This month’s “Front-Page News” column takes us back to October 23, 1930. What was going on in Arlington and the nation 95 years ago? It turns out that this was a politically controversial time in the County; and it was also a politically challenging time for everyone in the nation.  The Wall Street crash of October 1929 marked the beginning of the worldwide Great Depression that lasted for over a decade. One year later, there already were efforts to “feed the hungry jobless”, as noted in this Washington Evening Star front-page headline on October 23, 1930: “U.S. Wheat To Aid Unemployed”. 

The headline in the adjacent column on the front-page contained a reference that echoes to this day: “Jews To Ask U.S. Help In Palestine”. But the greatest amount of front-page news coverage was devoted to a murder trial where the accused was an Arlington businessman, Herbert Campbell. Two articles were devoted to the testimony given at trial, which included witnesses who stated that Campbell had “the same general appearance of the man they saw struggling” with the young woman who had been murdered. (It turns out that their testimony was not convincing, and Campbell eventually was acquitted, with the murder never solved.) 

Arlington news with a more mundane tone related to the ongoing political controversy regarding Arlington’s governance structure – a controversy that lives on to the present day. The Evening Star devoted three articles to its coverage of a proposal to get rid of the then-current structure (three Board members, one each from three distinct geographic districts). In very Arlington-like fashion, a coalition group was formed to lobby for the new proposal, which had three components: expand the board to five members; have at-large positions only; and switch to a new government structure known as “the County Manager plan”. 

This coalition group went by the name of The Better Government League, and it included the most powerful organizations of that time: the Civic Federation, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Bar Association. The newspaper articles included endorsements by the Ashton Heights and Lyon Village civic associations. But all good controversies seem to inspire counter-coalitions, and in the local newspaper, The Chronicle, there was an editorial opposing the changes, and giving coverage to a new coalition group, the Voters Service Club, which also opposed the changes. 

In reading the various accounts, it seems that the main point of contention was only about the move to at-large elections. I must say that the points made by The Better Government League were a bit misleading, but in the subsequent referendum vote, The Better Government League won on all three proposals. Ironically, in less than a decade, there were calls for changes and tweaks. The Civic Federation successfully called for the use of staggered terms later in the 1930s, and then, in the 1940s, changed their mind and unsuccessfully called for a return to having all five positions elected in the same year. 

The evolution of Arlington’s governance structure, and its political parties, will be the subject of a talk I will be giving at the Glencarlyn Library on Tuesday, October 21 at 7:00 p.m. I am finding that this history has relevance when considering the recent legislation proposed earlier this year by Delegate Patrick Hope. I will mostly touch upon the 20th century history of Arlington’s structure, but will also review the issues highlighted by the recent legislation: Should the number of Board members be expanded? Should geographic districts be included? Should the staggered term system be modified? And… might Arlington end up with an updated version of The Better Government League in 2026? Stay tuned!