This page is a guide to the historical study of the Seattle General Strike of 1919 and related issues. It offers links to original research reports, published articles, photographs, political cartoons, document facsimiles, and extensive bibliographic and archival guides. In addition, there are links to related web projects. Sponsored by the University of Washington Center for Labor Studies , the page is coordinated by Professor James Gregory.
Strikers gather groceries as the strike begins.
Webster and Stevens Coll., Museum of History and Industry. I era of labor conflict that saw massive strikes shut down the nation's steel, coal, and meatpacking industries and threaten civil unrest in a dozen cities. The Seattle strike began in the shipyards, which had expanded overnight with war production contracts and where 35,000 workers expected a post- war wage hike to make up for two years of strict wage controls imposed by the federal government. When federal regulators refused, the Metal Trades Council, an alliance of shipyard unions, declared a strike and closed the yards, appealing also to Seattle's powerful Central Labor Council for help. Most of the city's 110 local unions then voted to join a sympathy walkout.