
He also helped create and produce the popular television series Little House on the Prairie.
Contents
About Roger MacBride
Early Life and Family
Roger MacBride was born in 1929 in New Rochelle, New York. His parents were Elise Fairfax (Lea) and William Burt MacBride. Roger called himself the "adopted grandson" of a family friend, Rose Wilder Lane. Rose was a writer and political thinker. He met her when he was 14 years old. Rose Wilder Lane was the daughter of Laura Ingalls Wilder, who wrote the famous Little House book series. Rose chose Roger to manage her affairs and inherit her belongings.
Roger MacBride went to Princeton University and Harvard Law School.
His Work as a Lawyer
Roger MacBride worked for a big Wall Street law firm called White & Case for several years. After that, he opened his own small law office in Vermont. By the mid-1970s, he moved to Virginia and stopped practicing law full-time.
Writing and TV Shows
When Rose Wilder Lane passed away, Roger MacBride inherited her estate. This included the rights to the many books and writings by Laura Ingalls Wilder, like the "Little House on the Prairie" stories. Roger MacBride is listed as the author of three more "Little House" books. He also started the "Rocky Ridge Years" series of children's novels. These books describe Rose Wilder Lane's childhood in the Ozark mountains. He also wrote two books about constitutional law (laws about the U.S. Constitution). These were The American Electoral College and Treaties versus the Constitution. He also wrote a book explaining the ideas of the Libertarian Party, called A New Dawn for America: The Libertarian Challenge.
In the 1970s, Roger MacBride helped create the television series Little House on the Prairie. He also worked as a co-producer for the show.
His Political Journey
In Vermont
Roger MacBride was elected to the Vermont House of Representatives in 1962. He served one term there. While in the state legislature, he suggested getting rid of the state college system.
In 1964, he ran for governor of Vermont as a Republican. He was a supporter of Barry Goldwater, but he did not win the Republican Party's nomination.
A Special Vote in 1972
In 1972, Roger MacBride was a leader in the Republican Party of Virginia. He was also one of the electors when Richard Nixon won his second term as president. Electors are people chosen to cast votes for president and vice president. However, MacBride voted differently than expected. He voted for the candidates of the Libertarian Party: John Hospers for president and Tonie Nathan for vice president. By doing this, MacBride made Tonie Nathan the first woman in U.S. history to receive an electoral vote. A political writer named David Boaz later said that MacBride was true to the ideas of the U.S. Constitution.
Running for President in 1976
After his special vote in 1972, Roger MacBride became well-known in the new Libertarian Party. This party had only started the year before. In 1976, he became the Libertarian candidate for president. He was listed on the ballot in 32 states. He and his running mate, David Bergland, received 172,553 votes from people. This was about 0.2% of all votes. They did not win any electoral votes. His best result was in Alaska, where he received 6,785 votes, which was nearly 5.5% of the votes there.
During his campaign, Roger MacBride supported several ideas:
- A free market system (an economy with less government control).
- Returning to the gold standard (where money is backed by gold).
- Getting rid of the Federal Reserve (the main bank of the U.S.).
- Ending government help for big companies.
- Getting rid of the FCC (which regulates communication).
- A foreign policy of non-interventionism (not getting involved in other countries' problems).
- Ending laws against "victimless crimes" (actions that don't directly harm others).
Back with the Republicans
In the 1980s, Roger MacBride rejoined the Republican Party. He helped create the Republican Liberty Caucus. This group promotes libertarian ideas within the Republican Party. He led this group from 1992 until he passed away in 1995.
Managing the Little House Books
Roger MacBride was chosen by Rose Wilder Lane to manage her literary estate. This meant he gained control of her writings and the Little House books when she died in 1968. In 1971, he had The First Four Years published. In 1974, he edited and published letters from Laura Ingalls Wilder to her husband, Almanzo. This book was called West From Home. He was also the producer for the Little House on the Prairie TV series. He was listed as the author of a fictional series about Rose Wilder Lane's life.
His Passing
Roger MacBride died on March 5, 1995, from heart failure. After his death, a disagreement happened about the Little House literary estate. The local library in Mansfield, Missouri, said that Laura Ingalls Wilder's original will (a legal document about what happens to someone's things after they die) stated that her daughter, Rose, only had control of the estate during her lifetime. The library believed that all rights should go back to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Library after Rose's death. The court case was settled in a way that was not made public. However, Roger MacBride's family kept the rights to the books.
