Iron and Steel: Class, Race, and Community in Birmingham, Alabama, 1875-1920

240 Pages·1995·12.78 MB·English

by  Henry M. McKiven Jr.

IRON AND STEEL
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HENRY M. MCKIVEN JR.
IUOÏV
Class, Race, and Community in
AND
Birmingham, Alabama, 1875-1920
STEEL
The University of North Carolina Press | Chapel Hill & London
© 1995 The University of North Carolina Press
All rights reserved
Manufactured in the United States of America
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for
permanence and durability of the Committee on
Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of
the Council on Library Resources.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
McKiven, Henry M. Iron and steel : class, race,
and community in Birmingham, Alabama, 1875-
1920 / by Henry M. McKiven, Jr. p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8078-2188-8 (cloth: alk. paper).—
ISBN 0-8078-4524-8 (paper: alk. paper)
i. Iron and steel workers—Alabama—Birmingham—
History. 2. Afro-American iron and steel workers—
Alabama—Birmingham—History. I. Title.
1108039.152U573 :995
331.7'669142'09761781—dc2o 94-27198
CIP
99 98 97 96 95 5 4 3 21
THIS BOOK WAS DIGITALLY PRINTED.
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction ι
ι The Creation of Birmingham
and the Problem of Labor 7
2 Skilled Work, White Workers 23
3 Unskilled Work, Black Workers 41
4 Life Away from Work, 1880-1900 55
5 Workers and Politics, 1880-1894 77
6 The Open Shop City 89
7 Remaking the Working Class 113
8 Life Away from Work, 1900-1920 133
9 Workers and Politics, 1894-1920 153
Conclusion 167
Notes 173
Bibliography 203
Index 219
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TABLES AND MAPS
TABLES
45 3.1. Unskilled Iron Workers by Race
64 4.1. Household Structure, 1880-1900
66 4.2. Household Structure by Age of Household
Head, 1900
67 4.3. Mean Household Expenditures, Household Income,
and Annual Balances by Age of Household Head
68 4.4. Sources of Income by Age of Household Head
96 6.1. Occupational Structure, Iron and Steel
Industry, Birmingham, 1880-1917
122 "j.i. Racial Segregation in Selected Skilled Occupations,
Birmingham, 1917-1918
123 7.2. Race and Occupational Level, Iron and Steel
Industry, Birmingham, 1917-1918
124 7.3. Race and Occupational Level for Selected
Companies, Birmingham, 1917-1918
142 8.1. Household Structure, 1910 and 1920
143 8.2. Household Structure by Age of Household
Head, 1910
144 8.3. Household Structure by Age of Household
Head, 1920
MAPS
58 4.1. Birmingham, 1883-1890
62 4.2. Birmingham District, 1898-1917
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ILLUSTRATIONS
ii Iron works at Ironton
57 Company housing at Ironton
73 Saloon popular with Birmingham's workers
92 Henderson Company
93 Henderson's first heat of steel
94 Open hearth building at TCI'S Ensley Plant
95 Cranes carry a heat of molten steel to molds