Welch, Robert Henry Winborne, Jr (1899-1985)

US anticommunist crusader and business executive. He founded the extreme conservative John Birch Society in 1958. A supporter of the losing Republican presidential candidate Barry Goldwater (1909-98) in 1964, Welch later became increasingly venomous in his accusations against supposed communist agents and sympathizers.

Born in Chowan County, North Carolina, USA, Welch was educated at the University of North Carolina and joined the family candy business in Boston 1922. Over the years, he supported conservative political causes and by the 1950s had become an outspoken anticommunist.

He founded the magazine American Opinion 1956.