Ken Eckert Papers

Accession Number: 
LP001968
Extent: 
4.5 Linear Feet (1 SB, 1 MB, 1 OS)

Kenneth Eckert was a Toledo-born organizer for the UAW, the National Association of Die Casting Workers, and International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers, and a member of the Communist Party. Eckert became involved with the International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers when it absorbed the die casters union in 1942, a remaining regional director and board member until the merger was dissolved in 1948. The Ken Eckert collection contains court documents, correspondence, newspaper clippings, and photographs pertaining to the International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers, its Die Casting Division, and their significant shared membership with the Communist Party. Of particular interest is documentation of the 1942 merger between the International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers and the National Association of Die Casting Workers; the 1948 dissolution of that merger; and Eckert’s testimony to United States Senate committees investigating Communist membership in labor unions. The collection also includes labor and Communism pamphlets, court subpoenas, administrative union documents, and Eckert’s notes and research materials for a book he was planning in the 1950s.

Date: 
circa 1940s-1960s (1946-1954 bulk)
Attachment(click to download)
LP001968.pdfLP001968_guide.pdf148.78 KB