Today in Labor History

December 06

African American delegates meet in Washington, D.C., to form the Colored National Labor Union as a branch of the all-white National Labor Union created three years earlier. Unlike the NLU, the CNLU welcomed members of all races. Isaac Myers was the CNLU's founding president; Frederick Douglas became president in 1872 - 1869

The Washington Monument is completed in Washington, D.C. On the interior of the monument are 193 commemorative stones, donated by numerous governments and organizations from all over the world; one of them is from the International Typographical Union, founded in 1852.

 In 1986 the ITU merged into the Communications Workers of America - 1884


361 coal miners die at Monongah, W.V., in nation's worst mining disaster - 1907

International Glove Workers Union of America merges into Amalgamated Clothing Workers - 1961

United Mine Workers begin what is to become a 110-day national coal strike - 1997

Working Class Heroes

Today in #LaborHistory: Dec 6, 1917 -via- 'Rip and Ron'

The Great Halifax, Nova Scotia, explosion. A munitions ship collided with another ship setting off the explosion. The massive explosion killed more than 1,800 people, injured another 9,000--including blinding 200--and destroyed almost the entire north end of the city of Halifax, including more than 1,600 homes. The resulting shock wave shattered windows 50 miles away, and the sound of the explosion could be heard hundreds of miles away.

"In December, 1917, Halifax, Nova Scotia, was the hub of the Dominion of Canada. World War I had brought activity and prosperity to the port. The harbour was crowded with wartime shipping." - from http://museum.gov.ns.ca/mma/atoz/HalExpl.html
...

"An explosion in Halifax Harbour at 9 a.m., wrecked the city, causing the death of perhaps 3000 persons, injuring as many more, destroying the homes of twice that number and causing an, as yet, incalculable destruction of property. The explosion was caused by the collision of two steamers, the French Mont Blanc, carrying a quantity of nitro-glycerine and TNT, and the Belgian relief steamer Imo." - from http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~canbrnep/hfxexp.htm

"This website will take you through that terrible day and the days that followed. It will show how the Halifax Explosion and the hard lessons it taught affect our lives today." - from http://www.cbc.ca/halifaxexplosion/