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Hellraisers Journal, Monday April 23, 1917
Ludlow, Colorado – John R Lawson Speaks at Memorial for Martyrs
Yesterday on the field where the Martyrs of the Ludlow Tent Colony lost their lives in Freedom’s Cause during the Ludlow Massacre, thousands of miners and their families gathered to remember and honor the sacrifice of those heroic men, women and little children. They came by special trains from Trinidad and other towns of Southern Colorado. Every road leading up to the former Colony was lined with automobiles and horse-drawn rigs.
Trains arriving at Ludlow station were met by a dozen bands as thousands of miners and their families, speaking many different languages, left the platform and marched to the site of the Black Hole where the two women and eleven children had perished three years earlier in the fight for shorter hours and higher wages and decent living conditions.
From Tollerburg came a parade of five thousand men and women, each one wearing a red bandanna and carrying a small American Flag. The Flag of Ludlow led the parade, perhaps reminding the strikers of the day in December 1913 when the Martyred Hero of Ludlow, Louie Tikas, had marched beside Mother Jones in Denver carrying that same flag.
Marching in the parade were John R. Lawson and Ed Doyle, who were enthusiastically greeted by the thousands who lined the roads to cheer as the parade pass by them to the site of the Ludlow Massacre.
Lawson and Doyle, although no longer officials of the United Mine Workers, are yet much beloved by the miners and their families who will never forget the courage of these two big men who never bowed before the terror of the company gunthugs nor cowered before the mine-guard infested militia.
Both Lawson and Doyle spoke from the platform to those assembled. They remembered the Ludlow Tent Colony, recounted the strike, and spoke of hope for a better future. They were followed by others speaking in Italian, Slavic, Spanish and Greek.
John Lawson dropped flowers into the The Black Hole of Ludlow were the women and children had perished when the militiamen had set fire to the tent above their heads.
Ceremonies ended with the band playing and the crowd singing, “Nearer My God to Thee.”
Continue reading “Hellraisers Journal: 40 Acres at Site of Ludlow Massacre Dedicated by UMWA as Thousands Gather to Honor Martyrs” →
