When Miners March

By: William C. Blizzard, Wess Harris (Editor)

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Paperback | 28 October 2010

At a Glance

Paperback
400 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
22.8 x 15.2 x 2.7

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In the first half of the 20th century, strikes and Union battles, murders and frame-ups, were common in every industrial center in the U.S. But none of these episodes compared in scope to the West Virginia Mine Wars.

The uprisings of coal miners that defined the Mine Wars of the 1920's were a direct result of the Draconian rule of the coal companies. The climax was the Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest open and armed rebellion in U.S. history. The Battle, and Union leader Bill Blizzard's quest for justice, was only quelled when the U.S. Army brought guns, poison gas and aerial bombers to stop the 10,000 bandanna-clad miners who formed the spontaneous "Red Neck Army."

Over half a century ago, William C. Blizzard wrote the definitive insider's history of the Mine Wars and the resulting trial for treason of his father, the fearless leader of the Red Neck Army. Events dramatized in John Sayles film Matewan, and fictionalized in Denise Giardina's stirring novel Storming Heaven, are here recounted as they occurred. This is a people's history, complete with previously unpublished family photos and documents. If it brawls a little, and brags a little, and is angry more than a little, well, the people in this book were that way.

Industry Reviews

When Miners March is the sweeping and heavily documented account of the Mine Wars from the governor's mansion to coal tipples as portrayed by the son of Bill Blizzard, the leader of the Red Neck Army - all told as the miners saw it. --Appalachian Journal (January 2013)
A national treasure, a recovered gem of American history that should be required reading today. Never has a book been timelier; never has William C. Blizzard's inside account of his legendary father's march to liberate the Appalachian coalfields from the abuses of King Coal been more relevant. --Jeff Biggers, author, The United States of Appalachia
An extraordinary account of a largely ignored but important event in the history of our nation. --Howard Zinn, author, A People's History of the United States
Current events--notably the struggle for unions to remain relevant and empowered, and coal's role in the climate change crisis--make these writings both relevant and remarkable. The book underscores, among other things, both how far we have come in terms of labor protections and rights, and how far we have fallen in terms of workers' ability and willingness to take great risks and militant action. --Kari Lydersen, editor, In These Times
For the scholar and labor historian, When Miners March provides incredible insight into one of the most tumultuous times in our nation's labor history. For anyone who participates in any kind of labor force, the work illustrates how much we owe to the coalminers of Appalachia who lived, and often times died, to secure basic freedoms and rights for all workers in the United States. --Appalachian Heritage (October 2011)
The placement of the Stickin' Tommy is one of several errors in the coal-related exhibits alleged by Harris, an author and state Labor History Association board member who was named last year's West Virginia History Hero for his work. --Gazette Mail (Charleston, WV)

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