A Checkered Past
Offering a range of “private investigative” services, the Pinkerton Detective Agency was founded in 1850 and at first specialized in train robberies: the protection of railroad property. By the late 1860s, however, Pinkerton agents were protecting...
Postal Workers ‘In the Line of Duty’
Postal workers are sworn to uphold the Constitution and protect the mail.
Since 1775, we have honored our pledge to defend the security of the mail, on which much of our nation’s commerce and communication system has always depended. From the...
John L. Lewis: A Giant Among Labor Leaders
A dominant figure in labor history, John L. Lewis was the founding force behind several national unions and a leader of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) for more than 40 years. In aiding the union struggle for better wages and benefits, he...
Joe Hill: Labor’s Legendary Troubadour
At sunrise on Nov. 19, 1915, a firing squad at the Utah State Penitentiary executed a labor activist who many people believed had been falsely convicted of murder.
Nearly a century later, the legend of “Joe Hill” is frequently invoked in the ongoing...
Frances Perkins: Trailblazer for Workers’ Rights
In an era when few women had risen to positions of prominence, Frances Perkins in 1933 became the nation’s first female cabinet secretary. During her long tenure as Secretary of the Department of Labor, she was a trailblazer for workers’ rights,...