Prints and Photographs Collection
Allan Shivers
Shivers is shown here with Governor Adlai Stevenson of Illinois, the Democratic party's nominee for president in 1952 and 1956. Shivers broke with Stevenson and the party over the Tidelands issue and endorsed Dwight Eisenhower. Most Texans agreed with Shivers, and Eisenhower carried Texas in a landslide in both elections. Shivers' rebellion against the national Democratic party strengthened his hold on the reins of power in conservative Texas, but touched off years of down-and-dirty infighting among liberals, moderates, and conservatives in the Texas Democratic party.