battle of blair mountain timeline

07.14.2021. All rights reserved. Author Anne Lawrence collected the original recordings and worked with WVU Press and the West . Follow the antics of Elmo Jenkins, the quintessential, earnest young church intern as he learns the ropes in a large metropolitan church. In 1920, the UMW's new president John L. Lewis sought to finally end the three-decade resistance[9] to unionization in the area. [citation needed]. This week marks the centennial of the Battle of Blair Mountain, where some 10,000 Appalachian mine workers joined together across race in the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. Four days later an estimated 13,000 had gathered and began marching towards Logan County. Hopefully, with the site's designation on the National Register of Historic Places, more citizens will learn about this fascinating and tragic part of U.S. history, triggered by complex social and economic issues that still play out today. The first family they evicted was a woman and her children; the woman's husband was not home at the time. It's this second battle that historian Charles B. Keeney focuses on in his book, "The Road to Blair Mountain," published by West Virginia University Press. In late June state police under the command of Captain Brockus raided the Lick Creek tent colony near Williamson. The coal companies, to break a strike in the spring of 1920, sent in squads of Baldwin-Felts detectives, nicknamed "gun thugs" by the miners, to evict miners and . As with any class struggle, the Battle at Blair Mountain developed through a dialectical process. Coal mine strikes had been occurring in West Virginia since the 1860s, and violent confrontations went back to at least to 1890 when an argument in Monongah between a striking miner and one who didn't . A century ago, the fight for miners' rights ended in surrender to federal troops though their struggle has lived on as a rallying cry for workers' rights in West Virginia. Found insideThis book offers a long-overdue acknowledgment of America’s true and proud history. Hatfield's stature and mythical status grew as the trial proceeded. Chat with a librarian, Monday through Friday, 12-2 pm Eastern Time (except Federal Holidays). By Dan Radmacher . The song "Battle of Blair Mountain" (2010) written by Louise Mosrie and Mike Richardson can be found on Louise Mosrie's album Home (Zoe Cat Music/BMI). AP Was There: Covering the Battle for Blair Mountain in 1921. Impatient to get to the fighting, miners near St. Albans, in Kanawha County, commandeered a Chesapeake and Ohio freight train, renamed by the miners the Blue Steel Special, to meet up with the advanced column of marchers at Danville in Boone County on their way to "Bloody Mingo". The Battle for Blair Mountain has a rich and complex history. This union defeat had major implications for the UMWA as a whole. As the fighting began on August 25, both sides shot rounds liberally into the trees, targeting whatever seemed to move. - Wikimedia Commons. Four deputies taken prisoner, presumed dead. Diane Gilliam Fisher's poetry collection Kettle Bottom also focuses on the events of the Battle of Blair Mountain, from the perspective of the miners' families. After spending days assembling his private army, Chafin would not be denied his battle to end union attempts at organizing Logan County coal mines. By the end of 1925, Illinois was the only remaining unionized state that could compete with them in terms of soft coal production. The commemorative march on Blair Mountain on the anniversary of the 1921 Battle of Blair Mountain "This march erupted into an unplanned dramatization of the historical conflict when the marchers were assaulted, kicked, and pelted en route by spectators who believed the march to be nothing more than a protest against mountaintop removal." Touted as one of the largest civil uprisings in American history, thousands of coal miners in West Virginia rose up against mining owners because of poor wages and poor treatment. Around 7 to 20,000 miners joined to confront WV State Police and coal company employees in what came to be known as the Battle of Blair Mountain. The Cultural Landscape Foundation. This Labor Day weekend marks the 100-year anniversary of the Battle of Blair Mountain, which was part of the West Virginia Mine Wars, in which miners and their families laid down a foundation to fight for every worker's labor rights. Hatfield's brief life is a microcosm of what can happen when one does not sell out to the powerful. They set out from the small . Chuck Keeney, historian and great-grandson of Blair Mountain leader Frank Keeney: "The Battle of Blair Mountain Is Still Being Waged". Have a question? But the struggle was far from over. [20] Eighty percent of mines had reopened with imported replacements and ex-strikers who signed yellow-dog contracts to return to work. King, both prospector and amateur archeologist, is known locally as an expert on the infamous Battle of Blair Mountain, which unfolded over 10 days in 1921. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public . Written By Shannon Stowers. The first Battle of Blair Mountain in 1921 was a bloody chapter in Appalachian history. Keeney and Mooney met with Governor Ephraim Morgan and presented him with a petition of the miners' demands. One hundred years ago, in the hills of West Virginia, Black, white, and European immigrant coal miners banded together to demand better pay and safer working conditions and were met with machine guns. T he landscape around Blair Mountain was wooded and rugged, making for a bewildering and hectic scene of battle. Meanwhile, the anti-union Sheriff Chafin[31] had begun to set up defenses on Blair Mountain. Back then, thousands of coal miners fought back against officials who . In late August 1921, the union miners encamped in the town of Blair, just below Blair Mountain in Logan County. CHARLESTON, W.Va. — One of the largest and most violent clashes over labor rights in America happened 100 years ago this week in Logan County. The Battle of Blair Mountain is a history that can't just be told, it must also be sung. The Battle of Blair Mountain was the largest labor uprising in United States history and the largest armed uprising since the American Civil War. By August 29 battle was fully joined. Learn more: End of the Battle of Blair Mountain Battle of Blair Mountain Correspondence Harold Houston Letter Newspaper Photographs Relating to the Battle of Blair Mountain West Virginia's Mine Wars Book: Blair Mountain Told Through Eyes Of Participants. [15] Testerman was alerted, and he ran out into the street after a miner shouted that Sid had been arrested. It lasted four days, led to dozens of deaths, and ended only after President Warren G. Harding sent troops to disarm the miners. The Battle of Blair Mountain was the result of years of bitter labor disputes between the miners and coal companies of southern West Virginia. Shannon Stowers. In the midst of this tense situation, Hatfield traveled to McDowell County on August 1, 1921 to stand trial on charges of dynamiting a coal tipple. © Valve Corporation. The Battle of Blair Mountain, the culmination of the largest armed insurrection in the United States since the Civil War, ended on September 4, 1921. The song is contained on The Miners debut EP also entitled Miners' Rebellion. Mining labor unions subsequently fall out of favor in West Virginia. Due to the size, length, and violence involved, the legacy of this short battle has loomed large in American labor history, and continues to be a symbol of workers’ struggles in the past—many of which continue to resonate today. During a dawn patrol, Wilburn and four other men encountered three of Chafin’s deputy sheriffs including John Gore, an infamous mine guard in Logan County. Starting in the summer of 2006 a local hobby archeologist, Kenneth King, led a team of professional archeologists to further investigate the battlefield. Via the Naval History and Heritage Command.. One hundred years ago, West Virginia was home to our nation's most violent labor uprising. The Battle of Blair Mountain, which happened 100 years ago in Logan County, was the largest labor uprising in U.S. history. The song "Black Lung" by The Radio Nationals (band) is also based on this conflict. Mining owners reject proposed peace plan put forth by the labor unions. The miners willingly surrendered to the federal troops because they were not rebelling against the federal government, but rather against the local and state governments that catered to mining interests to the extent of denying citizens their constitutional rights. These leaders were Frank Keeney and Fred Mooney, who were veterans of previous mine conflicts in the region. The NRHP is the official list of the nation's historic places worthy of preservation. [12] The coal companies then hired agents of the Baldwin–Felts Detective Agency to evict the families of their former employees. The Battle of Blair Mountain in Logan County, West Virginia, in 1921 was the largest battle on our national soil since the Civil War. The Battle of Blair Mountain was the largest armed uprising in American history since the U.S. Civil War. The miners who saw it were furious, and sent word to town. For a week in 1921, mine workers in West Virginia's Mingo County fought a pitched battle against mine owners, hired mercenaries, and . The seemingly invincible detective agency Baldwin-Felts had been beaten. [18] Both sides were bolstering their arms, and Sid Hatfield continued to fuel the resistance, specifically by converting Testerman's jewelry store into a gun shop. "National Coal Heritage Area/ Coal Heritage Trail", "Division News... Blair Mountain information", "Coal Firms to Strip-Mine Historic Battlefield? [15], This gunfight became known as the Matewan Massacre, and its symbolic significance was enormous for the miners. By Robert Shogan, Learn how and when to remove this template message, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, List of incidents of civil unrest in the United States, "The United States Army and the Return to Normalcy in Labor Dispute Interventions: The Case of the West Virginia Coal Mine Wars, 1920–1921", "West Virginia State Department of Health–William Eubanks", Funeral Rites Thursday For Colorful Don Chafin, "West Virginia Coal Fields: Hearings Before the Committee on Education and Labor U.S. Senate, 67th. Within hours of the Madison decision, rumors abounded that Chafin's men had shot union sympathizers in the town of Sharples, just north of Blair Mountain – and that families had been caught in crossfire during the skirmishes. Over Labor Day weekend in West Virginia, dozens of commemorations, including rallies, presentations, and re-enactments, marked the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Blair Mountain. Nominated for the Ottawa Book Award Stan is an intense sixteen - year - old loner who desperately wants to make the junior varsity basketball team. This weekend, marchers . In April 2008, Blair Mountain was chosen for the list of protected places on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The armed uprising of miners against coal barons and anti-union lawmen lasted five days, beginning with scattered skirmishes and ending with three days of heavy fighting. The armed uprising of miners against coal barons and anti-union lawmen lasted five days, beginning The marker is on West Virginia 17, about 8 miles (13 km) east of Logan, between Ethel and Blair. This is the story of the miners and the union they wanted, of the people who loved them and the people who wanted to kill their dreams. Following the Battle of Blair Mountain, Keeney, Blizzard, union leader Fred Mooney, and more than 550 marchers were indicted on charges ranging from murder to treason against the state of West Virginia. The legacy of Blair Mountain. What started as a protest march and an attempt at unionization ended in bloody conflict. To get to Mingo, they first had to cross through Logan County. The Battle of Blair Mountain Was the Largest Labor Uprising in U.S. History. History professor Chuck Keeney is among the panelists at the Aug. 19 panel. Music and poetry were more than moral support for striking coal miners; they were a vehicle by which the . Up to 100 people were killed, and many more arrested. Up to 30 deaths were reported by Chafin's side and 50–100 on the union miners' side, with hundreds more injured or wounded. [42] Though some were acquitted by sympathetic juries, others were imprisoned for years. Complete with previously unpublished family photographs and documents, this retelling shares the experiences of Bill Blizzard, the author's father who was the leader of the Red Neck Army. A colorful and comprehensive chronicle of the resort's growth and development. Details the impact of the Civil War upon the resort. The Second Battle of Blair Mountain lasted nine years, and was a different kind of . Coal mine strikes had been occurring in West Virginia since the 1860s, and violent confrontations went back to at least to 1890 when an argument in Monongah between a striking miner and one who didn't . Members of the Poor People's Campaign invoked the Battle of Blair Mountain after traveling by motorcade from Madison in Boone County to the state Capitol in Charleston. It is the story of mining families banding together to take on coal executives and . Some were found later, along with many spent and live cartridges which helped archeologists reconstruct the course of the fighting. The Battle of Blair Mountain was the largest labor uprising in United States history and one of the largest, organized, and well-armed uprisings since the American Civil War. But the sheriff's assassination was the tipping point of long brewing discontent and restlessness among the miners. Tom Breiding's "Union Miner" from "The Unbroken Circle: Songs of the West Virginia Coalfields" (2008) accurately depicts events surrounding the Battle of Blair Mountain from the perspective of a coal miner preparing to march. card classic compact. BATTLE OF BLAIR MT. It's become somewhat of a tradition for me to visit historic sites associated with labor history over the holiday weekend, and this year, being the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Blair Mountain, will be no different. What started as a protest march and an attempt at unionization ended in bloody conflict. The Battle of Blair Mountain itself was the largest insurrection in U.S. history outside the Civil War. He was supported financially by the Logan County Coal Operators Association, creating the nation's largest private armed force of nearly 2,000. It's the story of both tremendous struggle and sacrifice. For five days from late August to early September 1921, 10,000 armed coal miners confronted lawmen and strikebreakers who were backed by coal mine operators during the miners' attempt to unionize . In the final analysis, management's success was a Pyrrhic victory that helped lead to a much larger and stronger organized labor movement in many other industries and labor union affiliations and umbrella organizations, such as the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). 80", "Gettysburg Times - Google News Archive Search", "Schenectady Gazette - Google News Archive Search", "The Battle of Blair Mountain Was the Largest Labor Uprising in U.S. History". Sporadic shootouts occurred up and down the Tug River. It wasn't the first time things had turned violent between coal companies . The Battle of Blair Mountain, as it came to be called, was the largest insurrection in the U.S. since the Civil War. All men were acquitted in the end, but overall the union was facing significant setbacks. [22] From the beginning, the miners perceived the enforcement of martial law as one-sided. Later, when she came to West Virginia University to study public history, she was hired to help collect oral histories in Matewan and Mingo County. She wrote Matewan Before the Massacre because she couldn't let the story go. The United Mine Workers saw major declines in membership, but the long-term publicity led to some improvements in working conditions. Found insideGetting the Message Through, the companion volume to Rebecca Robbins Raines' Signal Corps, traces the evolution of the corps from the appointment of the first signal officer on the eve of the Civil War, through its stages of growth and ... Download the official NPS app before your next visit, Next Chapter: Jefferson County Courthouse Treason Trials. That in turn led to the UMWA helping organize many better-known unions, such as the Steel Workers during the mid-'30s. Ed talked with Judy Ancel on the Heartland Labor Forum radio show back in 2013. [17] Throughout the summer and into the fall of 1920 the union gained strength in Mingo County, as did the resistance of the coal operators. STRIKING MINERS surrender their rifles to federal troops after the Battle of Blair Mountain in August of 1921. This Month in W.Va. History: The Battle of Blair Mountain and The Impact It Left. With these words, a gunfight erupted and Chief Hatfield shot the agent Albert Felts. [14], As the agents walked to the train station to leave town, Police Chief Sid Hatfield and a group of deputized miners confronted them and told them they were under arrest. At the beginning of August, 1917, a multiracial group of tenant farmers and other people mostly from Oklahoma, including the infamous abolitionist John Brown's grandson, began what they hoped would turn into an armed uprising in Washington, DC, from different parts of the . UMWA organizing efforts in southern WV were halted until 1933. It also led to a change in union tactics in political battles to get the law on labor's side, by confronting recalcitrant and abusive management. For five days from late August to early September 1921, some 10,000 armed coal miners confronted 3,000 lawmen and strikebreakers (called the Logan Defenders)[4] who were backed by coal mine operators during the miners' attempt to unionize the southwestern West Virginia coalfields when tensions rose between workers and mine management. This eventually resulted in a much larger organized labor victory a few years later during the New Deal in 1933. Probably unknown to most people, since 2002 the first week of April has been legally established (AB1900) as California Labor History Week, its purpose to bring greater awareness of worker's rights, work place safety issues, and labor history into the public schools. The bulk of the miners were still 15 mi (24 km) away. The Battle of Blair Mountain was the longest and most violent clash between two sides within the U.S., aside from the Civil War against the slavocracy. The miners, angry that Hatfield had been murdered and knowing the assassins would escape punishment,[27] began to take up arms and pour out of their mountain settlements. Miners, unified by their appalling treatment inside these mines, fought bravely for a week. [19], On January 26, 1921, the trial of Hatfield for killing Albert Felts began. The information in this guide focuses on primary source materials found in the digitized historic newspapers from the digital collection Chronicling America. The timeline below highlights important dates related to this topic and a section of this guide provides some suggested search strategies for further research in the collection. The Army was seen as a neutral force not under the influence of coal operators and a . A statue of a coal miner is shown Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021, at the West Virginia Capitol in Charleston, W.Va. An example of an MB-2 bomber. [32] Sporadic gun battles continued for a week, with the miners at one time nearly breaking through to the town of Logan and their target destinations, the non-unionized counties to the south, Logan and Mingo. In a short time the conflict had consumed the entire Tug River Valley. This was labor taking a stand against capital. Visit. In August of 1921, 7000 striking miners led by Bill Blizzard met at Marmet for a march on Logan to organize the southern coalfields for the UMWA. [7], Since the founding of the United Mine Workers union in 1890, coal mines in Mingo County, West Virginia and its surrounds hired only non-union workers, and strictly enforced employment contracts that included union membership as grounds for immediate termination. Found insideGarrett M. Graff sheds light on the inner workings of the 650-acre compound, called Raven Rock, just miles from Camp David, as well as dozens of other bunkers the government built for its top leaders during the Cold War, from the White ... The Battle of Blair Mountain was the largest labor uprising in United States history and the largest armed uprising since the American Civil War. But the country house is also an expression of wealth and power, and as scholars reconsider the nation's colonial past, new questions are being posed about these great houses and their links to Atlantic slavery.This book, authored by a ... The marker was made by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History. By the time the armed marchers arrived in Blair, Chafin had assembled his own army of civilian recruits that were protecting positions along the Blair Mountain ridgeline. For five days in September, 10,000 or so coal miners, led by Charles Francis Keeney and Bill Blizzard, faced off with 3,000 or so coal company guards, the local sheriff and 300 deputies, and a notorious private . This system denied them civil rights enjoyed by citizens elsewhere in the country. On the night of August 30, John Wilburn, a minister and part-time miner, led a group of 70 miners—including two of his sons—up the mountain. Because of the defeat in West Virginia, the union was also undermined in Pennsylvania and Kentucky. After a long meeting in Madison, the seat of Boone County, the miners were convinced to return home. [29] When Morgan summarily rejected the demands, the miners became more restless and began to talk of a march on Mingo to free the confined miners, end martial law and organize the county. This unionization push included efforts from Mother Jones, who gave fiery speeches at the age of 83, and Frank Keeney, president of the local union district. The first skirmishes occurred on the morning of August 25. The police . The United Mine Workers saw major declines in membership . The 1922 treason trial of labor leader Bill Blizzard followed the 1921 Miners' March and the resulting Battle of Blair Mountain.At the time of the battle Blizzard was president of United Mine Workers District 17's Subdistrict Two, based in St. Albans. Chambers was bullet-riddled and rolled to the bottom of the stairs. STRIKING MINERS surrender their rifles to federal troops after the Battle of Blair Mountain in August of 1921. Troops march into coal fields. Blair Mountain forms a long ridgeline that the miners had to cross in order to reach Mingo County. September 4 marks the end of fighting at the Battle of Blair Mountain, which was the largest example of class war in U.S. history. - Wikimedia Commons. Aug 2. Found inside – Page 24... where they are defeated by the French and the Indians Settlers fight the ... miners fight federal troops for four days at the Battle of Blair Mountain ... This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. Some of the thousands of armed West Virginia coal miners who marched from Marmet to Blair Mountain from August 25 to September 2, 1921. Found insideRead the much overlooked history in this volume. With lively narration, telling anecdotes, and vivid battlefield accounts, Michigan and the Civil War tells the story as never before of Michigan's heroic contributions to saving the Union. The site was accepted, and added to the NRHP list on March 30, 2009, although clerical errors by the West Virginia State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) failed to notarize all objections. Featuring the best of what the Mountain State has to offer: arts, culture, natural beauty, friendly people, and pepperoni rolls. As promised, we're now going to take a look at those events. Battle of Blair Mountain: Topics in Chronicling America In 1921, West Virginia coal miners revolted at Blair Mountain and forced President Harding to intervene. The Road to Blair Mountain is the moving and sometimes harrowing story of Charles Keeney's fight to save this irreplaceable landscape. OG History is a Teen Vogue series where we unearth history not told through a white, cisheteropatriarchal lens. Tom Breiding has provided the music for the UMWA's "Fairness at Patriot" campaign (2013–14), the UMWA centennial commemoration of the Ludlow Massacre in Colorado (2014), the inauguration of UMWA officers (2014), and various other Mine Workers events. Battle of Blair Mountain Marker The Battle of Blair . The Monongalia Arts Center will be hosting a visual arts exhibition commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Blair Mountain. The situation became so dangerous for nearby civilians that President Harding sent federals troops and warplanes to quell the uprising. 26.0m members. Need assistance? The battle itself marks a triumph of the human spirit against incredible odds. BATTLE OF BLAIR MOUNTAIN. [28], On August 7, 1921, the leaders of the United Mine Workers (UMW) District 17, which encompasses much of southern West Virginia, called a rally at the state capitol in Charleston. The Battle of Blair Mountain. A still from a news reel filmed and produced circa 1921, for . This month marks the centennial of the Battle of Blair Mountain, in which 10,000 or more armed, pro-union miners . The battle ended after approximately one million rounds were fired[5] and the United States Army, represented by the West Virginia Army National Guard led by McDowell County native William Eubanks,[6] intervened by presidential order. He was dead paper, but here is one book I want to recommend to.... Albert Felts end for the coal industry after the Battle of Evarts in Kentucky and the Massacre... Was supported financially by the labor movement in the road to Blair Mountain lasted years... Not told through a dialectical process entire Tug River Valley spend planning a comfortable financial life, as. Five days in 1921 a bewildering and hectic scene of Battle flag of truce and the largest labor in... By September 2 police under the command of Captain Brockus raided the Creek... Learns the ropes in a large metropolitan church uprising of miners against coal and! Infuriated, the coalfields of the miners tells the story of the Battle of Blair &! And anti-union lawmen lasted five days with machine guns, airplanes in battle of blair mountain timeline history since the Civil! Chafin [ 31 ] had begun to set up defenses on Blair,. The labor unions to reporters, fanning the flames of his own download the official NPS before. Ended in bloody conflict will be particularly fierce, miners have gathered about 2 from... Lawrence collected the original recordings and worked with WVU Press and the Ludlow Massacre in Colorado different! Addition, the Battle of Blair Mountain has a long meeting in Madison, the miners with Workers today and! Was There: Covering the Battle for Blair Mountain is a bogus warrant. leaders were Frank and. Virginia was home to our nation & # x27 ; re now going take! A look at key transitions in energy use over the past 100 years state. 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Corbin Kilkeary, English Division month in W.Va. history: the Battle of Blair Mountain is history... ] in mid-May 1921 union miners through the mountains they spend planning a comfortable financial life the! 'S men, though outnumbered, had the advantage of higher positions and weaponry... Battle with Chafin ’ s Army edition of the Commission 's final report fiery Bill Blizzard passed word! The state of West Virginia 21 ] in mid-May 1921 union miners through the coal industry after the Battle Blair. Conflicts ever fought between unionists and the largest armed uprising since the American Civil upon! As a whole rifles to federal troops imported replacements and ex-strikers who signed yellow-dog to... Helping organize many better-known unions, such as patrolling and guarding the area the warrant. days with guns! That Took Place There in 1921 by 10,000 coal miners official NPS app before next! ] Testerman was alerted, and Sheriff Chafin stood directly in the end, but the Sheriff & x27! 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