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William M. Chaney | |
|---|---|
 Chaney, circa 1971 | |
| Birth name | William Marshal Chaney |
| Nickname(s) |
|
| Born | 22 July 1922 Somerset, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | 27 May 2002 (aged 79 years, 339 days) Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. |
| Buried | Mill Springs National Cemetery, Nancy, Kentucky |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/ | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1940–1945 |
| Rank |  Staff Sergeant (Grade 3) |
| Service number | 20507665 |
| Unit |  147th Infantry Regiment |
| Known for | His Klan activities |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Bronze Star Medal |
| Spouse(s) | Mae Marie Smith (m. 1945) |
| Children | |
| Signature |  |
William "Will" Marshal Chaney Sr. (22 July 1922 – 27 May 2002) was a Kentuckian-born U.S. Army veteran and white supremacist active in the State of Indiana.
Concerned about the rise of modern liberalism, federally-enforced desegregation, increased Statesian involvement in global affairs, the 1965 Immigration Act, and the Civil Rights movement (which he believed would lead to the extinction of the white race),[1] Chaney became involved in far-right politics in the 1960s, attempting to revive the Ku Klux Klan in the Hoosier State where it had been dormant for over thirty years.
Chaney joined the United Klans of America (UKA), led by Robert Shelton, serving as the Grand Dragon of its Indiana Realm from 1967 to 1976. For most of this time, he was a paid FBI informant, receiving upwards of $500 a month to report on the Klan's activities.[2] Chaney would later split from the UKA, claiming that the national organisation had become "soft" on racial issues,[3] and form his own Klan called the Confederation of Independent Orders of the Invisible Empire, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.
After a series of run-ins with the law and several trials, Chaney was convicted of firebombing an outdoor advertising company at which he was formerly employed. He was sentenced to five years in prison and five years probation on 26 May 1979. Unable to carry out his duties from prison, his Confederation effectively became defunct. Chaney was released from prison early in 1981[4] and lived a mostly quiet life afterwards, though he remained active in veterans' organisations, masonic organisations, and his local church. He served as the national secretary of the Guadalcanal Campaign Veterans Association (GCVA) from 1991 and was a member of both the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑
Transcript of a Taped Interview with WILLIAM M. CHANEY (1971). Indiana State Library.RJ: All right, how did you become involved or active in the Klan?
WC: Well, I was very much concerned after World War II with the trends, our departure from our traditional ways of life, views on state rights, national sovereignty, our international policies, and the change in the racial policies in the United States and our departure from the policy of separate but equal. I was rather fearful that if we didn't make an effort to organise and preserve our traditions that in a matter of a few years that the white race in America would be extinct and that this nation would be a nation of mulattos and that the people here would be similar to the people in Mexico and the Latin American countries - ↑ Donald K. Thrasher; James G. Newland Jr. (1979-11-11): "Most of Klan Leaders In Indiana Were Paid By FBI As Informants". The Indianapolis Star. Page 1. Retrieved 2025-04-16.
- ↑ No author (1976-06-04).: "Hoosier KKK Dragon To Form New Group". Rushville Republican. Page 2.
- ↑ Federal Inmates By Number. Federal Bureau of Prisons. Retrieved 2025-04-16. Search for inmate 00339-028.