Joe Hill and Labor Unions

Vocabulary

• labor unions: organizations of workers that seek to protect members’ rights and get better working conditions (like safer work, higher pay, or shorter hours).
• strikes: when a group of workers (usually in a labor union) refuse to work as a way to protest conditions and demand change.
• Industrial Workers of the World (IWW): an international labor union, started in Chicago in 1905, that any worker could join. The IWW was more radical than other unions in both its goals and its methods.
• radical: supporting drastic change.
• capitalism: an economic system where individuals and companies are in charge of producing and selling things.
• socialism: a system where a centralized government (representing the people) is in charge of producing and selling things.
• anarchism: the idea that governments should be ended and that individuals should not be underneath anyone else’s authority.
• alibi: a claim someone makes about where they were or what they were doing when a crime took place (in other words, why they could not have committed the crime).
• conviction: a formal declaration from the judge or jury that someone is guilty of a crime.
• martyr: someone who dies for their cause or beliefs.

Immigration

Photo by Photo courtesy of Utah Department of Cultural and Community Engagement

In the late 1800s, the western United States became a center of mining, smelting, and railroad activity. Workers from around the world went to western states like Utah for work, and the state’s population grew. Although a few people made fortunes extracting coal, silver, copper, or gold from the ground, most miners did not become wealthy. Instead, they labored under dangerous and unhealthy conditions. Miners used risky and unpredictable explosives, which would sometimes lead to horrible accidents, like the Scofield Mine Disaster that killed 200 people. Rock falls or small cave-ins were more common and could injure or kill miners. The mines also had poor ventilation. Dust and fumes could give workers lung diseases that were often fatal.

Labor Unions

Workers in other industries also experienced poor working conditions, and they began to take action. One worker by himself could probably not get his boss to listen to him. But large groups of workers who organized into labor unions could be more influential. Labor unions demanded reforms like higher wages, safer working conditions, and shorter hours. They used strikes to shut down mines and factories in order to pressure employers to meet their demands. The United States government, state governments, and the majority of middle-class Americans opposed the labor unions’ tactics. This was especially true in Utah.

Photo by Photo courtesy of Utah Department of Cultural and Community Engagement

The culture of the immigrants who arrived in Utah to mine often clashed with the farming culture of the earlier settlers. The labor unions they formed were often opposed by the more conservative leaders and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Mormons, who made up a majority of Utahns. Conflict developed between mine owners and mine laborers in Utah and throughout the West.

Photo by Photo courtesy of Utah Department of Cultural and Community Engagement

One of the most radical labor unions was the Industrial Workers of the World, better known as the IWW or “Wobblies.” Like other unions, the IWW fought for better working conditions for miners and laborers. However, Wobblies’ goals and tactics were more extreme than many other unions. They demanded radical changes like ending capitalism and they sometimes used violence. Many IWW members were socialists or anarchists. That gained the IWW many enemies in the government, business, other unions, and among average Americans.

Photo by Photo courtesy of The Salt Lake Tribune

Joe Hill

One of the most well known members of the IWW was Swedish immigrant Joe Hill, also known as Joseph Hillstrom. Living in Chicago where the IWW was created, Hill became active in the union community.

Later, Hill moved to California and his leadership role grew. He was a talented musician, and he began writing songs about labor reform, encouraging people everywhere to organize by joining the IWW. His tunes used inspiring lyrics and sarcastic humor to unite workers against what he called the injustice of corrupt and greedy business owners. After some minor trouble with the law in California, Hill moved to Utah, where labor unions were opposed by government officials and by most residents. Hill was bound to face opposition.

Morrison Murder

On the night of January 10, 1914, John Morrison and his two young sons, 13-year-old Merlin and 17-year-old Arling, were preparing to close their grocery store in Salt Lake City. Merlin had just stepped into the back of the store when two men entered the front. Their faces were covered with red handkerchiefs. Within a few seconds, the intruders shot and killed John and Arling. Merlin witnessed the crime as he hid behind a counter. He reported that Arling managed to shoot at one of the attackers before he died. This claim was never confirmed, as a bullet or bloodstains were never found in the store.

Photo by Photo courtesy of J. Willard Marriot Digital Library

On the same night and about the same time, Joe Hill visited Dr. Frank McHugh a few streets away from the murders. He needed treatment for a gunshot wound to the shoulder. He claimed that he had been injured in a dispute over a woman. He refused to share the woman’s name or give more details about his alibi. Dr. McHugh claimed that he saw Hill carrying a gun that night. Because of Hill’s suspicious gunshot wound and unproved alibi, he was arrested and charged with murder.

Before and during Hill’s trial, people from around the world (especially fellow Wobblies) showed their support for Joe Hill. They thought was innocent. The trial became very controversial, partially because Hill was a leader in the radical international union. Many people demanded that he be released, and some even wrote letters that threatened Utah government officials. After Hill’s conviction, Utah’s governor, William Spry, received hundreds of letters calling for the execution to be postponed. Among the many that wrote in Hill’s defense were President Woodrow Wilson, the Swedish Minister, Hellen Keller, and labor union leaders like Eugene Debs. But not everyone agreed. Many letter-writers encouraged Governor Spry to carry out the court’s verdict and execute Hill.

In spite of the public support for Hill, he was found guilty of the murder of John and Arling Morrison. Hill demanded a new trial, but his unwillingness to provide more information about his alibi convinced court officials that his trial had been fair. On November 19, 1915, Hill was executed. His body was burned and his ashes were delivered to IWW headquarters all around the world to be released in a global ceremony. His death was used by union activists to unite the working class.

Photo by Photo courtesy of J. Willard Marriot Digital Library

Was Hill Guilty?

The events surrounding Hill’s trial and execution remain controversial today. The debate continues about whether he received a fair trial or whether his involvement in the IWW unfairly influenced the trial. Many members of labor unions still view Hill as an innocent martyr, unfairly tried and convicted by conspiring business owners, government officials, and religious leaders who opposed unions. Others argue that Hill’s unwillingness to explain his alibi make his guilt clear. Some contend that Hill, a gifted song-writer, could never have committed such a heinous crime. Others, who focus on Hill’s criminal past and his connections to anarchists and violent union activity, stand by the court’s decision. Was it possible for such a controversial character to receive a fair trial?

References

• Alexander, Thomas G. "Utah, the right place, rev. ed." Salt Lake City: Gibbs Smith (2003).
• Harmon, Jeremy. “The Making of a Martyr.” Who was Joe Hill? The Salt Lake Tribune . Accessed January 9, 2023. https://local.sltrib.com/charts/joehill/hill.html.

This lesson can be adapted to fulfill either a Utah History Core Standard or a US History II Core Standard. Find the resources for both classes below.

7th Grade:

UT Standard 3.3: Students will describe the effects of events, movements, and innovations on Utah's economic development, such as the organized labor movement, farming and industrial improvements, the World Wars, and the Great Depression. (economics)

11th Grade:

U.S. II Standard 2.1: Students will use primary and secondary sources to identify and explain the conditions that led to the rise of reform movements, such as organized labor, suffrage, and temperance.

U.S. II Standard 2.4: Students will evaluate the short- and long-term accomplishments and effectiveness of social, economic, and political reform movements.