Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 records, circa 1945-1989

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, Everett Kraft Mill Local #10
Title
Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 records
Dates
circa 1945-1989 (inclusive)
Quantity
1 linear foot
Collection Number
XOE_CPNWS0084awppw (collection)
Summary
The collection documents the Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 of the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers union and contains by-laws, employer agreements, meeting minutes, strike materials, and newsletters. It also includes records pertaining to the 1970s strike action taken by Weyerhaeuser employees at this Everett mill.
Repository
Western Washington University, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies
Goltz-Murray Archives Building
808 25th St.
Bellingham, WA
98225
Telephone: (360) 650-7534
cpnws@wwu.edu
Access Restrictions

The collection is open to the public.

Languages
English.

Historical NoteReturn to Top

The Weyerhaeuser Company began timber operations in the Everett area around 1900 with the construction of their first sawmill. The company continued to grow and eventually expanded into the papermaking industry. In 1953, the second of two kraft mills opened operations. Kraft mills were a vital step in the production of paper pulp. The kraft process utilized sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide to extract the harmful but naturally occurring degenerative chemical, lignin, from wood fibers. The workers in the Everett Weyerhaeuser Mill were organized first as the Local 236 of the International Brotherhood of Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mill Workers. In 1965, as corruption supposedly filled the ranks of the International Brotherhood, the workers then joined the newly formed the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers. The AWPPW's motto, adopted in 1965, was and still is, "Guard Well the Democratic Rights of Your Members." They bill themselves as one of the most democratic unions in the country. The Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 was active at the Weyerhaeuser Mill, where employees struck on numerous occasions throughout the 1960s and 1970s. The AWPPW and the Weyerhaeuser Company operate to this day, while the Everett Kraft Mill and the Local 10 do not.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers (AWPPW), Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 records include by-laws, employer agreements, labor contracts, meeting minutes, strike materials, correspondence, and newsletters documenting the activities and interests of this local Everett union. The records span from 1946 to 1989, but the vast majority corresponds to the 1960s and early 1970s. Although the majority of the material pertains to the period of AWPPW union leadership, there is a small amount of material that pertains to the Everett Kraft mill employees’ previous union leadership, the International Brotherhood of Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mill Workers. The Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 records also include materials relating to the numerous strikes by Washington State Weyerhaeuser employees throughout the 1960s and 1970s.

The first series, containing primarily meeting minutes and the constitutions, reveals not only the transition of union leadership, but also the inner workings of this mill's union. The Kraft Mill Standing Committee meeting minutes document the International Brotherhood of Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mill Workers leadership, while the constitutions and labor agreements span twenty five years and both unions providing a broader picture of this mill and its workers.

However, it is the second series, newsletters, that truly illustrates the dynamic of industrial union life, representing union interests on the local level with their own newsletter, The Digester. These records also document activities on the regional level with the AWPPW's newsletter, The Rebel as well as the employer's perspective with Weyerhaeuser's newsletter, The Echo.

The third series contains the least amount of material and pertains to strike material including employee memorandums from Weyerhaeuser, and special editions of The Digester. The lack of material pertaining to the strikes in the 1960s and 1970s can be supplemented by information within the newsletters.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Preferred Citation

Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 records, Center for Pacific Northwest Studies, Western Libraries Archives & Special Collections, Western Washington University, Bellingham WA 98225-9123.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

The Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 records are arranged into 3 series.

  • Series I: Administrative, 1946-1973
  • Series II: Newsletters, 1964-1989
  • Series III: Strike Information, 1964-1971

Processing Note

About Harmful Language and Content

To learn more about problematic content in our collections, collection description and teaching tools (including how to provide feedback or request dialogue on this topic), see the following Statement About Potentially Harmful Language and Content

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.

Series I:  Administrative, 1946-1973Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/1
Financial
1965-1973
1/2
Health Insurance
1966-1971
1/3
Memos and Correspondence
1966-1973
Meeting Minutes
1953-1971
Box/Folder
1/4
Kraft Mill Standing Committee Meeting Minutes (Part 1)
1953-1957
1/5
Kraft Mill Standing Committee Meeting Minutes (Part 2)
1953-1957
1/6
Kraft Mill Standing Committee Meeting Minutes (Part 1)
1957-1960
1/7
Kraft Mill Standing Committee Meeting Minutes (Part 2)
1957-1960
1/8
Kraft Mill Standing Committee Meeting Minutes
1961-1964
1/9
Minutes of the pre-Wage Conference of the International Brotherhood of Pulp, Sulphite & Paper Mill Workers and the United Papermakers & Paperworkers
1964 April 15
1/10
Washington – Alaska Joint Council of the AWPPW
1971 September
Constitutions and Uniform Labor Agreements
1946-1971
Box/Folder
1/11
Constitutions and Uniform Labor Agreements
1946-1971
1/12
Constitutions and Uniform Labor Agreements
1946-1971
1/13
Constitution and By-Laws of the Northern Washington and Alaska Area Council of the AWPPW
1968

Series II:  Newsletters, 1964-1989Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
The Rebel
1964-1972
box-folde
1/14
The Rebel
1964-1965
1/15
The Rebel
1966
1/16
The Rebel
1967
1/17
The Rebel
1968
1/18
The Rebel
1969
1/19
The Rebel
1970-1973,; 1989
box-folde
1/20
Weyerhaeuser The Echo Newsletter
June 1965-December 1966
1/21
Everett Local #10 The Digester Newsletter
1965-1973

Series III:  Strike Information, 1964-1971Return to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box/Folder
1/22
Weyerhaeuser Strike
1964
1/23
Weyerhaeuser Strike
1969
1/24
Weyerhaeuser Strike
1971
1/25
Jurisdictional Dispute AWPPW & AFL-CIO
1967

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Collective labor agreement -- Paper industry workers -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.
  • Industrial relations -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.
  • Labor unions -- Strike benefits -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.
  • Newsletters -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- Sources.
  • Paper industry workers -- Labor disputes -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.
  • Paper industry workers -- Labor unions -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.
  • Paper industry workers -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.
  • Pulp mills -- Strikes and lockouts -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.
  • Wood-pulp industry -- Washington (State) -- Everett -- History -- Sources.

Corporate Names

  • Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers, Everett Kraft Mill Local #10 (creator)
  • Weyerhaeuser Company--Washington (State)--Everett--History--Sources.

Geographical Names

  • Everett (Wash.) -- Labor union locals -- History -- Sources.

Other Creators

  • Corporate Names
    • International Brotherhood of Pulp, Sulphite and Paper Mill Workers--Washington (State)--Everett--History--Sources.