Finding aid for the International Typographical Union, Local 53 Records

History of the International Typographical Union, Local 53

The Cleveland Typographical Union Local 53 is the oldest existing trade union in the city of Cleveland, Ohio. It was issued a charter on July 26, 1860, as a local of the National Typographical Union (founded in 1852) which became the International Typographical Union in 1869. The Cleveland local disbanded after an unsuccessful strike in 1865 and was not reorganized until 1868; accordingly, Local 53 notes its earliest date of continuous operation as 1868, although union activity occurred previous to this date.

In 1895, a fire destroyed the Local's records and valuable material on the nineteenth century activities of this trade union was lost. However, material on the wage scale during the local's first forty years does exist. From the 1860s to the early 1890s Cleveland newspaper printers were paid on the piece system, averaging between 30 and 40 centers per 1,000 ems of type set for day work and between 32 and 43 centers per 1,000 ems for night work. At 40 cents per 1,000 ems a printer could earn between $15 and $20 a week, depending on his skill. In 1892, wages for newspaper printers became more stable when a flat weekly rate of $21 for days and $24 for nights was established. Commercial printer's wages ranged from $9 for a 60 hour week in 1875 to $13.50 for a 59 hour week in 1888. By 1905, commercial printers earned $18 for a 48 hour week for days and $26.25 a week for nights. During the ensuring years, the eight-hour day, the forty-hour week, and ever higher wages came to be accepted after numerous strikes and taxing negotiations.

Improved wages and hours are only two of the benefits the Union has achieved for its members. Through local and international dues, which were respectively 75 and 30 cents monthly in 1901, the Union has provided Cleveland printers with financial assistance. In 1908, ITU pensions of $4 weekly began and in 1917 local pensions of $3 weekly commenced. Mortuary benefits were paid after a membership of six months, and by the mid-1950s ITU pension payments reached $22 weekly, local pensions $12 weekly, and mortuary benefits were as much as $350 from the local and $500 from the ITU. Local 53 also operated a loan fund for its members and a sickness benefit program of up to sixteen weekly payments. In addition, the International Union provided strike benefits and in 1892 they opened a Union Printers Home for elderly members at Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Over the years, the Union and Local 53 in particular, have responded to the challenges of automation more successfully than many trade unions. While fears of widespread unemployment were unfounded, as machines such as the linotype, introduced in the 1890s actually reduced the cost of printing and increased the demand for printers, a fear of over-specialization and a subsequent loss of overall expertise remained. To counteract this tendency, Local 53 became the first typographical local to own its own apprentice training school. Founded in 1926, this school offered members training courses on all machines used in the industry. Through a required apprentice training program, which lasted six years, and refresher courses, the Union made sure its members acquired all the skills of their trade.

The Cleveland local has been active in the activities of the International Typographical Union. Cleveland has hosted the ITU's annual conventions in 1863, 1912, 1947, and 1968. From May 4-9, 1863, 34 delegates from 24 cities found the Cleveland city council chambers an adequate meeting place. In 1912, Cleveland hosted the largest ITU convention to date with 334 delegates and one of their own members, James Hoban, elected second vice-president, began his service with the ITU. This tradition of service to the ITU continued in 1944 when Cleveland's Jack Gill was elected ITU secretary-treasurer in a run-off election. By 1968, the ITU had grown to more than 125,000 members and more than 700 locals. The strength and participation of the Cleveland local, with its more than 1,450 members, has been a significant reason for this growth.

Because of their unusual hours of work, printers tend to spend more of their free time with fellow craft members than to craftsmen who work more normal hours. While labor union-sponsored bowling and softball tams are no uncommon, it is especially characteristic of printers to engage in such activities. In the past, Cleveland printers have participated in leagues and tournaments among themselves and with other locals without any prompting from the ITU or the local union. Characteristically, Cleveland printers on their own time and with their own money printed a bowling journal, The Bucket of Blood, and recorded the activities of their teams in the Union Printers League Baseball tournaments through photographs.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for the International Typographical Union, Local 53

Scope and Content

The International Typographical Union, Local 53 Records, 1882-1979 and undated, consist of constitutions, minutes, committee and delegate reports, correspondence, publications, contracts, arbitration transcripts, dues books, and other financial records.

This collection will be useful to researchers studying the history of organized labor, trade unionism, and the printing industry in Cleveland, Ohio, during the late nineteenth century and the twentieth century. The records reflect the administration and activities of the oldest existing trade union in Cleveland in its efforts to negotiate contracts; train and improve the skills of its members; provide pension, strike, and loan benefits; and solve grievances. Although Local 53, because of its large size, has been relatively independent in addressing these concerns, its extensive correspondence with the International Typographical Union and other typographical locals is indicative of its close ties with these groups. The Cleveland local also sends delegates to the Cleveland Allied Printing Trades Council, the Cleveland Federation of Labor, the Ohio Typographical Conferences, and the conventions of the International Typographical Union. The reports of these activities are an integral part of the collection.

Within the arbitration files are cases from 1956 and 1962-1963 which relate to back pay disputes for Typographical Union members who continued working at the Cleveland Press and the Cleveland Plain Dealer, after the Teamsters union struck these papers but before a strike was called by the Typographical Union. The strike series contains material on the Chicago newspaper strike of 1947-1948, and the organizing strikes in the Cleveland area at the Berea News, 1962-1963; the Cleveland Call and Post, 1963; and at the Painesville Telegraph, 1972-1973. Some of the topics covered in the miscellaneous subject series are Local 53 President James Hoban's closed shop philosophy; the financial backing of the Jamestown Sun of New York by Local 53; ITU organizational material; material from the local's attorney Thurlow Smoot on the Taft-Hartley Act; the Union Labor Report of the Bureau of National Affairs, 1972-1973; Unitypo (the ITU's defense arm); and oil and gas company stock certificates from 1914-1915. Major correspondents in the collection include the following from Local 53: James Hoban, F. W. Steffen, Phil J. Plunkett, Jr., John A. Parker, and Cilfford C. Hilpert and Charles Howard, Claude Baker, Elmer Brown, Don Hurd, and Woodruff Randolph of the ITU.

Statement of Arrangement

Restrictions on Access

None.

The researcher should also consult PG 220 International Typographical Union, Local 53 Photographs.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Subjects:

Preferred Citation

[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 3841 International Typographical Union, Local 53 Records, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio

Acquisition Information

Gift of the International Typographical Union, Local 53 and Jean Tussey in 1980.

Processing Information

Processed by Richard W. Arpi in 1980.

Detailed Description of The Collection