Today in History: American Federation of Labor & Quarry Workers

Today in History–September 08–the Library of Congress features the Quarry Workers’ International Union of North America, which was granted a charter by the American Federation of Labor (AFL) on this date in 1903. While granite had been mined around the area of Barre, Vermont for years, new waves of immigrants with a strong tradition of unionism arrived in the late 19th century. Find out more about quarries, the life of the miners in Vermont and elsewhere, and the AFL by visiting the Today in History section, then click the links below to access related primary source sets.

Quarry image set

Granite quarry image set

American Federation of Labor Records

• American Federation of Labor: History Now Digital Library of Congress Blog January 29, 2020

AFL image set

American Life Histories

• Vermont Quarrying
• From Quarry to Cemetery
• A Barre Family
• More quarry recollections

AFL mentions in Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training interviews

Quarry Workers’ International Union historic newspaper coverage

AFL historical newspaper coverage

AFL-related broadsides, articles, books & other texts

Related resources

• Edward Burtynsky in the Wake of Progress: Images of the Industrial Landscape webcast
• Primary Source Spotlight: Labor
• Primary Source Learning: Labor