Labor Tensions Turn Violent in Ballard
A physical confrontation between non-union workers and union men at a local shingle mill sparks a heated debate over intimidation, scabs, and the future of labor in Seattle.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Trouble occurred at Ballard Saturday night between L. Lambert, a non-union man, and Jim Beckett, a union shingle maker. Lambert refused the accounts which appeared in print and stated: 'The trouble between Ballard and Lambert was of personal nature and not because I am a non-union man and they are union men. The fight occurred in Mr. Hopkins' yard and no one else took part in it except those who were present. I had a pistol and Lambert was getting the worst of the fight until he drew it. I was not chased several blocks by union men, as your article stated. Ed Hopkins stood on the porch of his house during the whole trouble and can be referred to as to the truth of this. It is the intention of this union to peacefully carry this to a successful termination, and no one is led to use or countenance any violence whatever.' Lambert is employed by the Stimson Mill Company. He claims that Saturday night, while he was at Paul Hopkins' residence, Burt Rickerson called him out from the sidewalk to see him. When Lambert went out, Jim Beckett and three other union men who were hiding beside the house set upon him. Lambert says they asked him what he thought of himself for working for Stimson, and with a 'scab' crew. He replied that he was not a union man and intended to work for whom he pleased. Beckett struck him, and Lambert struck Beckett, knocking him down. Lambert shows a black eye as proof. Merton Hawley, a 16-year-old boy, also reported being harassed, cursed, and struck by Beckett and a crowd while walking along the avenue, solely for his employment at the mill.
“The fight occurred in Mr. Hopkins' yard and no one else took part in it except those who were present. I had a pistol and Lambert was getting the worst of the fight until he drew it.”
Labor disputes in Seattle's historic mill districts often centered on the 'scab' label, reflecting the fierce competition and class divide that defined the city's early industrial growth. The tension between union organization and non-union labor remains a persistent theme in Seattle’s labor history, echoing today's struggles over gig work and unionization in the service sector.
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