Chapter XXVI: Appendix: IV. Membership Statistics

TABLE A.--MEMBERSHIP FIGURES--DETROIT AND CHICAGO FACTIONS

--------------------------------------------------------
| Total Membership. |
|---------------------------------------------------|
| | | |
| | | |
| Secretary- | Barnett.[G] | Miscel- |
| Treasurer. | | laneous.[H] |
----+-------------------+-------------+-----------------|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
----+-------------------+-------------+-----------------|
1905| _14,000_ | 14,300 | --- |
1906| _23,219_[A] | 10,400 | 60,000 |
| | | |
| | | |
1907| _5,931_ | 6,700 | 28,000 |
|-------------------+-------------+-----------------|
| Chicago.| Detroit.| C. | D. | C. | D. |
1908| _5,397_ | ---- |13,200| ---- | ---- | ---- |
1909| _3,719_ | ---- |10,700| ---- | ---- | ---- |
| | | | | | |
1910| _4,617_ | ---- | 9,100| ---- |9,137[I]|3,475[I]|
| | | | | | |
| | | | | | |
1911| _4,330_ |10,000 |12,800| 3,500| ---- | ---- |
1912|_18,387_ |20,000 |18,300|10,700| ---- |9,765 |
1913|_14,851_ |11,000[C]|14,300| 5,000|{23,061 | ---- |
| | | | |{70,000 | |
1914|_11,365_ | ---- |12,000| 2,000|{14,310 | ---- |
| | | | |{23,840 | |
1915|15,000[B]| 5,000[D]| ---- | ---- | 70,000 | ---- |
|-------------------+-------------+-----------------|
1916| | | { 35,000 |
| 60,000 | [E] | { 85,000 |
1917| 60,000[F] | ---- | 200,000 |
---------------------------------------------------------

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
|
|Membership|Number of |Number of |Number of|Cumulative|Number of |Cumulative
| cards | National | Local |Charters |number of | locals |number of
| issued. |Industrial|Unions.[O]|issued to|charters |disbanded.| locals
| |Unions.[N]| |Local |issued.[S]| |disbanded.
| | | |Unions[P]| | |
----+----------+----------+----------+---------+----------+----------+---------
1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11
----+----------+----------+----------+---------+----------+----------+---------
1905| [E] | 2 | [E] | [E] | [E] | [E] | [E]
1906| [E] | 2 | { 394 | 466[Q]| 466 | 185[T] | 185
| | | { | 113 | 579 | |
| | | { 200 | 281 | 860 | |
1907| [E] | [E] | 362 | 118 | 928 | |
|----------+----------+----------+---------+----------+----------+---------
| C. | C. | C. | D. | C. | D. | C. | D. | C. | D. | C. | D.
1908| [E] | [E] | 322 | 164 | 1102 | 63[U] | 248
1909| [E] | [E] | 100 |_23_|_90_| _1_| 1192| 1 | _33_| | 281 |[E]
| | {| 97 | | | | | | | | |
1910| | 1 {| _98_|_14_|_160| 7_| 1352| 8 | _54_|_16_| 335 | 16
| | {| 115 | | | | | | | | |
| | {| 115 | | | | | | | | |
1911| 60,000[J]| [E] {|_105_|_26_|_150| 18_| 1502| 26 | _69_| _6_| 404 | 22
| | {| 107 | | | | | | | | |
1912| 9,000[K]| [E] | 210 |_34_|_190| 32_| 1692| 58 | _53_|_24_| 457 | 46
1913| [E] | 3 | 236 | 58 |_236| 22_| 1928| 80 | _99_|_17_| 556 | 63
| | | |_39_| | | | | | | |
| | {| 150 | 50 |_78_|_14_| 2006| 94 |_125_| _4_| 681 | 67
1914| | 3 {|_128_|_49_| | | | | | | |
| | {| 222 | | | | | | | | |
1915|191,293[L]| [E] | 300 |_51_| [E]| _2_| [E]| 96 | [E] | [E]| [E] |[E]
| 15,000[M]| | 150 | 25 | | | | | | | |
|----------+----------+-----+---------+----------+----------+----------+----
1916|{ 35,000 | | 4 | 535 | 33[R] | [E] | [E] |[E]
|{ 85,000 | | | | | | |
|{ |300,000[L]| | 350 | | | |
1917| 200,000 | [E] | 6 | [E] | [E] | [E] | [E] |[E]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NOTES TO TABLE A.

Here are assembled most of the available figures relating to I. W. W. membership and fluctuations in membership during the period 1905-1917. The figures are fragmentary and, for the most part, approximations; those in columns 1, 6, 7 and 11 being especially rough and fragmentary. For example, it will be observed, in comparing columns 7 and 9 with column 11 for the year 1914, that there must have been at least 1784 defunct locals at that time instead of 681 as the record shows.

The figures in italics were furnished by the secretary-treasurers, Vincent St. John for the Chicago I. W. W., and Hermann Richter for the Detroit I. W. W.

FOOTNOTES:

[A] Average membership 1905-1906. Computed from record of receipts for the General Defense Fund (_Proceedings Second Convention_, p. 586.)

[B] Approximate. W. D. Haywood before U. S. Commission on Industrial Relations, Washington, D. C., May 12, 1915. (_Final Report and Testimony_, vol. xi, p. 10581.)

[C] _Weekly People_, Sept. 27, 1913; also testimony of Rudolph Katz before U. S. Commission on Industrial Relations (_Final Report and Testimony_, vol. iii, 2485).

[D] Only 2000 were "in good standing."

[E] No data available.

[F] St. John, _The I. W. W.--Its History, Structure and Methods_ (1917 ed.), p. 23.

[G] The figures in column 3 are from Professor Geo. E. Barnett, "Membership of American Trade Unions," _Quarterly Journal of Economics_, vol. xxx, p. 846 (August, 1916). His figures come, apparently, from I. W. W. headquarters in Chicago, but they do not agree entirely with those furnished the author by Secretary St. John.

[H] In this and some of the following columns more than one figure has been included in years for which varying estimates were found. The sources for column 4 are as follows: _Proceedings 2nd I. W. W. Convention_, p. 60; Report of the I. W. W. to the Stuttgart International Socialist Congress, _Industrial Union Bulletin_, Aug. 10, 1907, p. 4; _Bulletin New York State Department of Labor_, no. 67 ("International trade union statistics"), p. 3; Louis Levine, "The development of syndicalism in America," _Political Science Quarterly_, vol. xxviii, p. 478 (Sept., 1913); Vincent St. John's testimony before U. S. Commission on Industrial Relations (_Final Report and Testimony_, vol. ii, p. 1456; _Weekly People_, Dec. 9. 1916, p. 1, col. 3).

[I] Leo Wolman, "Extent of labor organization," _Quarterly Journal of Economics_, vol. xxx, p. 603 (May, 1916). Wolman shows sex distribution as follows:

Chicago I. W. W.: males 7137, females 2000.
Detroit I. W. W.: males 3130, females 345.

[J] Number issued between February 1910, and October, 1911.

[K] For the Detroit I. W. W. Approximate number issued during the textile workers strikes.

[L] Accumulated number from 1905.

[M] For the Detroit I. W. W. Approximate. October 1, 1908, to February 1, 1915.

[N] Sources: _Industrial Worker_ (I), August, 1906; _Miners Magazine_, Sept. 7, 1905, p. 15; Marot, _American Labor Unions_, p. 59; St. John, _op. cit._, p. 23.

[O] Sources: _Proceedings 2nd I. W. W. Convention_, p. 43; _Third I. W. W. Convention, Official Report No. 1_, p. 2; Report of the I. W. W. to the Stuttgart International Socialist Congress, _Industrial Union Bulletin_, August 10, 1907, p. 3, col. 3; Massachusetts Bureau of Labor and Industry, _Annual Report on Labor Organizations_, 2nd to 7th, inclusive (1909-1914); _The Industrial Worker_, May 14, 1910, p. 2, and Jan. 5, 1911, p. 2; Marot, _op. cit._, Appendix.

[P] Sources: _Miners Magazine_, issues from Oct. 1, 1906, to Feb. 1, 1907; Report of the secretary-treasurer to 3rd I. W. W. Convention, _Industrial Union Bulletin_, Sept. 14, 1907, p. 7, col. 1.

[Q] Number issued up to Feb. 1, 1906, including 185 charters issued to the Mining Department (W. F. of M.) (_Miners Magazine_, Feb. 22, 1906, p. 14).

[R] _Solidarity_, May 27, 1916, p. 3, col. 1. This figure is for the first five months of 1916.

[S] Figures in the Detroit column are from Oct. 1, 1908.

[T] W. F. M. (Mining Department) locals. _Miners Magazine_, Sept. 7, 1905, p. 15.

[U] Oct. 1, 1907, to Oct. 1, 1908 (_Industrial Union Bulletin_, Oct. 10, 1908, p. 2, col. 3).

TABLE B.--COMPARATIVE MEMBERSHIP FIGURES, 1910[727]

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| | | Members of the I. W. W.
| | |----------------------------
| | | | Per | Per
| | | | cent. | cent.
|Total | Members of | | of all |of total
|number of | Labor | | trade | in
|persons |Organizations | Number. | union- | ind-
Industry. |in the | | | ists. | ustry.
|industry. |--------------+-----------+--------+-------
| | |Per |Chi- |Det- | | | |
| | Number. |cent|cago.|roit.| C.| D.| C.| D.
-------------------------+----------+---------+----+-----+-----+----+---+---+---
Mining[728] | 834,456| 254,779|30.5| 200| .. | 0.1| ..|0.0| ..
Clothing industries[729] | 608,892| 102,972|16.9| .. | 300 | ..|0.3| ..|0.0
Quarrying | 85,919| 6,309| 7.3| | | | | |
Production of salt, oil | | | | | | | | |
and natural gas | 37,476| | | | | | | |
Chemical and allied | | | | | | | | |
industries | 73,585| 268| 0.4| | | | | |
Clay, glass and stone | | | | | | | | |
industries | 309,341| 63,416|20.5| | | | | |
Food and kindred | | | | | | | | |
products[730] | 299,176| 22,744| 7.6| 100| .. | 0.4| ..|0.0| ..
Iron and steel products | 1,746,387| 173,169| 9.9| 300| 600 | 0.2|0.4|0.0|0.0
Leather industries | 293,035| 42,644|14.5| | | | | |
Liquor and beverage | | | | | | | | |
industries | 73,475| 49,665|67.6| | | | | |
Lumber and furniture | 597,174| 63,934|10.7| 1300| 200 | 2.0|0.3|0.2|0.0
Metal industries (except | | | | | | | | |
iron and steel) | 320,041| 15,013| 4.7| | | | | |
Paper and pulp industries| 101,797| 2,683| 2.6| | | | | |
Printing and bookbinding | 249,456| 85,479|34.3| | | | | |
Textile industries | 800,251| 29,862| 3.7| 4300| 300 |14.4|1.0|0.5|0.0
Miscellaneous industries:| | | | | | | | |
Button factories | 12,879| 32| 0.2| | | | | |
Broom & brush factories| 12,922| 897| 6.9| | | | | |
Charcoal and coke works| 23,294| 500| 2.1| | | | | |
Cigar and tobacco | | | | | | | | |
factories | 170,904| 46,742|27.3| 100| 200| 0.2|0.4|0.0|0.1
Electric light & power | | | | | | | | |
plants, electric supply| | | | | | | | |
factories, etc. | 252,883| 36,092|14.3| | | | | |
Gas works | 22,783| 605| 2.6| | | | | |
Oil refineries and tur-| | | | | | | | |
pentine distilleries | 22,551| | | | | | | |
Rubber factories | 45,864| 50| 0.1| | | | | |
Straw factories | 6,458| 684|10.6| | | | | |
Other miscellaneous and| | | | | | | | |
not specified industries| 323,534| | | | | | | |
Transportation[731] | 2,862,260| 494,662|17.3| 1000| .. | 0.2| ..|0.0|
Hand trades | 713,659| 4,346| 0.6| | | | | |
Building trades | 2,444,395| 396,674|16.2| 150| 400 | 0.0|0.1|0.0|0.0
Stationary engineers | 215,053| 9,990| 4.6| | | | | |
Stationary firemen | 84,685| 8,100| 9.5| | | | | |
Trade | 3,411,677| 17,676| 0.5| | | | | |
Public service (not | | | | | | | | |
elsewhere classified) | 441,180| 11,843| 2.6| | | | | |
Professional service | 1,628,970| 77,976| 4.8| | | | | |
Domestic and personal | | | | | | | | |
service | 3,691,493| 65,579| 1.8| 150| .. | 0.2| ..|0.0|
Agriculture, forestry and| | | | | | | | |
animal husbandry |12,640,734| 2,262| 0.0| | | | | |
Proprietary, official and| | | | | | | | |
supervisory groups | 980,012| | | | | | | |
Clerical groups | 1,696,061| 28,853| 1.7| | | | | |
I. W. W. mixed locals | .. .. | .. .. | .. | 1437| 1475| | | |
Total |38,134,712|2,116,500| 5.5| 9037| 3475| 0.4|0.2|0.0|0.0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TABLE C.--MEMBERSHIP OF CERTAIN UNIONS AND GROUPS OF UNIONS IN THE UNITED STATES, 1897-1914[732] (00's omitted.)

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Name of union and | 97. | 98. | 99. | 00. | 01. | 02. | 03. |
industrial group | | | | | | | |
--------------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------|
Mining and Quarrying| | | | | | | |
(8 organizations).| | | | | | | |
W. F. M. | 80| 100| 120| 140| 177| 196| 283|
U. M. W. | 97| 329| 618| 1155| 1980| 1753| 2472|
Total in group | 209| 442| 749| 1307| 2171| 1964| 2795|
| | | | | | | |
United Metal Workers| ..| ..| ..| 10| 21| 43| 87|
Textile group | | | | | | | |
(9 organizations) | | | | | | | |
Textile Workers | 27| 25| 22| 34| 27| 106| 150|
Total in group | 81| 85| 69| 80| 70| 147| 195|
| | | | | | | |
Lumber and Wood | | | | | | | |
Working group (8 | | | | | | | |
organizations) | 55| 117| 159| 256| 318| 341| 479|
Bakery Workers | 20| 21| 31| 45| 64| 102| 154|
Brewery Workers | 100| 100| 107| 183| 235| 291| 300|
Restaurant and Trade| | | | | | | |
group (6 | | | | | | | |
organizations) | 64| 92| 121| 280| 408| 575| 1144|
I. W. W. (Chicago) | ..| ..| ..| ..| ..| ..| ..|
I. W. W. (Detroit) | ..| ..| ..| ..| ..| ..| ..|
--------------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+-------
Total in all groups | 4445| 4971| 6041| 8654|11,236|13,743|19,129|
----------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Name of union and | 04. | 05. | 06. | 07. | 08. | 09. | 10. |
industrial group | | | | | | | |
--------------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------|
Mining and Quarrying| | | | | | | |
(8 organizations).| | | | | | | |
W. F. M. | 241| 263| 286| 442| 305| 353| 371||
U. M. W. | 2510| 2650| 2307| 2607| 2520| 2652| 2314|
Total in group | 2789| 2962| 2653| 3120| 2897| 3071| 2749|
| | | | | | | |
United Metal Workers| 96| [733]| | | | | |
Textile group | | | | | | | |
(9 organizations) | | | | | | | |
Textile Workers | 105| 100| 100| 114| 129| 100| 100|
Total in group | 151| 145| 147| 161| 176| 148| 214|
| | | | | | | |
Lumber and Wood | | | | | | | |
Working group (8 | | | | | | | |
organizations) | 516| 419| 359| 270| 198| 190| 280|
Bakery Workers | 162| 120| 106| 110| 105| 107| 127|
Brewery Workers | 305| 340| 360| 400| 425| 452| 454|
Restaurant and Trade| | | | | | | |
group (6 | | | | | | | |
organizations) | 1338| 949| 895| 916| 949| 581| 594|
I. W. W. (Chicago) | | 143| 104| 67| 132| 107| 91|
I. W. W. (Detroit) | | ..| ..| ..| ..| ..| ..|
--------------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+-------
Total in all groups |20,726|19,450|19,063|20,776|20,904|20,031|21,380|
----------------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------------------------
Name of union and | 11. | 12. | 13. | 14. |
industrial group | | | | |
--------------------+------+------+------+------|
Mining and Quarrying| | | | |
(8 organizations). | | | | |
W. F. M. | 502| 492| 495| 369|
U. M. W. | 2563| 2893| 3777| 3390|
Total in group | 3107| 3429| 4315| 3802|
| | | | |
United Metal Workers| | | | |
Textile group | | | | |
(9 organizations) | | | | |
Textile Workers | 100| 109| 162| 180|
Total in group | 217| 230| 295| 303|
| | | | |
Lumber and Wood | | | | |
Working group (8 | | | | |
organizations) | 290| 255| 251| 248|
Bakery Workers | 138| 146| 151| 157|
Brewery Workers | 533| 625| 650| 676|
Restaurant and Trade| | | | |
group (6 | | | | |
organizations) | 631| 686| 913| 948|
I. W. W. (Chicago) | 138| 183| 143| 120|
I. W. W. (Detroit) | 35| 107| 50| 20|
--------------------+------+------+------+-------
Total in all groups |23,365|24,408|27,010|26,744|
-------------------------------------------------

TABLE D.--MEMBERSHIP OF THE I. W. W. (CHICAGO AND DETROIT) AND OF ALL LABOR ORGANIZATIONS IN THE U. S., 1905-1917[734]

--------------------------------------------------------------
|Members of labor| Members of the I. W. W.
| organizations |---------------------------------------
| in the U. S. | Chicago. | Detroit.
| |(St. John)[735] (Barnett)| (Barnett)
-----+----------------+--------------+-----------+------------
1905 | 1,945,000 | 23,219 | 14,300 |
1906 | 1,906,300 | .. | 10,400 |
1907 | 2,077,600 | 5,931 | 6,700 |
1908 | 2,090,400 | 5,397 | 13,200 |
1909 | 2,003,100 | 3,719 | 10,700 |
1910 | 2,138,000 | 4,617 | 9,100 | 3,475[739]
1911 | 2,336,000 | 4,330 | 13,800 | 3,500
1912 | 2,440,800 | 18,387 | 18,300 | 10,700
1913 | 2,701,000 | 14,851 | 14,300 | 5,000
1914 | 2,674,400 | 11,365 | 12,000 | 2,000
1915 | .. | 15,000[736]| .. | 2,000
1916 | .. | 60,000[737]| |
1917 | .. | 200,000[738]| |
--------------------------------------------------------------

FOOTNOTES:

[727] Adapted by permission from Wolman, Leo, "Extent of Labor Organization," _Quar. Jour. Econ._ (May, 1916), 30: 606-13.

[728] All I. W. W. membership in coal mines.

[729] All I. W. W. membership in clothing, shirt, collar and cuff factories.

[730] All I. W. W. membership in slaughter and packing houses.

[731] All I. W. W. membership on steam railroads.

[732] Adapted by permission from Geo. E. Barnett, _Quar. Jour. Econ._ (Aug., 1916, Appendix), vol. 30: pp. 838-46.

[733] Merged in the I. W. W. in 1905.

[734] Adapted from Barnett, _op. cit._ (_Quar. Jour. Econ._, Aug., 1916.)

[735] Private correspondence. (1905-1914.)

[736] Haywood, W. D. Testimony Industrial Relations Commission, Washington, May 12, 1915 (_Final report and testimony_, vol. xi, p. 10581).

[737] St. John, V. _The I. W. W. History, Structure and Methods._ (1917 Ed. p. 23.)

[738] Credited in the government indictment in the case of The United States of America _v._ William D. Haywood, _et al._, no. 6125, p. 7.

[739] Wolman, _op. cit._