AZ: The History of Arizona podcast

In a fit of passion, the IWW decided to launch a strike in Bisbee in June 1917. Unfortunately, this just set up the dominoes perfectly for the copper companies to prepare their counterattack.

As we move into discussing one of the big black marks on Arizona history, we first must talk about Bisbee and that one time when the Western Federation of Miners was able to just barely gain a foothold in the company town.

After the U.S. entered World War I in the spring of 1917, another wave of strikes erupted across Arizona. But the owners of the state’s copper mines had learned a trick or two and were able to brand unions as anti-American agitators. Eventually the heavy hammer of company authority would fall everywhere , even in places as staunchly pro-labor as Globe and Miami.

As labor made its gains in the early 20th century, the companies they were agitating against embarked on a concerted campaign to co-opt, malign and marginalize any dissidents. One particular target was the IWW, which the companies soon managed to turned into villains in the public imagination, despite them doing very, very little.

In 1915-1916, the miners and Clifton and Morenci participated in a strike that was unusual - it was non-violent, didn’t involve strikebreakers, and no troops were called in to stop it. But most unusual of all - the strikers basically won.

In 1915, miners at both Miami and Ray decided that they wanted a bigger piece of the pie. And, surprisingly, in both instances they were able to put together an effective walk out. Even more surprisingly, though they wouldn’t get exactly what they had demanded, they were both able to secure important concessions from the copper corporations.

You would think that the workers at the Cananea Consolidated Copper Company mines in Sonora going on strike would be outside this podcast’s purview. But, oh, how did Arizona - and its territorial rangers - found a way to be involved.

The early 20th century saw a variety of labor disputes and strikes throughout Arizona. One of the earliest was in the communities of Clifton, Morenci, and Metcalf, when Mexican miners had the crazy notion that they deserved the same pay as their American counterparts.

After Hunt became governor in 1914, his name would appear on nearly every ballot for the next 20 years. His remarkable seven terms in office would be eventful, but rocky. Today we unpack the political life and times of Arizona’s first governor.

George W. P. Hunt was not your typical politician. He was bald, rotund, not good at public speaking, never really sure wanted to campaign, and always just a touch more radical than everyone else. This week we explore how he went from a runaway to a leader in Arizona’s Democratic Party.

With Arizona now a full-fledged member of the Union, we must go back to the fall of 1911 and discuss who exactly it will be that will helm this new state government. Hint - It will not be any Republicans.

On February 14 - Valentine’s Day - 1912, Arizona finally became a state. Before that could happen though, all obstacles had to be cleared and all objections overcome. But, finally, all that was left to do was celebrate a hard-earned prize.

Its leader was disparaged as a radical, its makeup was overwhelmingly left-leaning, and the document it produced drew the ire of Congress and the president, not to mention the scorn of several men involved with it. Yep, Arizona’s constitution convention in the fall of 1910 certainly was historic.

In 1910, an enabling act allowing for Arizona and New Mexico to write state constitutions finally passed through Congress and was signed by President Taft. However difficult that process had been, people in Arizona now had much harder questions they had to answer.

It was four years late, some $7 million over budget, and the road to get there was a nightmare, but the construction of the Roosevelt Dam ushered in a new age for the Valley of the Sun. Good thing they got a suitable figure to dedicate it.

To get their dam on the Salt River, water users in the Valley of the Sun had to sort out their own squabbles and create an organization that would guide the future of water distribution.

At the turn of the 20th century, Congress finally got behind the idea of funding reclamation projects. By that time, everyone in Phoenix knew of the perfect spot for the government to build a dam.

At the close of the 19th century, the Akimel O’odham and the Maricopa were in dire straights, victims of water theft upstream. But, at the same time, a new idea was starting to gain popularity - reclamation.

At the dawn of the 19th century, the Akimel O’odham had it all - a reliable water source, rich farmland, a thriving trade empire, and good relations with everyone passing through Arizona. Little did they suspect that it would all disappear in 70 years, just like the river they were named after.

As the 1900s dawned, Arizona felt it was ready to become a full-fledged state. What followed was an 11-year campaign to convince the rest of the country. But the first part of that was the territory fighting to defeat an idea that, for most, was even worse than not becoming a state.