The Seattle Mill Revolt
When mill workers walked off the job in 1886 to protest the hiring of Chinese labor, the resulting confrontation revealed the era's deep-seated exclusionary labor politics.
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.
The Meteon Post Mill Company recently experienced difficulty in obtaining men to work at packing shingles. Yesterday, they employed two Chinese men to do the work, and at the noon hour, all the men rebelled against working in the same mill with the Chinese. After a talk over the matter with the employers, they agreed to find less skilled men to do the work, which was satisfactory to all, and the running of the mill was immediately resumed.
“Yesterday, they employed two Chinese men to do the work, and at the noon hour, all the men rebelled against working in the same mill with the Chinese.”
This 1886 labor dispute reflects the anti-Chinese exclusion movement that roiled Seattle in the late 19th century. Today, labor tensions often center on gig economy wages and automation, but they remain echoes of historical struggles over who is permitted to participate in the regional workforce.
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