This report in the August 9, 1894 has Joe (Sr.) and his daughter Mary visiting his old home and stopping by to chat at the offices of The Albion Journal. Jacksonville, his new home, was the “center of the strike disturbance during the recent Debs rebellion...”. I had to check to make sure, but I had just been reading on the front pages for several weeks about a nationwide railroad strike. This was known as the Pullman strike more than “the Debs rebellion”, as the striking railroad union refused to move any cars made by the Pullman company. The article claims that “... Mr. Dixon is proud of the fact that he never met an Englishman who favored the walkout.”
President Cleveland intervened by sending troops to Chicago to break the strike. This did not make his fellow Democrats happy. However, the strike was so effective and widespread that it literally threatened commerce on a nationwide basis. Nothing moved on the rails and America had already become dependent on rail transportation.
Some view the strike as successful and it certainly raised membership in the union to all-time highs. Debs was a former state senator from Indiana. He ran for president several times as the Socialist Party candidate. He also led opposition to World War I and served brief prison sentences for both the Pullman strike and his opposition toWorld War I.
The Dixon’s are a unique family in regards to union vs. management issues, partly because my dad and two uncles were in management, while my grandpas and many other relatives were union members. The recent (fall 2019) GM strike shows that issues remain, although they were able to reach a settlement after a short strike. Most everyone, managers and union members alike, seemed to agree in family discussions that the UAW protected bad people and made unreasonable demands in the 60’s and 70’s. On the other hand, the incredibly high wage levels (for both skilled and unskilled workers) and amazing benefit packages literally meant that Dixon’s were able to live a much better life than folks supported by non-union workers.
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