Covington Hall facts for kids

William Covington Hall (born August 25, 1871 – died February 21, 1952) was an important American labor organizer, writer, and poet. He also used the pen names Covington Ami and Covami. Hall was a very active member of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), a big union that worked for better conditions for workers. People sometimes called IWW members "Wobblies." Hall played a key role in major events like the Louisiana-Texas Timber War and the United Fruit Company strike of 1913. He lived most of his life in Louisiana, especially in the city of New Orleans.

Growing Up

Hall was born on August 25, 1871, in Woodville, Mississippi. His family was quite wealthy, and his father was a minister. His family later moved to Terrebonne Parish in Louisiana. They lived on a sugar plantation until they lost it in 1891. This event made Hall move to New Orleans, where he took different jobs, like selling insurance.

Losing his family's land and a violent event called the Thibodaux massacre greatly shaped Hall's beliefs about fairness and workers' rights. During a tough economic time called the Panic of 1893, he joined the Socialist Party. This party believed in sharing wealth and power more equally. Hall became a leader of a more radical part of the Socialist Party.

While in New Orleans, he became friends with Oscar Ameringer, who wrote for a newspaper called Labor World. Hall became the assistant editor of this newspaper until 1907.

He was also a high-ranking officer in the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a group for descendants of Confederate soldiers. Hall was unusual in this group because he was against racial segregation (keeping people of different races separate). He lost his position after writing articles that strongly disagreed with the group's views on this topic.

Joining the IWW

Hall joined the IWW in 1905, right when it started. He didn't take official leadership roles, but he wrote a lot about the labor movement and the union's activities. He also wrote hundreds of poems about workers' rights and other causes. People called him the "Wobbly Poet."

Hall joined the Brotherhood of Timber Workers (BTW), a union for lumber workers. He helped this union become part of the IWW. It was then that he started his first newspaper, The Lumberjack. This paper covered union news and the Louisiana-Texas Lumber War of 1911-1912. During this time, a violent event called the Grabow riot happened, where four people died. Many union members were arrested, but Hall was not. He worked hard to get other labor newspapers to cover the story and started a national campaign to raise money to defend the arrested union members. In the end, all the union members were found not guilty and set free.

Unlike many other unions at the time, the IWW had a policy of including all races. There was no segregation within the union. However, putting this policy into practice was sometimes hard, especially in areas with Jim Crow laws, which enforced segregation. Hall was a strong supporter of complete integration. At one union meeting during the timber wars, Hall encouraged the two separate unions (one for white workers, one for Black workers) to meet together. The workers agreed, and from then on, all BTW meetings were integrated.

Hall did disagree with the IWW's rule that farmers and other agricultural workers could not join. He tried to convince other IWW leaders to change this rule, but his ideas didn't catch on. So, he worked outside the IWW to organize farmers. His group, called the Rebel Clan of Toil, gained some support between 1915 and 1917, but it didn't fully reach its goals. During this time, he edited a monthly magazine called Rebellion.

Like most IWW members, Hall was against the First World War. During the war, he joined a group called the Nonpartisan League.

His Writings

Besides the newspapers he edited, Hall wrote a lot for most IWW magazines, journals, and newspapers. He even wrote for the Industrial Worker in the 1940s. He often used his pen names, Covington Ami and Covami.

In the 1940s, he wrote his memories in a book called Labor Struggles in the Deep South & Other Writings. The book covered most of his life up to the 1920s.

Later Years

After the 1920s, the labor wars and the IWW's decline meant Hall was less active as an organizer. He had several other jobs, including being an assistant librarian in New Orleans. He also taught at Commonwealth Labor College in Arkansas and at Work People's College in Duluth, Minnesota.

William Covington Hall died in New Orleans on February 21, 1952, when he was 80 years old.