The Seattle Union Record was a union-owned newspaper edited by Harry Ault.[1] The paper was published weekly from February 20, 1900 to April 2, 1918 and was published daily from April 24, 1918 until it discontinued publication in 1928.[2] In its own words, the newspaper was "Published for Principle and Not for Profit".[3][4]
 Front page of the February 3, 1919 issue | |
| Type | Union newspaper |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Central Labor Council of Seattle and Vicinity |
| Editor | Harry Ault |
| Ceased publication | 1928 |
| Circulation | up to 80,000 |
History
editHarry Ault was instrumental in the temporary success of the Union Record.[5] Prior to working as the editor of the Union Record Ault worked for various other newspaper organizations. As a child, he worked as a newsboy selling the Kentucky Post.[5] At 11 he started the Amateur's Friend and was selling the Weekly People the next year.[5] He would later publish The Young Socialist and at age 19 became the editor of The Socialist.[5] Nine years later, in 1912, he began to work as the editor of the Union Record which had a circulation of 3,000.[5]
The Union Record went daily on the afternoon of April 24, 1918, launching with a daily circulation 40,000 — a number equal to about 90% of the trade unionists in the city of Seattle;[6] this made it the country's first daily labor newspaper.[7] The paper obtained wire service from United Press International, posting $100,000 security with the firm in the form of bonds to guarantee the costs occurring through telegraphic news reporting.[6] Economical production was made possible by the company's ownership of three fast web printing presses.[6]
From its humble origins with a print run of 3,000 copies, circulation of the Union Record would ultimately peak at the 80,000 mark.[5]
The paper would play a large role in organizing and supporting the Seattle General Strike of 1919.[2]
The name was revived in November 2000 as the name of an online newspaper run by the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild when journalists from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and Seattle Times went on strike.[8][9] It ceased publication in January 2001.[10][11]
Footnotes
edit- ^ Ngai, Mae (1999). "The Architecture of Race in American Immigration Law: A Reexamination of the Immigration Act of 1924". The Journal of American History. 86 (1). Organization of American Historians: 67–92. doi:10.2307/2567407. JSTOR 2567407. S2CID 162371987.
- ^ a b Salinas-Aguila, Natasha. "Seattle Union Record". Labor Press Project. University of Washington. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
- ^ "Front page". Seattle Union Record. February 3, 1919. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
- ^ "About Seattle union record. (Seattle) 1918-1928 - Chronicling America (The Library of Congress)". Chronicling America. Library of Congress. Retrieved 6 November 2012.
- ^ a b c d e f Reider, Ross (December 3, 2000). "Seattle Union Record". Historylink.org. Retrieved 7 November 2012.
- ^ a b c "Seattle Unions Have Daily Labor Paper," The Labor World [Duluth, MN], vol. 25, no. 42 (June 1, 1918), pg. 1.
- ^ Richard C. Berner (1992). "Seattle 1921-1940: From Boom to Bust. Seattle in the 20th Century. Vol. 2. Seattle: Charles Press. p. 12. ISBN 096298891-X.
- ^ "Striking in Seattle". PBS. November 21, 2000. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ Murphy, Kim (2000-12-24). "Newspaper Guild Turns to Cyberspace in Seattle". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2020-10-28. Retrieved 2020-10-28.
- ^ Frishberg, Manny (January 10, 2001). "Strike's Over, and So Is Union". Wired.com. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
- ^ Taylor, Chuck (January 10, 2001). "The making of the Union Record". Seattle Union Record. Retrieved January 26, 2024.
Archives
edit- Harry E.B. Ault papers. 1899–1956. 5.46 cubic feet (13 boxes). At University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections.
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