Labor Radicals, Socialists, and the Finns

As I begin to write my research paper I am feverishly reading several sources about Finns in the Upper Peninsula.  I have already narrowed by thesis down and will argue that corporate paternalism and their stronghold on the community was the cause of little labor reform during the Progressive Era (1900-1920).  When I spoke with the archivist on my trip to Marquette he pointed me into the direction of the Finnish community as the Finns were heavily involved in the Socialist Movement sweeping American labor at this time. The reason for their strong involvement came from their homeland of Finland where the Socialist Movement was the strongest. 

When I was done explaining my argument to Marcus (the archivist) he had some reservations on my thesis thus turning me to the Finnish community.  He brought up the notion that corporate paternalism had been practiced around the country at this time all the while labor reform was seen as well.  Therefore, he has tried to argue that it was the Finns of Marquette County and their opposition to the Socialist Movement that caused a state of 'content' on the Range rather than the Paternalistic policies of the Cleveland-Cliffs Company.  Examples of the Finnish radicals progress towards labor reform can be seen during the Copper Country Strike of 1913. This was the strike in which over 70 people died during a Christmas party and was the topic of a song heard in class today.  The Finns on the Copper Range accepted the Socialist Movement more so than the Finns on the Iron Ranges.  But why is this the case?  I don't really know and as much as I would like to research this, I don't know if I will have enough time to do a comparative study of two communities thus, I will stick solely to the Marquette Range.

My argument will be that the lack of labor reform was due to corporate paternalism and will use the Finnish community as a primary example.  I will have to touch on the Finnish radicals that were striking in the Keewenaw at this time and argue that the Cleveland-Cliffs Company invested heavily in the community, more so than any other company, and saw positive results as the employees did not seek reform and in the few cases they did, they lost. This case of paternalism and the communities acceptance of it can best be seen by the response of a miner wife in which she stated, "we were satisfied with it."  Meaning, they were satisfied with the life they had and the benefits given to them by the mining company. 

Now...back to writing!

Have a great Halloween Weekend and Go State!

Former President Theodore Roosevelt On Trial in Marquette County

As I was looking through various trials that have incorporated the Cleveland-Cliffs Company in Marquette, County, I came upon a source that said Teddy Roosevelt went on trial in Marquette.  Though this has little to do with my research I decided to check it out.  Here is the rundown.  Roosevelt was a frequent traveler to the Marquette Iron Range during campaign stops.  He came to town during his campaign for President in 1912 as the "Bull Moose" party candidate, a party he introduced after losing in the Republican primaries to William Taft.  On October 12 of that year an article was written in the Ishpeming Iron Ore Magazine which stated that Roosevelt, "lied, swore and was not infrequently drunk on his trip through the area."  This caused Roosevelt to sue the editor of the Iron Ore Newspaper, George A. Newton for defamation and slander.  Newton was a staunch Republican, as most newspaper editors and leading officials in Marquette Country were during this period, and was upset over Roosevelt's split from the party. During the trial, Roosevelt called upon witnesses to his trip that proved he was never drunk and acted in a proper fashion.  After he made his case, Newton and his lawyer, who happened to be the lawyer of the Cleveland-Cliffs Company as well rested because they could not prove he was drunk at any point during his trip.  This resulted in a ruling for the plaintiff, President Roosevelt, who was awarded 6 cents after his attorneys attempted to receive $10,000, which Roosevelt disagreed with.

As I write this I can't help but somehow relate this directly to my research.  The role of the Republican Party's strong presence in Marquette County has an role in the content of the miners.  During this period 80% of the public officials were Republican and these are the same officials who played a role in the squashing of labor reform.  But with this, Republicans were not alone. The Finnish communities strong opposition to the Socialist Movement and their ideology forced the lack of labor reform as did the corporate paternalism exhibited by the Cleveland-Cliffs Company.

If you would like to read more about arguably the most notable Libel Case in United States History I have posted a link to an article below...

http://www.michbar.org/journal/pdf/pdf4article263.pdf

Former President Theodore Roosevelt

Michigan Iron Industry Museum

Hello Everyone,

This morning I went to the Michigan Iron Industry Museum located in Negaunee, Michigan.  When I arrived I was amazed by the amount of material the museum had regarding to iron mining and those who lived on the few Michigan Iron Ranges.

What proved to be the most helpful was a film titled "Iron Spirits: Life on the Marquette Iron Range."  It was a short film which described the life of miners and their families and the relationship they had with the mining companies.  After looking through the exhibits and the movie I was able to pick up several special issues of Michigan History which are dedicated to iron mining.  In these magazines are a few articles that I have been trying to find because they are full of useful information.

Now that my time up here is coming to a close I am happy that I made the trip.  Though the main purpose of this trip was to visit family I'm glad I had the opportunity to study my topic in the very community that I am studying. After this trip I believe now I am ready to start writing my paper with many credible sources.

See you on Tuesday!

Studying in the Snow

So...I made it to Marquette finally!  After what seemed to be a drive that would never end I spent a few hours in the Archives at Northern Michigan University.  Before I looked at the company records of Cleveland-Cliffs Company I was able to meet with the director of the archives who spoke to me about the mining industry and its effect on the surrounding communities.  Because I have finally narrowed my research to the understanding of why labor disputes did not occur on the Marquette Range from 1900-1920 I was able to look through information that pertained directly to my topic.

Before coming to Northern Michigan I was going to argue that the lack of labor victories on the Marquette Iron Range was due to solely the corporate paternalism exhibited by CCI.  However, after talking with Marcus (the archivist) I have added another source that attributes to unsuccessful attempts to reform labor, the Finnish community.

When I spoke with Michalee last week we were talking about narrowing my topic down and one facet of the Marquette Range that kept jumping out to me was the vibrant immigrant community. The Finns on the Range was the largest immigrant community, thus they held more power than others.  Though they were the largest of immigrant communities on all mining ranges in the UP the one living in Marquette County held different ideologies towards labor and reform.

The Finns in Marquette were more conservative than those on the other ranges and this attributed to the unsuccessful attempt of the Socialist Party's attempt to promote radical labor reform.  Along with the conservative tendencies of Marquette's Finlanders was the problem of factionalism.  Different factions were created in the early 20th century among Finns in Marquette and they were surrounded around their leaders.  These two factions were led by Frank Aaltonen who was a Socialist promoter and William Nisto who led the effort against the Socialist movement.  Because they did not hold an united front when asking CCI for labor reform, they did not succeed.  Though it seems as simple as this I know that there is a lot more information to look through.  Tomorrow I will be looking through microfilms of the Iron Ore Newspaper based out of Ishpeming, Michigan which spoke often about the Socialist Movement on the Marquette Range.

I will keep everyone posted on what I find. Have a great weekend and GO GREEN!

Hittin' the Road

Tomorrow morning I will be heading up to the UP so I can look through Northern Michigan University's archives.  That is where the company records of the Cleveland-Cliffs Company are held.  I am quite excited to look through many documents regarding the paternalism shown by the company and how all attempts of labor reforms failed.

Something that will prove helpful is the archivist I will be meeting.  After e-mailing him my scope of research and what I was looking for he responded with great news.  He has a compilation of records that help in my research and even sent me some research he has done.  He has spoken at a conference on the very subject I will be focusing on and will help me prove my thesis.  I will be updating my blog quite a bit these next few days because this is where most of my research will be taking place.

"New Paternalism" on the Marquette Iron Range

As I deep more and more into my research on the Marquette Iron Range it is about time to narrow the scope of my research.  I have gone over several options and decided to dedicate my paper on the "Corporate Paternalism" shown by the Cleveland-Cliffs Company on the Marquette Iron Range from 1890-1930.  The reason I chose this time period is because of its relevance.  This was the time period in which William G. Mather was president of the company and he was the one who introduced the notion of "New Paternalism" to the Range.  Another reason I chose this period is because of the prevalence of the Progressive Movement in the Upper Peninsula and Mather's close ties to the movement. 

During this period the Marquette Range saw a low number of labor disturbances compared to other industries including the Copper Mining Industry in the Keweenaw Peninsula.  Several factors led to the feeling of content among iron miners with the most important being the presence of paternalism by mining companies. 

What I find interesting about the scope of my research is the similarity with the book we are reading in class, The Story of Reo Joe.  Like Ransom Olds, William G. Mather instilled a sense of community surrounding around the industry that they led.  I am finding more and more similarities among these two individuals as I read the book and research the paternalism of William Mather.

I hope everyone is well underway with their research and is enjoying, The Story of Reo Joe.







William G. Mather (Cleveland-Cliffs Company President, 1890-1931)

Gwinn East to West

This is a video of someone driving through Gwinn, Michigan, the town created by the Cleveland-Cliffs Mining Company. Though some time has passed since the Cleveland-Cliffs Company involvement with the community it gives a rough estimate of how their community was structured. Gwinn is known for its layout and the notion that it was designed with great insight and precision is proven when watching this.

Gwinn, Michigan - "Model Town"

I have found something quite interesting about the Cleveland-Cliffs Company and their involvement with the people of Marquette County.  The Company created a town that was dubbed "Model Town" because it was constructed in a way that the Company wanted to replicate in other towns.  This town is known as Gwinn, Michigan.  Cleveland-Cliffs Austin Mine was located on this land and starting in 1906, William Mather, the President of CCI, decided to build a town where his employees could live.  Throughout the early 20th century the Cleveland-Cliffs Company kept close ties with the community and most early leaders in the community political structure were employed in the mines.  This ended in 1946 when CCI diminished its role with the community. This is one example of the direct relationship between Cleveland-Cliffs and a specific community in Marquette County, and will provide evidence for my thesis. 

Recorded in Stone: Voices on the Marquette Iron Range

As I stated in an earlier post, Northern Michigan University has a site dedicated to the voices of miners.  Not many miners had the time or resources to put their personal experiences into writing, but recently have agreed to be interviewed in an attempt to preserve the history of the Marquette Range. Below is a link to the website and the default interview is about the Barnes-Hecker Mine Disaster. I will hopefully use some of the interviews that exist at the NMU library and will definitely be referencing the disaster in my paper.

http://voices.nmu.edu/content.asp?PageName=Index

Barnes-Hecker Memorial

Cliffs of Iron: Underground Mining

This is a clip from the documentary Cliffs of Iron: Immigrants and Promise on the Marquette Range.  It gives great insight on the importance of brotherhood among miners, especially those who worked in an underground mine.