Spying on the General Strike

Eighty years later, documents reveal domestic surveillance of Seattle strikers

by Ross Rieder, Free Press Contributor

t never ceases to amaze me how the leaders of this democracy have never been able to trust the citizens. Those of us whose age of awareness arrived during the 1960s learned how at least certain elements of our government have spied on some of us potential troublemakers.

Maybe I should be reassured that this is not a new phenomenon. A few short years ago an Alaskan scholar mailed me a thick packet of copied documents from the Intelligence Office, US Army, War Department, Seattle. The documents described the labor situation in Seattle during 1919 before, during, and after the Seattle general strike.

When I first randomly stuck my fingers in the pile of documents, this is what I found from F. W. Wilson, infantry captain, USA, dated about a week before the strike:

January 29, 1919
To: Intelligence Officer, Butte, Montana
Re: General Strike Situation

This office has just received confidential information that R. L. Proctor, president of the Seattle Labor Council, went home last evening in an almost hysterical condition and that his wife finally got him to tell what the matter was and he stated to her that those in charge of the strike situation here had sent to Butte for some of the strong arm workers.

Mrs. Proctor, womanlike, had to tell a neighbor who in turn told my informant, therefor the information is absolutely confidential.

It is suggested that you advise this office by wire immediately if it appears that there is any attempt of that character of radicals leaving for this city.

An appraisal of the general strike written the day after it ended (February 11, 1919) makes some interesting paranoic observations about the extent to which radicalism was involved This wire is from another captain to the Director of Military Intelligence in Washington. Its all fascinating reading and here's a bit of the good stuff:

The fact that the labor unions of this city allowed themselves to be lead by such men as James E. Duncan, secretary of the Central Labor Council and professed Bolshevist; Leon Green, business agent of the Electrical Workers, their (Local 46) representative in the Central Council and alien Russian anarchist; and Hulet M. Wells, former president of the Council and convicted seditionist and propagandist [shows that] fraud undoubtedly was exercised by radicals in a number of union elections.

The army continued to monitor union and unionists activities the rest of 1919 (as far as this packet goes). They reported to each other on various public union gatherings and events.

One could say, if one wanted, that the truth of the old Emerson quote, "Foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds," is well supported by this little anecdote from our Seattle history. Whether it be the War Department, the FBI or CIA, the fools have been watching us all along.

When I run out of better things to do, I'm going to ask to see my file!

Ross Rieder is a local labor historian and has formerly worked for the Snohomish County Labor Council.