The Ludlow Massacre began on the morning of April 20, 1914, when a battle broke out between the Colorado National Guard and striking coal miners at their tent colony outside of Ludlow in Las Animas County. Nobody knows who fired the first shot, but the incident is remembered as a massacre because the miners and their families bore the brunt of the casualties. At least nineteen people died, including one guardsman, five miners, and thirteen women and children who suffocated as they hid from the gunfire in a pit. More died in violence throughout southern Colorado over the next few days. No matter how the casualties are counted, the Ludlow Massacre is one of the bloodiest events in American labor history.
Ramifications from the Massacre began instantly. When other miners heard of the events at Ludlow, they went on a killing spree across the region. Mine supervisors and guards were shot. Mine property was destroyed. Innocent people were killed on both sides. It is impossible to determine how many people died in the days after the Massacre, although it was certainly more than the number of the people who died in the initial tragedy.
...
Wife's birthday coming up?
Here's an idea.
You can buy her these...
Click on the picture for more information on this beautiful set
They're simple yet elegant - and come to you with free shipping!
...
I was driving through Colorado in 2013 when I saw a road sign for the Ludlow massacre. Long story as to why, but I went ahead and stopped to take a look. the memorial area is set up like a park with lots of fences. I let myself through the first fence, and started taking pictures of the memorial (which is behind another set of fences). Pretty soon two pickup trucks drove up, throwing gravel and dust in the air. Each contained two burly guys wearing orange vests. One of them popped out, looked, and glared at me. I showed my camera and waved back. The four of them decided to eat lunch in their trucks while watching me.
ReplyDeleteI read the inscriptions. Took pictures of the area, and eventually left.
I thought their behavior was relatively odd and raised it with someone who knew the area. Evidently the memorial was being vandalized on a regular basis. Some of the local unions have taken it upon themselves to provide rudimentary security. Even all those years later, people were still vandalizing the site.
Now do the Bonus Marchers in 1932. Where Congress authorized Douglas MacArthur to use machine guns and tanks against said Bonus Marchers.
ReplyDelete