Topaz Carbon County series audio recordings
Collection
Identifier: A1306
Scope and Contents
The Topaz Carbon County series audio recordings consists of interviews with people involved in the coal mining industry in Carbon County. This collection is not currently digitized.
Dates
- 1982-1983
Creator
- Institute of the American West (Organization)
Language of Materials
Collection material in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Materials must be used on-site; no use of original material, access copies will be made available for viewing. All items have been digitized and are available. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law, condition of the material, or by donor.
Conditions Governing Use
The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.
Historical Note
Carbon County, Utah, was separated from Emery County in 1894 by the Utah Territorial Legislature. In the previous decade, railroad construction between Salt Lake City and Denver had exposed the rich coal deposits and a large mining industry had begun. By the 1920s however, the early stages of the Depression had hit the mining industry hard. Safety standards in the county mines were poor as demonstrated by the 1924 coal mine explosion in Castle Gate where 172 miners were killed. As the Depression became widespread, wages and hours were cut back for miners and unrest began to grow. To add to the unrest in Carbon County was a rivalry between the towns of Price and Helper. Price was the county seat, had a large American-born population, and was home to many mine owners. Helper was viewed as the miners' town and had a large immigrant population. To add to already complex rivalries were the competing aims of two union organizations: the National Miner's Union (NMU) and the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA). The UMWA had been established in Carbon County for a long time but had organized few miners. When NMU representatives Paul Crouch and Charles Guynn arrived in Carbon County in early 1933, they had great success as miners around Helper quickly joined NMU. In responce, officals in Price began to throw their support to the UMWA. The rivalry intensified when the mayor of Price, Rolla West, stopped NMU workers from marching in the Forth of July Parade. The mayor of Helper, Frank R. Porter, responded by having NMU workers have their own parade in Helper. This break between the two unions and the two towns led to an explosion of violence when NMU workers went on strike while UMWA workers stayed on the job. Since NMU was openly pro-communist, Price officials convinced Governor Henry H. Blood to send the National Guard to end the strike. UMWA members became deputies and acts of violence between Helper and Price exploded. Several arrests were made and NMU's Charles Guynn was tried and convicted of rioting. An amnesty was allowed for other NMU leaders provided they left the county. All remaining NMU workers were forced to join the UMWA in order to gain work in local mines and the UMWA remained the dominant union in Carbon County for nearly thirty years.
Extent
31 Audiocassette
Abstract
The Topaz Carbon County series audio recordings consists of interviews with people involved in the coal mining industry in Carbon County. This collection was previously part of the Ethnic archives oral history audio recordings collection (A0853).
Arrangement
The items have kept their original numbering.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by the American West Center in 2000.
Processing Information
Processed by Elizabeth Shuput in 2008 and Deborah Landis in 2018.
Creator
- Institute of the American West (Organization)
- Title
- Guide to the Topaz Carbon County series audio recordings 1982-1983
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Finding aid created by Deborah Landis
- Date
- © 2018 (last modified: 2023)
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Finding aid encoded in English in Latin script.
Repository Details
Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository
Contact:
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863
special@library.utah.edu