The Great Steel Strike of 1919
Braddock, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
In the largest work stoppage to that date, over 350,000 U.S. workers went off the job. Rev. Adalbert Kazincy, pastor of St. Michael's here, championed the strikers and provided the church as a meeting place. The strike failed after 15 weeks.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
By 1919 the mills around Braddock were the beating heart of American steel, and that autumn more than 350,000 workers walked off the job in the largest strike the nation had yet seen. Immigrant laborers demanding union recognition and an end to the grueling twelve-hour day found an ally in Rev. Adalbert Kazincy of St. Michael's, who opened his church as a rallying place when public halls were closed to them. After fifteen bitter weeks the strike collapsed, and organized labor in steel would not recover for another generation.
Why it matters
The Great Steel Strike exposed the raw power of industrial employers over an immigrant workforce and became a landmark in the long, hard road toward the right of American workers to organize.
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Related people
- · Rev. Adalbert Kazincy
Related events
- · Great Steel Strike of 1919
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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