Why was terence powderly important

Over the decade that followed, though, the Knights expanded across the nation, attracting a range of workers in different industries, from blacksmiths and boilermakers to bricklayers and carpet weavers. The only occupations they excluded were bankers, lawyers, gamblers and saloon keepers. In , Stephens stepped down, and Terrence V.

Powderly, a machinist of Catholic Irish ancestry from Carbondale, Pennsylvania, was elected to take his place. At the time it was seen as a radical stance. At the apex of their power, the Knights achieved some major successes. Led by organizer Joseph Buchanan, the Knights shut down every railroad shop from Omaha Nebraska to Ogden, Utah, as well as all the branch lines.

As Matthew Hild recounts in Greenbackers, Knights of Labor and Populists , it only took four days for the railroad bosses to rescind the pay reduction. Shortly afterward, the Knights waged even bigger successful strikes in against the Wabash Railroad and Southwest railroad system controlled by financier Jay Gould.

The organization championed broad-ranging social and economic reform, including an eight-hour work day, health and safety laws to protect workers, and a system that would provide for them if they were injured on the job—an early version of workers compensation insurance.

The Knights also advocated an end to child and convict labor, equal pay for women, and laws requiring that employers participate in arbitration to resolve differences with workers. They also advocated nationalization of the railroads and telephone networks, and a graduated federal income tax similar to the one eventually established in But not every position that the organization took was progressive.

The Knights saw asian immigrants as competition that employers would use to keep down their wages. They supported the Chinese Exclusion Act of and the Alien Contract Labor Law of , which barred companies from bringing unskilled laborers into the United States to work under contract.

Running a campaign which promised reduction of debt and government efficiency, Powderly was simultaneously considered a working-class challenger to the status quo. His opponents joined forces and took part in reprehensible efforts to undermine his credibility. Some highlighted his Catholicism as a threat, while others emphasized how the Catholic Church did not approve of the Knights of Labor.

Their negative campaigning efforts were unsuccessful, and Terence V. Powderly was elected mayor of Scranton in February of , joined by a significant Greenback-Labor presence in the city council and other offices.

Upon taking office, Mayor Powderly immediately set out his plan to create a modern city: a board of health, an investigation of fraud, the building of an adequate sewage system, and paved roads. Despite never having a majority in the city council, many of his initiatives were passed by the city councils by the end of his three terms. Within 6 months of taking office, he overhauled law enforcement and chose men of integrity to serve, mostly from the Greenback-Labor party or the Knights of Labor.

The Scranton Newspaper, Daily Times , later referred to the city as the model of order. In , Powderly set a proper fire-fighting force on the agenda, while his ever-increasing recognition as a labor politician outside of Scranton finally caught up to him. The successful introduction of politics into the Knights had occurred in a number of locations, but Powderly was the clearest example.

When it was decided to create a national organization for the union, Powderly was first elected Grand Worthy Foreman, second-in-command, then assumed the top position of Grand Master Workman after the resignation of Uriah Stephens.

First, a board of appeals was set up for those who disagreed with tax assessment. The second legislation continued his work on the sewer system, and the third established licenses for merchants and businesses in Scranton which is seen as a small step towards more equitable distribution of wealth. As re-election season came, his greatest asset was the credit received for his health reforms. Local newspapers did reports on how measures he had enacted limited the outbreak of diseases like smallpox, yet the Democratic Party had absorbed or defeated most of the Greenback-Labor party by In his last term, he continued to work on government efficiency, especially regarding tax assessment, and he made constructive proposals like building a hospital and a public building for the future.

He spent a considerable amount of energy in a losing effort for the Democratic nomination in against a career politician, which critical historians are quick to point out in lieu of his responsibilities as leader of the Knights of Labor. In any case, Terence V. Powderly was recognized nationally by many as the voice of labor during his time, as mentioned previously.

In addition, the Knights of Labor became the premier union during his era growing to , members in from a mere 9, members when Powderly took the reins in Factors other than Powderly are important to consider in judging the success of the Knights of Labor, most notably the end of the Depression and a local Knights of Labor victory against notorious robber baron Jay Gould. Still, Powderly provided meticulous administrative attention to detail as a leader. He also continued to discourage the Knights of Labor from unnecessary involvement in strikes or violent action and avoid a dominant school of thought in the union, limiting with some success the damaging perception of the union as an anarchist, socialist, and radical group during the period when it grew the most.

At his prime, workers were naming their children after Terence V. Meanwhile, in , he was elected the Knights' grand master workman general master workman after His accession marked a significant departure in Knights' policy.

His predecessor, a Baptist, had been indifferent to the Catholic Church's opposition to the Knights. Powderly, although a Mason, was also a Roman Catholic and realized that the American Catholic hierarchy must be placated if the Knights were to flourish among Catholic workers. He persuaded the union to abandon its secrecy and to remove scriptural references from its ritual. Powderly disapproved of strikes, considering them too costly for the small benefits gained.

He was a humanitarian visionary, interested in the long-term goals of abolishing the wage system and instituting a cooperative society rather than in short-term gains.

With his approval, various local assemblies of the Knights set up producers' and consumers' cooperatives, including a coal mine. However, as head of the union , Powderly had to devote much time to settling strikes the various locals became involved in. The Knights were involved in a series of dramatically successful strikes during the early s. The most notable involved a strike against the railroads of financier Jay Gould.

Terence V. Powderly House from street Photograph by Kristen Carsto. Powderly House frontview Photograph by Kristen Carsto. The Knights of Labor, originally a secret organization, was the leading labor organization of the s. Under Powderly's leadership for 14 years, the Knights of Labor promoted the unity of labor and union organization.

In an attempt to form a large union the Knights counted both African Americans and women as members.