A 5 p.m. April 28 Illinois State Historical Society (ISHS) marker unveiling will mark Joliet Laborer and Iron Worker “Big Steve” Sutton’s murder and 21 other injured workers during a July 19, 1932, protest at an Illinois River dam site in Marseilles, Illinois.
Special guest include musicians Tom Morello and Bucky Halker, ULLICO Inc. CEO Edward M. Smith, Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza, Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs and Illinois AFL-CIO President Tim Drea.
Morello’s spirited union musical message lifted spirits during the Wisconsin 2011 protests again Governor Scott Walker and his union-busting agenda. Morello’s upbeat, union spirit galvanizes those assembled.
Event sponsors include Laborers Local 393, ULLICO, Inc., the Illinois State Historical Society, Great Plains Laborers District Council, Laborers International Union of North America Midwest Region, and the Illinois Labor History Society.
On July 18, 1932, 300-plus unemployed construction workers marched on the federal dam project, which was employing out of state workers. The protestors, desperate for work during the Great Depression, were demanding local hire.
Two out-of-state companies, Stephens Brothers and Miller-Hutchinson had won the contract, bringing a multi-state crew. The wages were substandard for the area.
The next day a second demonstration was planned. Meanwhile the dam site was fortified and workers there armed with rifles, revolvers and clubs. As protestors approached the work site the out-of-state workers opened fire.
“Big Steve” Sutton of Joliet collapsed after bullets pierced a lung and two in his stomach. Twenty one others were wounded and treated, including Cecil Hopton, shot through the eye; Thomas Chambers was shot and clubbed in the head, others received lacerations and various gunshot wounds.
Tragically, as the shooting continued, company General Superintendent Herbert W. Miller, arrived from Joliet, having reached an agreement with the Laborers and Electricians to hire local workers.
LaSalle County sheriff E.J. Welter, backed by the State Police, rushed to the scene; he calmed the situation, seizing rifles, revolvers and ammunition from the job site. All 127 company construction workers were arrested, primarily for their own safety.
With negotiated assistance from Illinois AFL President and State Representative Reuben Soderstrom and Marseilles banker Sherman Lewis, a union recognition agreement was reached and the out-of-state workers dispatched homeward.
The grand jury convened in October, summoning 125 witnesses.
In 1933 International Hod Carriers and Common Laborers Local 393, now the Laborers International Union of North America Local 393, was founded in Marseilles, a direct result of the dam shooting.
The Workers’ Memorial Day event is scheduled for the Illinois Valley Cellular Parking lot, 200 Riverfront Drive, Marseilles. In case of inclement weather the event will move to the school, 201 Chicago Street.