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International Woodworkers of America, District 4 records

 Collection
Identifier: L1973-22

Scope and Content of the Records

The Records, 1943-1959, of District 4, International Woodworkers of America are composed of correspondence, financial and legal documents, weekly work reports, minutes, notes and proposals of contract negotiations, printed material and photographs. The correspondence concerns the financial situations of the locals, strikes and lockouts, representatives from the international office working with local unions, closing of plants, dissolution and re-chartering of locals, arbitration of grievances and collective bargaining procedures. Among the discussants are IWA international, district and local officers, IWA and CIO organizers, company officials and their attorneys, NLRB representatives, the War Labor Board, the U.S. Conciliation Service, state labor councils and government agencies. The financial documents illuminate the fiscal affairs of District 4 and some of its subordinate bodies. The weekly work reports submitted by organizers in the field provide a day-by-day account of their activities.

Dates

  • Creation: 1943-1959

Creator

Restrictions on Access

Collection is open for research use.

Terms Governing Use and Reproduction

Georgia State University is the owner of the physical collection and makes reproductions available for research, subject to the copyright law of the United States and item condition. Georgia State University may or may not own the rights to materials in the collection. It is the researcher's responsibility to verify copyright ownership and obtain permission from the copyright holder before publication, reproduction, or display of the materials beyond what is reasonable under copyright law. Researchers may quote selections from the collection under the fair use provision of copyright law.

Oversized Materials stored offsite. Allow at least 2 working days for retrieval.

Organizational History

The International Woodworkers of America, Southern Region headquarters was located in Atlanta, Georgia, until 1958, when it was relocated to Memphis, Tennessee.

Extent

39.61 Linear Feet (in 91 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

The International Woodworkers of America, Southern Region headquarters was located in Atlanta, Georgia, until 1958, when it was relocated to Memphis, Tennessee. The collection consists of correspondence, financial and legal documents, weekly work reports, minutes, notes and proposals of contract negotiations, photographs and printed materials. There are also materials related to Local 5-51 of Louisville, Kentucky.

Arrangement and Organization of the Records

  • I: Organizers' Weekly Reports, Correspondence and Expense Vouchers, 1948-1959
  • II: Local Unions, 1948-1959
  • III: Company Files, 1946-1959
  • IV: Financial Documents, 1947-1959
  • V: General Files, 1948-1959
The records of District 4 arrived at the Southern Labor Archives in thirty-one shipping boxes. During processing they were grouped into the four principal categories maintained by the District 4 office: Organizers' reports, Local unions, Company files, and General files. Such a quantity of financial records and agreements were present throughout the records, and because those materials are so frequently consulted as a body, it was decided to segregate them into categories unto themselves.

Off-Site Storage

Oversized Materials stored offsite. Allow at least 2 working days for retrieval.

Acquisition Information

Donated by International Woodworkers of America, District, March 13, 1973.

Online Availability

The photographs in this collection may have been digitized and are available online at Georgia State University Library Digital Collections.

Separated Materials

During processing, materials were separated to other Southern Labor Archives Printed Collections. For pamphlets, see the Southern Labor Archives Pamphlet Collection finding aid (note that this collection has been weeded over time). For photographs, see the Southern Labor Archives Photographs Collection finding aid. For periodicals, see the Southern Labor Archives periodicals collection finding aid or catalog. For contracts and agreements, see the International Woodworkers of America contracts collection finding aid. For constitutions and proceeding, consult archivist.

Separated to Southern Labor Archives Photographs Collection

  1. Strike, W. T. Smith Lumber Company, 1956 (36 negatives)

Separated to Southern Labor Archives Agreements Collection

  1. International Woodworkers of America: Agreements arranged alphabetically by state and within states alphabetically city and then by company name (9,000 leaves)
  2. UMW, Local Union 528, 1950 (8 leaves)
  3. USA, Fairfield, Alabama, 1956 (43 leaves)
  4. Upholsterers' International Union of North America, 1957 (25 leaves)
  5. International Brotherhood of Paper Makers Local Union 608 and International Brotherhood of Pulp, and Paper Mill Workers, Local Union 1956 (18 leaves)

Separated to Southern Labor Archives Constitutions and Bylaws Collection

  1. IWA District 4, 1947, 1955
  2. Florida State Industrial Union Council, 1955
  3. West Virginia COPE, 1958
  4. IWA District 1, 1946
  5. IWA Northern Washington, D.C. Number 2, 1946
  6. IWA, District 9, Plywood, Box Shook and Door Council, 1946
  7. Virginia State Industrial Union Council, 1950
  8. IWA (Proposed Constitutions): International, Regions 1, 3, 4, 5
  9. Louisiana State Industrial Union Council, 1955
  10. West Virginia Industrial Union Council, 1953
  11. Georgia State Industrial Union Council, 1954
  12. Industrial Union Department, AFL-CIO
  13. Tennessee State Industrial Union Council, 1955
  14. Joint AFL-CIO Unity Committee, 1955 Draft

Separated to Southern Labor Archives Pamphlets Collection

  1. 67 Pamphlets, concerning taxes, social security, labor scholarships abroad, safety, labor unity, family budget, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, peace, the national debt, minimum wage, U.S. labor and Soviet policy, stewardship, school desegregation, Dave Beck, CIO-AFL No-Raiding Agreement, the union shop, automation, AFL-CIO Employees Federal Credit Union, United Brotherhood of Carpenters, Alabama lumber industry, right-to-work laws, the military reserve, multiple-use mining law, voter education, Human Rights, workers' education, Richard Nixon, the GOP and working people, education, 84th Congress, veterans' benefits, the IUD, Congressional voting record, 1957-1958, Louisiana Division of Employment Security, Labor Law, Medical care, largest U.S. corporation, religion and labor, GM-UAW contract, collective bargaining, TVA, parliamentary procedure, Southern States Woodworkers Group Insurance Plan, industry migration, AFL-CIO merger, price supports, conservation (total 635 leaves).

Separated to Southern Labor Archives Periodicals Collection

  1. 19 newsletters and bulletins relating to the CIO in the South, the economy, politics, and the timber industry. Filed by publisher. (450 leaves)
  2. 15 newspapers concerning the lumber industry in the South and the IWA (283 leaves)
  3. The Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mill Workers' Journal, Numbers 1 and 3, 1959 (32 leaves)
  4. Hotel and Restaurant Employees and Bartenders International Union Catering Employee, May, 1959 (16 leaves)
  5. Johns Manville News Pictorial, March and April, 1956, June, 1957, April, 1958 (30 leaves)

Separated to Southern Labor Archives Proceedings Collection

  1. Mississippi State Industrial Union Council-CIO Annual Conventions: Second (1954), Third (1955), Fourth (1956) (100 leaves)
  2. Industrial Union Department, AFL-CIO: Third Annual Industrial Relations Conference, 1959 (50 leaves)
  3. West Virginia Industrial Union Council, AFL-CIO: 16th Constitutional Convention, 1956 Report of Officers (70 leaves)
  4. Georgia State Industrial Union Council, CIO: Year Book, 14th Annual Convention, 1953 (20 leaves)
  5. International Woodworkers of America Addresses of Adolph Germer, Darrell D. Smith, and Orville L. Freeman, 21st Constitutional Convention, 1959 (12 leaves)
  6. The President's Conference on Occupational Safety, 1954 (65 leaves)
  7. Industrial Union Department, AFL-CIO 2nd Constitutional Convention, 1957 Presidential Report (20 leaves)
  8. Georgia State AFL-CIO News, December, 1957 (5 leaves)

Processing

Inventoried by Robert Dinwiddie, December 10, 1973.

Title
International Woodworkers of America, District 4:
Subtitle
A Guide to Its Records at Georgia State University Library
Status
Completed
Author
Georgia State University Library
Date
1973
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Special Collections Repository

Contact:
100 Decatur St., S.E.
Atlanta, Georgia 30303
404-413-2880
404-413-2881 (Fax)