Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2021/Spring/105i/Section 22/Arthur Lee Emerson

Arthur Lee Emerson
Born	Tennessee, U.S.
Occupation	Union Organizer Lawyer
Organization	Brotherhood of Timber Workers
Spouse(s)	Christine Emerson
Children	4

Overview

Arthur Lee Emerson was a carpenter and union organizer in Louisiana in the early 1900s. He was interviewed by Covington Hall for the Federal Writers Project on December 15, 1938.

Life

Early Life

Emerson was born in Tennessee and was left at a very young age to an orphanage in Chattanooga. At 14 he was adopted by Dr. Parker who raised him at Lookout Mountain, near Mentone Alabama. They educated each other during Emerson's childhood. Parker died at 87.

Career

Emerson's career began at age 18 when he organized, led, and won a strike of Georgia strawberry pickers, securing better wages for the workers. After this, he traveled west where he was a lumber worker in Portland, Oregon before returning to the Southeast. His career took off in 1910 when he helped start the Brotherhood of Timber Workers in Western Louisiana. With the BTW he led a worker's revolt against the "Lumber Barons" of the region, in which he got his nickname "The Andrew Jackson of Southern Labor." This struggle continued until he and fellow ringleaders were arrested and charged with conspiracy to murder for a shootout between union men and company men. They were all acquitted, but Emerson suffered a nervous breakdown as a result. He later retired from union organizing and became a lawyer in Chattanooga. He had a brief resurgence in the Labor movement but suffered a stroke and was paralyzed in 1921. During this time he may have served as President of the Industrial Workers of the World in Louisiana.

Later Life

After his retirement, he moved his family to a farm in Mentone, Alabama where they struggled with farming. He had four children during this time.

Social Issues

The "Timber War"

The "Timber War" was a labor conflict between members of the Brotherhood of Timber Workers and the lumber companies in Western Louisiana and East Texas. It consisted of strikes at lumber mills throughout the region which occasionally escalated into violent confrontations between the BTW and the Southern Lumber Operators Association (SLOA). The "Timber War" began on May 17, 1911, when the operators of the lumber mills attempted to dissolve the unions by cutting hours drastically and closing most of the mills in the region. This failed to stop the BTW, which responded by laying out a plan for better working conditions and allying itself with the IWW in 1912. This, along with the integration of the BTW, helped the union gain power rapidly and increase pressure on the lumber companies to reopen. The conflict reached its peak on July 7, 1912, when Emerson and other union leaders went to the town of Grabow to speak to union members and strike-breakers to attempt to persuade them to join the BTW against the lumber companies. While he was speaking shots were fired and the union men returned fire against the company-employed guards. This shootout left three union men and one company guard dead and another 40 members of the BTW wounded. As a result, at least BTW members, including Emerson, were arrested. Emerson and other union leaders were charged with murder and assault. Three company men were arrested but not charged. The BTW men were supported during the trial by the IWW and other local unions and it ended with a unanimous "not guilty" verdict. The lumber companies used this opportunity to enforce further lockouts and to bring in other strikebreakers. As a result, the BTW lost much of its power by 1913 and had ceased to exist by 1916.

The Rise and Fall of The IWW

The IWW is an international union that operates on the idea of general unionism, often associated with revolutionary socialist ideologies and organizations. It operates under the principle of being the "One Big Union," the vessel to replace the wage-labor system and capitalism. The IWW was a significant change because it represented a unification of unskilled workers, minorities, immigrants, and women; all of which were often excluded from major skilled-labor unions.

The IWW was founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1905. The IWW participated and led many strikes throughout the beginning of the 20th century, especially in areas seen as unskilled which had previously struggled to organize and gain national attention. The IWW grew to almost 100,000 members in the lead-up to World War One where it led a new, intersectional, and revolutionary faction of unionism. The IWW gained a reputation as too radical because of its revolutionary and anti-war rhetoric. This would lead to its downfall in the aftermath of the war due to suppression by the US government, unpopularity with the public, and factionalization within the union. The IWW has experienced a resurgence in recent years due to the growing popularity of unions.