Ludlow Massacre - Legacy

Legacy

Although the UMWA failed to win recognition by the company, the strike had a lasting impact both on conditions at the Colorado mines and on labor relations nationally. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. engaged labor relations experts and future Canadian Prime Minister W. L. Mackenzie King to help him develop reforms for the mines and towns, which included paved roads and recreational facilities, as well as worker representation on committees dealing with working conditions, safety, health, and recreation. There was to be no discrimination against workers who had belonged to unions, and the establishment of a company union. The Rockefeller plan was accepted by the miners in a vote.

Over time, Ludlow has assumed "a striking centrality in the interpretation of the nation’s history developed by several of the most important left-leaning thinkers of the twentieth century." Historian Howard Zinn wrote his master's thesis and several book chapters on Ludlow. Former Senator and Democratic presidential nominee George McGovern wrote his doctoral dissertation on the subject, later published in book form as The Great Coalfield War.

The novel King Coal by Upton Sinclair is loosely based on the origin and aftermath of The Ludlow Massacre.

A United States Commission on Industrial Relations (CIR), headed by labor lawyer Frank Walsh, conducted hearings in Washington, collecting information and taking testimony from all the principals, including John D. Rockefeller, Sr., who testified that, even after knowing that guards in his pay had committed atrocities against the strikers, he "would have taken no action" to prevent his hirelings from attacking them. The commission's report suggested many reforms sought by the unions, and provided support for bills establishing a national eight-hour work day and a ban on child labor.

The UMWA eventually bought the site of the Ludlow tent colony in 1916. Two years later, they erected the Ludlow Monument to commemorate those who had died during the strike. The monument was damaged in May 2003 by unknown vandals. The repaired monument was unveiled on June 5, 2005, with slightly altered faces on the statues. On January 16, 2009, the Ludlow Tent Colony Site was declared a U.S. National Historic Landmark. The citation describes the Ludlow Massacre as "a pivotal event in American history" and notes that its site is the first of its kind to be investigated by archeologists.

Several popular songs have been written and recorded about the events at Ludlow. Among them is "Ludlow Massacre" by American folk singer Woody Guthrie, and "The Monument (Lest We Forget)" by Irish musician Andy Irvine.

American writer and Colorado Poet Laureate David Mason wrote what he calls a verse-novel, Ludlow, that was inspired by this labour dispute.

The last survivor of the Ludlow Massacre, Mary Benich-McCleary, died of a stroke at the age of 94 on June 28, 2007. She was 18 months old when the massacre occurred. McCleary's parents and her two brothers narrowly escaped death when the conductor of the train that brought the militia to the tent colony stopped the train to shield the family and others trying to flee, but Mary had been left behind. A 16-year-old boy heard her screams, gathered her up into his coat and then ran into the woods. Mary and the boy were found several days later, still hiding. McCleary's daughter said family members didn't speak of the massacre.