This article relates the history of African Americans in the union movement during the Great Depression. Read about the importance of black membership in the CIO, the ILA, and the steel industry.

An interactive website that looks at all aspects of the automobile in American life. Teacher and student resources are included.

The most difficult task confronting many Southerners during Reconstruction was devising a new system of labor to replace the shattered world of slavery. Learn how plantation owners and freed slaves adapted to this massive shift in the...

This thirty-minute video, the seventeenth in a series on American history, examines the rocky relationship between labor, management, and industry from 1882 to 1901. You can also read the transcript, find a map of the Anthracite Strike,...

A chapter from a history text that looks at the development of the Southern Colonies. It discusses the Southern agricultural economy that relied on slave labor, tobacco as a cash crop, Southern society, indentured servitude, Bacon's...

This resource covers the changing of America due to the Industrial Revolution which brought in not only new technology but also opened the door to reform movements. From the series by Joy Hakim, "A History of Us." Includes a teacher's...

Overview of Colonial work structure in the Thirteen Colonies. The author describes the hierarchy of the labor force and discusses the introduction of slaves. Links to primary source material.

Enter a virtual movie theater and learn about art of the 1930s in the United States. Exhibitions include: The Depression, The New Deal, The Country, Industry, Labor, The City, Leisure, and American People.

Biographical information on John L. Lewis, who was president of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA), and also the founding president of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO).

Check out this page for a good overview of some general goals of Progressives. Material is presented in outline form and identifies major Progressive issues and attitudes.

As the United States became a major industrial power, conflict between workers and factory owners intensified. Read about the Homestead Strike and the Pullman Strike, two of the most famous labor battles in American history.

Biographical information on Samuel Gompers, Frances Perkins and Cesar Chavez. All three were inspirations for the labor union movement.

The democratic upheaval in politics exemplified by Jackson's election was merely one phase of the long American quest for greater rights and opportunities for all citizens. Another was the beginning of labor organization, primarily among...

This site discusses how for much of the latter half of the 1800s, the life of the common laborer was horrendous. Working in a unsanitary factory, for at least 10 hours a day, making far less than needed to survive, the struggles of the...

In the late 1960s, grapes grabbed national attention -- and not in a good way. Newly organized farm workers, fronted by Mexican-American civil-rights activist Cesar Chavez, asked Americans to boycott the popular California fruit because...

This several page chapter from the site From Revolution to Reconstruction outlines the growth of the union in the railroad industry in the late 19th century. Read about the strikes, working conditions, the beginning of the American...

Provides an overview of the history, culture, and lifestyle of Canadian Americans. (Note: Content is not the most current.)

From the Lowell factory workers to the feminized role of the American schoolteacher, women began to make professional strides during the first half of the 19th century.

Examine the history behind the idea of concentration camps, one part of Hitler's solution to rid Germany of its "weak and inferior" citizens.

A thumbnail look at the many things occurring in the United States in the last half half of the 19th century. The topics covered are Gilded Age Politics, the "New Imperialism," Industrial America, Growth of Labor, Urbanization,...

Following Eli Whitney's invention in 1793 of the cotton gin -- a machine that separated raw cotton from seeds and other waste -- the cotton market boomed. Planters in the South bought land from small farmers who frequently moved farther...

Site from the University of Maryland provides primary source documents, a brief history of the labor movement, and biographical information about Samuel Gompers. A great resource for teachers and students.

[Free Registration/Login Required] This resource presents a primary lesson plan that looks at primary sources to learn about Chinese immigration to California.

Students learn about the history of the labor movement in Industrial America, including some of the major unions that emerged and the most well-known strikes. Next, they make connections to the role of unions today. They then work in...