Commemoration of bloodiest labor struggle will take place May 3

The 123rd Anniversary of the 1886 Bay View Tragedy will be commemorated 3pm, Sunday, May 3 at the Bay View Historical Marker Site at S. Superior Street and E. Russell Avenue.

More than 200 are expected to attend the gathering, an annual tradition since 1986, held to remember the incident May 5, 1886 when the state militia fired upon several thousand workers marching for the eight-hour day, killing seven. The event is sponsored by the Wisconsin Labor History Society and operated under a committee including members of the Bay View Historical Society.

Amy Stear, Wisconsin director of 9 to 5, National Organization of Working Women, will be the main speaker. She led the paid sick leave campaign in Milwaukee. Stephen Hauser, author and historian, will be master of ceremonies. 

Folksinger Larry Penn, who carries the title of labor’s troubadour, will sing his traditional “Ghosts of Bay View,” in honor of the fallen marchers of 1886. He will also perform a second song and lead in the traditional “Solidarity Forever.” State Representative Christine Sinicki, chair of the Assembly’s Labor Committee, will also make remarks.

The tragedy was the deadliest in Wisconsin labor history. Some 1,500 workers, carrying signs in support of the eight-hour day, approached the Rolling Mills, then Milwaukee’s largest employer. Not hearing orders to halt, they were fired upon by the militia, and the deaths resulted.

Copyright 2010 by Bay View Compass. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.