Western Federation of Miners

Industrial Workers of the World Founded, Challenges AFL Craft Unionism

| Importance: 7/10

From June 27 through July 8, 1905, two hundred socialists, anarchists, Marxists, and radical trade unionists convened at Brand’s Hall in Chicago to found the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), launching the most significant challenge to corporate capitalism and conservative trade unionism …

William "Big Bill" Haywood Eugene V. Debs Mother Jones Lucy Parsons Daniel De Leon +1 more labor-organizing democratic-resistance worker-power
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Cripple Creek Miners Strike Achieves Rare Victory Through Governor Intervention

| Importance: 7/10

Gold miners in Cripple Creek, Colorado, launch a strike after mine owners announce they will either extend the workday from eight to ten hours for the same $3 daily wage or maintain eight-hour days while reducing wages to $2.50 per day. Western Federation of Miners president John Calderwood issues a …

Western Federation of Miners Governor Davis Hanson Waite Colorado State Militia John Calderwood Mine owners +1 more labor-rights gilded-age mining-industry state-intervention union-victory +1 more
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Western Federation of Miners Founded After Coeur d'Alene Massacre

| Importance: 7/10

Hard rock miners establish the Western Federation of Miners (WFM) in Butte, Montana, as a direct response to the catastrophic defeat of the 1892 Coeur d’Alene strike in Idaho and the brutal military repression that followed. The WFM emerges from miners’ recognition that existing labor …

Western Federation of Miners Butte miners Coeur d'Alene strikers Mining industry workers labor-organizing gilded-age mining-industry militant-unionism wfm
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Coeur d'Alene Miners Strike Violence Triggers Martial Law, 600 Imprisoned Without Trial

| Importance: 8/10

Violent confrontation erupts between striking silver and lead miners and company guards at mines in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, after union workers discover a Pinkerton agent has infiltrated their organization and routinely provided confidential union information to mine owners. The violence follows …

Western Federation of Miners Pinkerton Detective Agency Idaho National Guard U.S. Army General J.M. Schofield +2 more labor-suppression gilded-age mining-industry martial-law federal-intervention +1 more
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