Thegrand wizard (sometimes called theimperial wizard ornational director) is the national leader of several differentKu Klux Klan organizations.[citation needed]
The title "Grand Wizard" was used by the first Klan which was founded in 1865 and which existed during theReconstruction era until 1872. The title was chosen because General Forrest had been known as "The Wizard of the Saddle" during theCivil War.[1]
The second Klan, founded in 1915, styled their national leader the "Imperial Wizard". National officers were styled "Imperial" officers. State or "Realm" officers were styled "Grand" officers. For example, a "Grand Dragon" was the highest-ranking Klansman in a given state.[citation needed]
First Klan (1865–1872)
The Ku Klux Klan was founded by six confederate veterans in 1865 but did not elect a grand wizard until afterNathan Bedford Forrest joined in 1867.[2][3][4]
Nathan Bedford Forrest, Grand Wizard, 1867–1869.[1] Forrest resigned in 1869 and ordered the KKK dissolved although the group remained active until 1872[5][6]
Hiram Wesley Evans (1881–1966), part of a group that ousted William Joseph Simmons from the position ofImperial Wizard in November 1922. Evans was Imperial Wizard from 1922 to 1939,[9] during which time the Klan's membership peaked.
James A. Colescott (1897–1950), Imperial Wizard, 1939-1944.[10] Colescott dissolved the organization after the IRS filed a lien for $685,305 in unpaid taxes, penalties and interest from 1920s against the Klan.[11]
Samuel Green[12] (1889–1949). Green reformed the KKK in 1946[13] He was briefly Imperial Wizard of a reorganized Klan in 1949, but died of aheart attack within two weeks of his election.
Thomas Robb (born 1946), National Director, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, 1989–present[19][20]
David Wayne Hull (born 1962), Imperial Wizard, White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, until 2003[21]
Johnny Lee Clary (1959–2014), Imperial Wizard in 1989 of the White Knights Organization but subsequently renounced his membership and became anordained Christian minister speaking against racism and movements such as the Ku Klux Klan.
Louis Beam (born 1946), Grand Wizard, Texas Ku Klux Klan, 1984–2000[23][24]
Bill Wilkinson (born 1942), Imperial Wizard, Invisible Empire Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, 1975–1981, Wilkinson formed a competing branch which, at the time, was the largest national KKK organization[25][26]
Eldon Edwards (1909–1960), Imperial Wizard, Original Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, 1950–1959[27][28]
Roy Elonza Davis (1890–1967) Second in command of 1915 KKK under William Simmons, Grand Dragon of Texas under Eldon Edwards. Imperial Wizard, Original Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, Knights of the Flaming Sword 1959–1964;[29] Both organizations disbanded.[30]
Samuel Roper (1895–1986), law enforcement officer turned Imperial Wizard of the KKK, from 1949–1950. Styled Imperial Wizard, Original Knights of the Ku Klux Klan 1949–1950,[31] He was preceded by Samuel Green, and was later succeeded by Eldon Lee Edwards.
^"Green, Klan Chief, Dies At His Home. Atlantan Was Head Of Force Which Led New Movement Of The Hooded Groups".The New York Times. August 19, 1949. Retrieved2011-04-27.Dr. Samuel Green, imperial wizard of the Associated Klans of Georgia, died at his home tonight of a heart attack at the age of 59. He had been promoted from grand dragon to the wizard post at a "Konklave" two weeks ago. ... He was the driving force behind the revitalized movement of their hooded order that followed World War II. The old Klan was by Federal tax suits, ...
^Quarles, Chester L. (1999).The Ku Klux Klan and Related American Racialist and Antisemitic Organizations: A History and Analysis. p. 153.ISBN978-0786406470.
^Staff report (March 4, 1986). Samuel W. Roper, 90, was second director of GBI in early 1940s.Atlanta Journal-Constitution
^"Imperial Wizard Says KKK's Membership Very Small in Texas". Dallas Morning News. February 11, 1961.
^Committee on Un-American Activities (January 1966).Activities of Ku Klux Klan Organizations of the United States; Parts 1–5. United States Congress. p. 48.
^Staff report (August 28, 1949). Ex-Chief of Georgia G-men is new head of Ku Klux Klan.Chicago Tribune
^Cunningham, David. Klansville, U.S.A.: The Rise and Fall of the Civil Rights-Era Ku Klux Klan. Massachusetts: Oxford Scholarship Online, 2012. Print.
