Brotherhood of Timber Workers

rdf:langString Brotherhood of Timber Workers

rdf:langString The Brotherhood of Timber Workers (BTW) (1910-1916) was a union of sawmill workers, farmers, and small business people primarily located in East Texas and West Louisiana, but also had locals in Arkansas (7) and Mississippi (1). The BTW was organized in 1910 by Arthur Lee (A.L) Emerson and Jay Smith as an industrial union. Estimates of membership fall between 20,000 and 35,000 people. Despite being located in the Jim Crow South the union was open to members of all races and women were granted membership in 1912. Roughly half of the membership is believed to have been African American. Members of Brotherhood had their work cut out for themselves, organizing an interracial union during Jim Crow in one of the largest industries in the South. Louisiana, Texas, and Mississippi were three of the largest timber producing states in the country during that era. The BTW became known for its participation in the Grawbow Riot, or massacre in 1912. Men who worked for Galloway Lumber Company opened fire on union meeting: three union workers were killed and one of the company men. The BTW had struck against the mill in Grabow, Louisiana. The Brotherhood of Timber Workers was known as having interracial membership at a time when racial segregation was increasing in many areas of the Deep South. It also included both males and females, but most of the mill jobs were held by men.