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Alberta's Red Democrats: the Challenge and Legacy of Blairmore

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Alberta's Red Democrats: the Challenge and Legacy of Blairmore Alberta’s Red Democrats: The Challenge and Legacy of Blairmore Communism, 1921-1936 by Kyle Randolph Franz A dissertation submitted to the Department of History in conformity with the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen’s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada August, 2013 Copyright © Kyle Randolph Franz Abstract On Valentine’s Day, 1933 the citizens of Blairmore, Alberta elected a Communist town council and school board. “Alberta’s Red Democrats: the Challenges and Legacy of Blairmore Communism, 1921-1936” seeks not only to understand the Red administration that governed here during the mid-thirties, but also the community that elected it. It will be shown that the election of Mayor Bill Knight and his colleagues was neither a knee-jerk reaction to the protracted poverty of the Great Depression nor an alignment with the Communist Party of Canada as an act of desperation. The Red movement at Blairmore was deeply rooted in past experience, and as it came to fruition challenged what it meant to be a Communist in Canada. ii Acknowledgements I owe a debt of gratitude to Ian McKay, without whom this dissertation would not have been possible. Throughout this process Ian has been not only been my mentor, but my colleague and friend as well. His insights, suggestions and revisions have helped me to become a better writer and historian. His kindness has helped me to become a better person. Had it not been for Catherine Rose, Jamie Tronnes and Ian Dyck I likely would not have had the courage to attempt graduate school. Once in school I benefited greatly from the guidance, support and advice of Sheila McManus who not only helped this project get off the ground but prepared me well for the challenges I would face during the doctoral process. Kelly Morrison has been a constant friend, ally and cheerleader and the students of History 434 – particularly Kassandra Luciuk and Corey Fortier – have rekindled in me the joy of educating. Yvonne Place has been a constant source of knowledge and strength. My research has been assisted tremendously by my friends and colleagues at the Crowsnest Pass Historical Society. Michelle Cavanagh, Chris Matthews, Fred Bradley and Wendy Zack: I admire your professionalism and am grateful for your friendship. I would also like to thank the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Government of Ontario, the Government of Alberta and Queen’s University for their financial support. I owe my biggest thank-you to my family. Mom and Dad, please know that you have always provided me with a loving home, a sympathetic ear and a strong sense of self. Meghan, I am grateful for the connection we share. You are my closest friend and yes, I realize that although I may be able to call myself a doctor, to you I will always be an out-of-province active trailer. Tisha: although we are not related, you are – and always will be – family. And finally Chris; it isn’t often people share a bond as strong as ours, and I am grateful to have you in my life. I dedicate this dissertation to my family. iii Table of Contents Abstract ii Acknowledgements iii Table of Contents iv List of Tables and Illustrations v Abbreviations vi Chapter One 1 Introduction Chapter Two: 53 Place, Capital and Establishing Community in the Rocky Mountain West Chapter Three 100 War, Trade Unionism and Socio-Economic Transformation, 1914-1929 Chapter Four 143 The Third Period, Plan Z, and the Radicalization of the M.W.U.C. Chapter Five 188 Strike Chapter Six 239 A Fair Deal Government Chapter Seven 301 The Fame and Fall of Blairmore’s Reds Conclusion 344 Bibliography 349 Appendices 364 iv List of Tables and Illustrations Tables: Table 1. Blairmore’s Population 1901 and 1911 96-97 Table 2. Cost/Year to Produce Coal in Blairmore 128-120 Table 3. M.W.U.C. Affiliation Vote by Local 176 Illustrations: Tim Buck Boulevard at Night 3 Blairmore Town Council 1933 (unaltered) 8 Blairmore Town Council 1933 (altered) 9 Contemporary Blairmore 52 Frank vs. Blairmore, 1901 69 Frank mine vs. Blairmore mine, 1901 70 Samuel Ennis and Family 73 Blairmore Mine Office 1901 vs. 1911 83 Blairmore Surface Plant 1901 vs. 1911 83 Workers’ Parade 1932 198 K.K.K. in Blairmore 208 Knight Manifesto 259 Dedication of Tim Buck Boulevard 310 Tim Buck Boulevard 312 v Abbreviations A.C.C.L. All-Canadian Congress of Labor B.M.A. Blairmore Miners’ Association B.B.P.M.A. Blairmore Business and Professional Man’s Association C.A.C.C. Canadian-American Coal and Coke Company C.I. Communist International C.L.D.L. Canadian Labor Defence League C.M.A. Coleman Miners’ Association C.N.P.C.C.C. Crows Nest Pass Coal and Coke Company C.P.C. Communist Party of Canada C.P.R. Canadian Pacific Railway C.P.U.S.A. Communist Party of the United States of America E.C.C.I. Executive Committee of the Communist International K.K.K. Ku Klux Klan L.A.C. Library and Archives Canada M.C.C. Miners’ Children’s Club M.W.U.C. Mine Workers’ Union of Canada O.B.U. One Big Union R.I.L.U. Red International of Labor Unions T.L.C. Trades and Labor Congress U.L.F.T.A. Ukrainian Labor Farmer Temple Association U.M.W.A. United Mine Workers’ of America W.C.B. Workers’ Compensation Board vi W.C.C. West Canadian Collieries W.C.C.O.A. Western Canada Coal Operators’ Association W.P.C. Workers’ Party of Canada W.U.L. Workers’ Unity League Y.C.L. Young Communist League vii Chapter One: Introduction In February of 1933, the citizens of Blairmore, Alberta, shocked the country by electing a Communist mayor, town council and school board. Although the Reds undertook an ambitious legislative and social agenda, notoriously declaring a public holiday to celebrate the anniversary of the Russian Revolution and trying to implement a system of public health care during their tenure in office, many remember the Communist administration as a novelty – an interesting story for a cocktail party or perhaps the answer to a question in a future edition of Trivial Pursuit. This dissertation will move Blairmore away from the historical footnote it currently occupies by bringing together documentary evidence and newly collected oral testimony in order to better understand local lived experiences while at the same time challenging some influential regional and national narratives in Canadian and left history. Before we proceed to the questions and arguments this research will pose, let us briefly recount the actions of the council itself. Mayor Bill Knight and his colleagues served three consecutive terms in office between 1933 and 1936, undertaking to fulfill an agenda that pragmatically addressed the needs of a community deeply affected by the Great Depression and years of labour unrest while concurrently promoting radical social and political change. Within weeks of being elected, the council lowered property taxes for workers and cut expenses related to the basic provision of water and electricity. Library fees were abolished for all but the wealthiest citizens, and the ice arena was purchased by the town to ensure that all residents could make use of it. The council made available vacant land for residents to plant vegetable gardens, and rather than selling town-owned property that had accumulated due to tax default under previous administrations, it opted instead to renovate existing buildings in order to house the local unemployed. Those on relief received an increase in pay from twenty cents per hour to fifty 1 cents per hour for work completed, then the highest rate of pay for relief work in the country. A system of garbage collection was introduced to improve sanitation. The council even went so far as to decree that charges of prostitution would not be pursued within municipal boundaries, requiring local prostitutes to carry with them a medical certificate attesting to their clean bill of health. It was during their attempt to create a system of municipally funded public healthcare that the Reds lost power in 1936. Despite these achievements, the Red administration of Blairmore has not been remembered for its social programs. Instead, these years are often associated with newspaper articles trumpeting the council’s more controversial ideas and programs. For example, the town’s main street – Victoria Avenue – was renamed Tim Buck Boulevard to honour the then- imprisoned leader of the Communist Party of Canada. In a very public rededication ceremony, the famous (and to some infamous) Reverend A.E. Smith of the Workers’ Unity League cut a bright red ribbon, broke a bottle of ginger ale and pronounced Tim Buck Boulevard open to traffic.1 The revitalized, widened road boasted high voltage streetlights and a new automatic sprinkler system installed at the then-enormous sum of $80 per block.2 Flowers were planted along the route, and the council finished the job by ordering two large, electrical “Tim Buck Boulevard” signs to be installed at the beginning and the end of the Boulevard.3 As Maclean’s Magazine reported: Whereas Victoria Avenue boasted only five ordinary streetlights, the boulevard is a blaze of glory at night, being illuminated by a row of about eighty arc-lights of high candle power. A new project is underway at present to erect at either end of the boulevard a 1 Florence Elder Miles, “Is This A Soviet?”, Maclean’s Magazine, 15 April 1935. 2 Blairmore Town Council Meeting Minutes, 6 August 1934. Also see Blairmore Town Council Meeting Minutes, 17 July 1934.
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