Mitchell, John (1870-1919)

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Item Relations

Mentioned in (6)
Written by (2)
Comments (0)

Jenkin Lloyd Jones to Jane Addams, October 15, 1902

Jane Addams to Richard Theodore Ely, December 5, 1903

The Present Crisis in the Trades-Union Morals, August 1904

Jane Addams to Edward A. Ross, March 2, 1907

Theodore Roosevelt's Labor Record, ca. August 1912

Suggestions for Advisory Committee Membership, Progressive Service Committee, January 28, 1913

Henry Walcott Farnam et al. to Unknown, [1910]

John Purroy Mitchel to Jane Addams, June 22, 1914

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Birth Date

1870-02-04

Death Date

1919-09-09

Birthplace

Braidwood, IL

Biographical Text

John Mitchell began working at the mines at the age of six, later joining the Knights of Labor at fifteen. In 1890, at the age of twenty. He became one of the founding members of the United Mine Workers of America. Mitchell became president in 1898 and served that role until 1907. During that time, the number of members grew almost tenfold, from 34,000 to 300,000. It was Mitchell's negotiations with mining companies, including one in which President Theodore Roosevelt had to intervene, that resulted in an eight-hour workday and a minimum wage. Mitchell died in 1919.