In June of 1973, workers at the Brookside coal mine in Harlan County, Kentucky voted 113-55 to replace their membership in the Southern Labor Union (SLU) and join the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) union. It was a nearly decade-long conflict, lasting from 1931 to 1939. [4]:5688 Their attempts at strikes, while weak in surrounding counties, were utter failures in Harlan, where only a fraction of the workforce walked out in 1931 and 1932. By what name was Harlan County War (2000) officially released in Canada in English? Although these miners today have no union, the mines of Harlan County have a storied history of grassroots labor militancy. California labor activist Caroline Decker first became involved in union activities during the Harlan County War, when she and her sister participated in relief activities for striking miners. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/JeffSpeed68/56171 Ft: Aussens@iter (tobias_weber), Gerd Kohlmeier, Audio Podcast WordPress Theme By VWThemes, The Harlan County Coal War (Podcast Episode), The Hatfields and the McCoys: After the Feud, http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/ramblinglibrarian/41284. Marshalltown 62, Fort Dodge 41. All rights reserved. It outlawed yellow-dog contracts, company unions, blacklists and discrimination on basis of union activity, all tactics employed by coal companies. Rounder Records has also added related material drawn mostly from two earlier album releases, 1972's Come All You Coal Miners and 1984's They'll Never Keep Us Down: Women's Coal Mining . . Unlike the previous Coal Wars that took place in West Virginia with the Paint-Creek Strike of 1912 and Matewan that lasted for a year or two. Tec4 US Army World War II. Boyle had Yablonski murdered. The 1920s, a decade of defeat for American workers everywhere, left the UMWA in a shambles. All of you men, not just fathers, with a special lady in your life, this is for you too! There is still coal in Appalachia, but also deep poverty. There were constant beatings of the miners by the Sheriffs deputies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. [4]:32 Only three of Harlan's incorporated towns were not owned by mines, hungry and evicted workers and their families sought refuge in them, primarily in the town of Evarts. Madonna left fans speechless as she asked Hollywood pal Amy Schumer how she "licks her husband's a**hole". In response, the coal owners and operators decided to sell their fuel at below cost to increase the national dependency on coal. In a very racy Instagram post promoting her new worldwide tour - which will see the pop sensation celebrate four decades of her greatest hits - Madonna turned to Amy to ask her the X-rated question. After his military career, he spent a number of years in corporate manufacturing management, in the textiles industry, where he crossed paths with a few too many new-generation Gordon Gekkkos and chose to move on to consulting work on behalf of "Con los pobres de la tierra quiero yo mi suerte echar . $30 for 12 issues. A Kentucky woman whose mine-worker husband is nearly killed in a cave-in, and whose father is slowly dying of black lung, joins the picket lines for a long, violent strike. [4]:39 The citizens of Harlan, for their part, lost any illusions they may have held about impartiality in law enforcement. 706 W 2nd St Alma, NE 68920. The UMW union called in the National Guard to help them. Greene quoted a New York Times story published in 1938: "A Harlan County camp is no weekend resort for sissies." During the 1930s, union suppression and strikes led to violence that went both ways and became known as the Harlan County Wars. 2, Which Side Are You On? Today we tell that story on our YouTube channel. [12] On May 24 a union rally was tear-gassed, and Sheriff Blair rescinded county members' right to assemble. 09/16/2018. $2. The Great Depression of 1929 through the late 1930s hit Harlan County Kentucky. The decision caused unrest in the county among the miners. Aging autocrat and UMWA President John L. Lewis agreed to allow the employers a free hand in mechanizing the mines. They have also been used in anti-nuclear and anti-military actions in decades past, one of which resulted in anti-war veteran Brian Willson losing his legs in 1987. On July 7, a group of deputies, enraged at a public celebration of the Wagner Act, dispersed the crowd by beating several miners. A Committee was formed and conducted by Activist Theodore Dreiser under the auspices of the National Committee for the Defense of Political Prisoners (NCDPP). Tap "Sign me up" below to receive our weekly newsletter The most memorable of those are 1964, 1966, 1969 (The West Virginia Black Lung strike that the miners won) 1971, and the 1974 Strikes. The Seco Train Accident September 20, 1917, New Bank in the Coal Country Installed in 1911, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Evarts, https://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/new-deal/national-industrial-recovery-act-of-1933/, https://pipiwiki.com/wiki/Battle_of_Evarts, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harlan_County_War, https://labornotes.org/blogs/2019/08/brief-history-harlan-county-usa, https://www.thebalancecareers.com/the-wagner-act-of-1935-national-labor-relations-act-2060509#:~:text=%20The%20Wagner%20Act%20defines%20and%20prohibits%20five,or%20administration%20of%20a%20labor%20organization.%20More%20, https://www.nytimes.com/1935/09/05/archives/bomb-in-auto-kills-kentucky-official-harlan-county-attorney.html#:~:text=HARLAN%2C%20Ky.%2C%20Sept.%204%20%28AP%29.%20%20The%20death,his%20automobile.%20View%20Full%20Article%20in%20Timesmachine%20%C2%BB, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/70804679/elmon-clay-middleton, https://www.nytimes.com/1935/09/06/archives/kentucky-holds-four-in-auto-bomb-killing-harlan-prosecutors-death.html, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/?fbclid=IwAR21nYphw4Dul-_EwuAmSWgzsvPLNwsMM0FtV75j0y-mGUHq-lCZjJxZot8, The Flatwoods Monster: Weird Appalachia Cases, Rotherwood Mansion: Weird Appalachia Cases, The Brown Mountain Ghostly Lights: Weird Appalachia Cases. I have attended the University of Kentucky. The Harlan County War in the 1930s consisted of violent confrontations among strikers, strikebreakers, mine company security forces, and law enforcement. An open shop allows union membership but does not mandate it. Memorials. No help came to those that were in starving situations due to no money to spend on food and no admittance to the company store unless they were gainfully employed by the coal mine. 6, Which Side Are You On? 17, Which Side Are You On? Harlan County War (89) 6.4 1 h 44 min 2000 16+ A Kentucky woman whose mine-worker husband is nearly killed in a cave-in, and whose father is slowly dying of black lung disease, joins the picket lines for a long, violent strike. return to the Civil War Homepage. Sheriff Blair was voted out of office in 1933 and died in 1934, replaced by T. R. Middleton, a candidate who ran on a pro-union platform. The United Mine Workers union also cited that they did not have the resources to help in the battle. [10] The Kentucky National Guard was once again called in on December 8, 1934, requested by UMW organizers who had been threatened by bosses and deputies. Microfilmed records can be found online at Kentucky, Probate Records, 1792-1977 for Caldwell, Henry, Hickman, Russell and Trimble counties. After World War II the National Federation of State High School Associations also began discouraging intersectional postseason games. No concessions or deals were made between the two factions and the membership of the United Mine Workers union plummeted. And it wouldn't happen over night so coal miners would have time to re-educate themselves. Youll either be a union man or a thug for J.H. : The Harlan County Coal Miners, 193139, by John W. Hevener p.79, JOHN HENRY BLAIR. Blair. Eight miners were sentenced to life in prison for the actions that were taken on May 5, 1931. I have been married to David W. Sergent since May 4, 2013. Mabel-Canton, Minn. 57, Postville 47. Teton County, Montana, USA will be saved to your photo volunteer list. John Henry "J.H." Blair (1879 - 1934) was the sherrif of Harlan County, Kentucky during the Harlan County War, which was a series of coal mining-related skirmishes, executions, bombings, and strikes (both attempted and realized) that took place in Harlan County, Kentucky during the 1930s. The Harlan County War, or Bloody Harlan, was a series of coal mining-related skirmishes, executions, bombings, and strikes (both attempted and realized) that took place in Harlan County, Kentucky during the 1930s. This caused the clergy to denounce the union. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. . Just below that it reads "Ticket Confirmation#:" followed by a 10-digit number. The miners lay in ambush for cars delivering materials to strikebreakers and shot at them. Over one thousand shots were exchanged during those fifteen minutes. Spread the loveOn July 5th, 1939, heavy rains in Eastern Kentucky led to massive flooding, affecting 21 counties with the worst of the floods happening in Rowan and Breathitt counties. For a long-suffering community in Kentucky, the White House's claim that the war on poverty was won sounds like a cruel joke. 42-45, Which Side Are You On? Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. Among them is Silas Kincaid (Ted Levine), whose wife, Ruby Kincaid (Holly Hunter), becomes a key player during the strike. two men who know and understand each other better than anyone else in all of harlan county, and whose bond actually found ways to become even deeper as they crossed paths once again and ended up on opposite sides of the law, though it's easy to imagine how either one of them could have turned out differently because of one push and end up going At the peak of the first strike, 5800 miners were idle and only 900 working. This was thirteen percent of the workers showing up for their scheduled work times. The county became nationally famous in 1931 and 1932 when it was the site of one of the earliest and bloodiest labor battles of the decade. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Here at Kentucky Tennessee Living we fully support the coal miners and their families. H arlan county, Kentucky, earned the nickname "Bloody Harlan" from a series of labor strikes and violent confrontations in the 1930s led by coalminers and union organizers against coal. After the Battle of Evarts, the Red Cross and the United Mine Workers Union refused to help the striking men on the basis that it was now an industrial conflict that needed to be resolved internally. Harlan County USA is a 1976 documentary film directed by Barbara Kopple that chronicles a coal miners' strike in Harlan County, Kentucky. Marker is on Kentucky Route 3001, 0.1 miles north of U.S. 421, on the left when traveling west. Staff at the Harlan Hotel seemed pleased to show us the bullets still embedded in the failing faade of the aging building. 403 . Harlan County Photographs Jan 1935-June 1944 (Source: Photogrammar) Harlan County, Harlan America from the Great Depression to World War II (Source: American Memory from the Library of Congress) Harlan County, Pine Mountain America from the Great Depression to World War II (Source: American Memory from the Library of Congress) Director Tony Bill Writer Peter Silverman Stars Holly Hunter Stellan Skarsgrd This is open to all ages, and yes, we'd love to see you bring your grown princess just the same as those little ones! A 73-year-old Florence Reece attended and led a rousing, emotional rendition of Which Side Are You On?. 18. The film, which stars Holly Hunter, Kaminski's wife, is a fictional drama about a coal miner's wife who spearheads a year-long labor strike, and is set against the historical background of the 1970's Harlan County coal strike. Rank-and-file miners responded with a series of wildcat strikes, in 1964, 1966, and 1971, and in 1969 they won the great West Virginia Black Lung Strike, one of the few political strikes in U.S. history. The question at hand: the rights of Harlan County . Songwriter Florence Reece reported, Sheriff J. H. Blair and his men came to our house in search of Sam that's my husband he was one of the union leaders. $19.98 . Harlan County War Photos View All Photos (10) Movie Info Nearly everyone in Harlan County, Ky., works in the coal mines for Brookside Mining. Adventures of Brisco County, Jr The Complete Series DVD Western Comedy Campbell . Strikebreakers were often beaten. The Wagner Act of 1935 (National Labor Relations Act or NLRA) guaranteed the rights of workers to choose to organize. The authetic music of Appallachia aids considerably to this must-see film. The strikers expected protection but upon replacing deputized mine guards, the National Guard broke the picket lines instead. Before this war was over it is not known exactly how many miners, coal operators, deputies, and bosses would be killed. Taylor, P. F. (1979). Organizers were shot at, their homes gassed. Miners in Harlan County, Kentucky, have drawn national attention with their direct actionoccupying a railroad track to halt a coal train until the miners get paid the wages they are owed for digging it up. Childers, K. (2014). The Harlan County Coal Miners, 193139 by John W. Hevener P. 81-123, Which Side Are You On? I currently live in Tennessee but my hope is to one day come back home to live in the beautiful mountains once more. N10, BOMB IN AUTO KILLS KENTUCKY OFFICIAL: Harlan County Attorney New York Times; September 5, 1935; pg. Principal cast [ edit] Holly Hunter as Ruby Kincaid Stellan Skarsgrd as Warren Jakopovich Ted Levine as Silas Kincaid Wayne Robson as Tug Jones Alex House as Buddy Kincaid [citation needed] On February 16, 1931, in order to prevent operating at a loss, the Harlan County Coal Operators' Association cut miners' wages by 10%. It just seems silly that in 2020 we are still using such a dirty process to create energy. 15, KENTUCKY TROOPS MOBILIZE IN HARLAN: Company Is Called Out as the Mine New York Times; December 9, 1934; pg. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 3.00.The age distribution was 25.00% under the age of 18, 8.50% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 25.20% from 45 to 64, and 13.90% who were 65 years of age or older. On Friday, February 10th, we will be hosting our very first Daddy Daughter Dinner and Dance. Named after the popular Civil War novel, "The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come," by Kentucky . The Harlan County Coal Wars 1931-1939 (Complete video) Kentucky Tennessee Living 2.32K subscribers Subscribe 260 Share 9.1K views 1 year ago The Harlan County Coal Wars 1931-1939 We return. However, the battle continues to this day. Wanted to be able to spend their money at a store of their choice besides the Black Mountain Coal Company store. Mostly, the miners were fighting for improved working conditions, higher wages, and better housing options for their families. November 18, 1931; pg. Strangers were kidnapped, then lucky if they were just taken to the county line. Wages are poor and safety conditions are even worse, and, when union organizer Warren Jacopovich (Stellan Skarsgard) shows up, he's gradually able to convince the miners to strike. During the 20th century it was often a center of labor strife between coal mine owners and workers, especially in the Harlan County War of the 1930s. In response to the violence, the Kentucky National Guard was called in. The local community rallied behind them. Mack Elliott worked at one of, Spread the loveDuring the Great Depression jobs were hard to come by. There were only three cars in the motorcade each of which contained a sheriffs deputy. The Harlan County Wars took on its own epic spin on the ongoing fight between labor disputes and the coal operators and owners lasting almost ten years. Lastminute.com currently has Malta and Cyprus holidays from 95 - including flights. But some refuse to . Sadly, the state and federal troops would occupy the county several times. New York Times; May 12, 1934 pg. I was born in Florida and grew up in Burdine, Kentucky. Today, U.S. coal comes mostly from the Western plains, dug out by huge earth-moving machinery and carried to the coasts on mile-long, dust-spewing trains. It was the most violent attack of the Harlan County Coal wars and the most violence would only last fifteen minutes in total but would forever change the name to Bloody Harlan. 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