Strike!

On a recent trip to Massachusetts, I visited the Lowell National Historical Park in the city of Lowell http://www.nps.gov/lowe/index.htm. I love old mills, as does my mother & daughter. One particular mill is the Boott Cotton Mill where they made cotton cloth on large, mechanized looms. In the "Mill Girls" exhibition nearby there is some talk about the strikes that occurred in Lowell. This got me thinking about the Dunbarton here in Greenwich & their one strike...

In October of 1937 a union was formed at the Dunbarton in Greenwich. (The Paterson & Kearney, NJ & Anniston, AL plants were already unionized by this time.) A 10% wage increase was agreed upon in May 1938, but was revoked in February 1939 after the US & Great Britain signed a reciprocal trade agreement. This made imported linen thread cheaper, thus hurting the market for US produced thread & twine. Both NJ mills strike & shut production down.

Odd Fellows Hall in Greenwich where strike meetings were held



After an unenthusiastic strike meeting the day before, only about 20 workers picketed the mill on February 13, 1939. Estimates have Greenwich strikers at 12. Nine days later only about 10 workers were striking. A February 25th meeting has workers severing ties with the Textile Workers Organization & forming an independent union. By mid-March all workers were back at the Greenwich mill. Workers at both NJ mills were still out on strike.

The NJ strike ended on April 19, 1939. Workers gained some ground with the wage reduction changed from 10% to 7%, essentially giving all workers a 3% raise from pre-May 1938 wages. Greenwich's independent union was recognized by the National Labor Relations Board (NRLB). 40-hour work week, time & a half on Saturday, one week vacation, & no pay reductions for one year were also approved. The Union hosted a party at the White Swan Hotel on October 14, 1939. Dinner was brought to the boiler room for Sam McCune, the only employee left on duty that night!

For more information:

*Ruddock, W. Linen Threads and Broom Twines: An Irish and American Album and Directory of the People of the Dunbarton Mill Greenwich, New York 1879-1952. Bowie, MD: Hertiage Books, 1997.

^ Reciprocal Trade Agreement: http://www.washingtontradereport.com/RTAAcanada.htm

What I see from my window... the library!

Union Village Academy housed the first "public" library in Greenwich. Well, around 1833, for a small fee the public could use the school's library. By the 1870s the Academy had morphed into Greenwich High School & Union Village had morphed in to the village of Greenwich (1867). The school still had the only library in town (or village), and would until 1902.

In May 1902, the Greenwich Free Library opened on Main Street with a few hundred books and a $1,500 mortgage. A group of ladies, known as the Women's Club, had decided that a separate public library was needed, & spent much of the next decade raising money.

Greenwich Free Library 139 Main Street

Fundraising seem to be the main activity. In 1902 there was a clam bake, a garden tea, a card party & countless rummage sales. In 1905 the townspeople voted down a $500 annual allowance for the library, so more card parties & rummage sales were planned. Even a benefit baseball game occurred.

1911 saw $300 in the school budget allotted to the library. By 1951 the amount had increased 500% to $1,500. To this day, a portion of the school budget goes to the library.

In the early days of the library circulation was around 1,500 per year. By the Great Depression it had risen to around 2,600, an increase of about 173%.

The following is quoted from a "folder" (c. 1938) that may have been circulated to folks who might not be sampling all that the library has to offer. The Picture" mentioned is the photograph is used above.

Do you know what your library looks like, where it is located?

Lest there be those who do not know how the Greenwich Free Library looks, a picture of the building is attached to this little folder.

A well worn path leads close to the big window where books are always displayed. Have you added your footprints to this path?

Those who do not take advantage of what the library has to offer are being deprived of a great deal of pleasure and knowledge.

New novels, latest magazines, books of travel, history etc. may be had just for the asking.
There is a pleasant reading room; cool in summertime, warm in winter. Come in and use you Free Public Library.

The circulation in 1937 was 21,961. How many of these did you read? Every resident of Greenwich is entitled to borrow books. If you are a borrower, ask your neighbor to become a borrower, too.

The library is supported by state aid, local tax, gifts of money and by members of the Library Association who pay one dollar a year each.

"Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed and some few to be chewed and digested" Bacon

The library has a new website... check it out! http://www.greenwichfreelibrary.com/