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Labor Collection, 1872-1988

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
Title
Labor Collection
Dates
1872-1988 (inclusive)
1930-1955 (bulk)
Quantity
12 linear feet (6 document cases, 2 oversize flat boxes, 1 custom box, 10 oversize folders, 2 reels microfilm)
Collection Number
Mss 1505
Summary
Topical collection assembled at the Oregon Historical Society that provides episodic documentation of labor unions and other related organizations, including industry, pro-union, and anti-union groups, and government agencies. The collection consists primarily of published material and ephemera.
Repository
Oregon Historical Society Research Library
1200 SW Park Avenue
Portland, OR
97205
Telephone: 503-306-5240
Fax: 503-219-2040
libreference@ohs.org
Access Restrictions

The collection is open to the public.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
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Historical Note

By the mid-19th century, workers in crafts and trades formed unions across the country. The American Federation of Labor (AFL) became the first successful alliance of trade unions when it was organized in 1886. The AFL focused on organizing workers by trade or craft. By the 1930s, enough unions within the federation were unhappy with the AFL's unwillingness to organize workers industry-wide that they formed the Committee for Industrial Organization in 1935. Participating unions were expelled from the AFL and formed the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1938. The two merged in 1955 to form the AFL-CIO. The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), which was organized in 1905, sought to organize all workers into "one big union."

The National Industrial Recovery Act of 1933, which gave workers the right to organize and bargain collectively, served as an impetus for union organizing in the 1930s and battles between AFL and CIO unions over representation of workers at industrial plants. The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 controlled union organizing and other labor-relations issues and helped push the AFL and CIO toward merger.

Among the earliest Oregon trades organized were the cigarmakers, hod carriers, and typographers, all of them forming locals affiliated with the AFL. About 1920, AFL-affiliated unions built the Labor Temple at the corner of Fourth Avenue and Jefferson Street in Portland, Oregon. By the first decade of the 20th century, workers were organizing in the Pacific Northwest lumber industry and on Pacific Coast docks. In addition to organizing by the IWW, workers in the lumber industry organized the International Woodworkers of America at Portland, Oregon, in 1936. On the docks, local unions tended toward independence, but they eventually organized the International Longshoremen's Association and International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union on the West Coast.

Through collective bargaining, the pressure of work stoppages and strikes, and political action, the unions won many benefits for their members, including better wages and working conditions and eventually health and pension benefits. However, unions also encountered anti-union movements, organizations, and employer groups, who used political and governmental action against them. Some were caught up in the hunt for Communist conspiracies that followed World War I and World War II. Major political battles centered on "right-to-work" laws, which prevented "closed shops," where workers were required to join a union. Some unions also participated in and allied themselves with other advocates of various political and social causes.

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Content Description

This topical Labor Collection was assembled from many sources over a long period at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library. Consisting primarily of ephemera and published material, it provides episodic documentation of labor unions and other related organizations, including industry, pro-union, and anti-union groups, and government agencies. Union materials include those produced by national unions and by union locals, with the local materials coming primarily from Oregon and Washington. The collection includes significant materials on the splits, fights, and ultimate amalgamation of trade unions and industrial unions in the AFL-CIO.

Although many unions and organizations are represented by only individual pieces or small quantities of materials, others are better represented. Among those better represented are the American Federation of Labor (AFL), Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO), AFL-CIO, Cigar Maker's International Union of America, Industrial Workers of the World, International Longshoremen's Association, International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union, International Woodworkers of America, the Willamette Valley Lumber Operators Association (WVLOA), and the Communist Party.

Among the labor leaders whose activities, speeches, and writings are included in the collection are Samuel Gompers (AFL), George Meany (AFL-CIO), John L. Lewis (CIO), Harry Bridges, (International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Union), and Dave Beck (Teamsters).

Most of the collection is composed of ephemera (fliers, leaflets, broadsides, and posters) and published materials (directories, handbooks, newspapers and newsletters, pamphlets, periodicals, reports, and songs). Also included are small quantities of correspondence and records of union locals and individual union members. Topics covered include trade unions, industrial unions, union auxiliaries for women, labor-management relations, boycotts and strikes, war-time impacts, communism and socialism, legislation and legal cases, politics, and religious response to labor issues.

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Use of the Collection

Restrictions on Use

The Oregon Historical Society is the owner of the materials in the Research Library and makes available reproductions for research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from the Research Library before any publication use. The Society does not necessarily hold copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.

Preferred Citation

Labor Collection, Mss 1505, Oregon Historical Society Research Library

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The collection is arranged into the following series and subseries:

  • Series A: Labor Unions, circa 1880-1972
  • Subseries 1: American Federation of Labor / Congress of Industrial Organizations / AFL-CIO
  • Subseries 2: Individual Unions and Locals
  • Series B: Industry Organizations, 1911-1969
  • Series C: Other Related Organizations, 1872-1988
  • Series D: Related Government Agencies, 1910-1988
  • Subseries 1: City of Portland
  • Subseries 2: State of Oregon
  • Subseries 3: United States Government
  • Series E: Topical Files Related to Labor, 1907-1955
  • Subseries 1: Churches and Labor
  • Subseries 2: Farmers and Labor
  • Subseries 3: Labor Day
  • Series F: Publications, 1902-1972
  • Subseries 1: Publications by Topic
  • Subseries 2: Publications by Type

Custodial History

The collection was assembled at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library over a long period from many sources.

Acquisition Information

Pieces from many accessions are assembled into the Labor Collection.

Future Additions

Ephemera related to labor unions, activities, and related topics may be added in the future.

Processing Note

Initial processing produced an inventory to the collection. Processing and a full guide were completed in 2005.

When they could be identified, some individual accessions or parts of accessions that had been processed with the Labor Collection were removed and treated as individual collections or reunited with collections that contain the bulk of the accessions.

Separated Materials

A few pieces of several manuscript collections were placed in the Labor Collection. Among these are pieces from the Gust Anderson Papers (Mss2576), the Julia Ruuttila Papers (Mss250), and the Frederick Stiewer Papers (Mss1496).

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Boycotts.
  • Collective bargaining.
  • Collective labor agreements.
  • Labor movement--Oregon.
  • Labor unions--Oregon.
  • Labor movement--Northwest, Pacific.
  • Labor unions--Northwest, Pacific.
  • Labor.
  • Strikes and lockouts.
  • Union labels.

Personal Names

  • Beck, Dave, 1894- .
  • Bridges, Harry, 1901- .
  • Browder, Earl, 1891-1973.
  • Gompers, Samuel, 1850-1924.
  • Lewis, John Llewellyn, 1880-1969.
  • Meany, George, 1894- .

Corporate Names

  • AFL-CIO.
  • American Federation of Labor.
  • Cigar Makers' International Union of America.
  • Communist Party of America.
  • Congress of Industrial Organizations (U.S.)
  • Industrial Workers of the World.
  • International Longshoremen's Association.
  • International Longshoremen's and Warehousemen's Association.
  • International Woodworkers of America.
  • Labor Temple (Portland, Or.)
  • United States. Labor Management Relations Act, 1947.
  • Willamette Valley Lumber Operators Association.

Form or Genre Terms

  • Broadsides.
  • Employees' manuals.
  • Ephemera.
  • Letters.
  • Microfilms.
  • Pamphlets.
  • Scrapbooks.
  • Sheet music.
  • Songbooks.

Collection processed by Shawna Gandy and Sharon Howe. Guide written by Sharon Howe.
2006

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