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District 14 of the United Mine Workers of America has long been an important element in Southeast Kansas coal mining. Members remain in the area.
“Long before the United Mine Workers organization came into existence, the Knights of Labor was a great organization including nearly every branch of labor. … In this organization the coal miners had a national representation; a council. Discussions sprang up about 1890, and … the national Progressive Union of Miners and Mine Laborers of the United States was organized. It was not long before the miners belonging to the Knights of Labor realized the folly of supporting two organizations with the same object in view, and so the two consolidated in 1892 into the United Mine Workers of America.
“District 14 [encompassing Kansas and parts of Missouri] of the Knights of Labor and Progressive Union became the reorganized district of U. M. W. of A. M[att] L. Walters, of Scammon, … was elected president of the district …, and J. M. Lacey, of Vernon [Missouri], secretary-treasurer.
“No sooner had the district been organized than the great strike of ’93 came on.”
In future articles we shall report more on the strike of 1893.
Source: The Pittsburg Daily Headlight, Monday, 2 September 1901, Vol. XIV, No. 119.
Born in 1944 at the old Mt. Carmel Hospital, Pittsburg, Jerry D. Lomshek has been a lifelong resident of Crawford County and the Chicopee area. The grandson of a Slovene immigrant coal miner, he became interested in history at a young age, and began researching family and local history at the age of 14. This being a lifelong passion, he has amassed a mammoth amount of local historical data over the years. He has lectured and written several manucripts concerning the history of Southeast Kansas. From his service in the Navy, and as a registered nurse, he spent 45 years involved in various aspects of health care. Since retiring, he has devoted his time to further local historical research and various community involvement.
