MARY HARRIS JONES 1830 1930 LABOR ORGANIZER JONES MARY HARRIS 1830 1930 LABOR/LABOR UNIONS ECONOMY AND LABOR MARY JONES BORN IN IRELAND MARY HARRIS JONES IMMIGRATED TO THE UNITED STATES AS A CHILD AFTER HER HUSBAND AND FOUR CHILDREN DIED IN A YELLOW FEVER EPIDEMIC IN 1867 SHE DEVOTED HERSELF TO THE LABOR MOVEMENT IN THE 1870S SHE BECAME INVOLVED WITH THE KNIGHTS OF LABOR AFTER THE ORGANIZATION'S DECLINE IN THE LATE 1880S JONES BECAME FOCUSED ON THE TEXTILE AND COAL INDUSTRIES AS A SUPPORTER OF THE UNITED MINE WORKERS SHE HELPED LEAD MANY STRIKES BY COALMINERS IN WEST VIRGINIA AND COLORADO OVER A FORTY YEAR PERIOD JONES LED FIVE MAJOR STRIKES IN WEST VIRGINIA TO UNIONIZE THE MINERS SHE ALSO WORKED IN A TEXTILE MILL TO LEARN ABOUT CHILD LABORERS SHE CAME TO BE KNOWN AS MOTHER JONES FOR HER ELDERLY APPEARANCE AND FOR HER OPPOSITION TO CHILD LABOR SHE HELPED FOUND THE INDUSTRIAL WORKERS OF THE WORLD IN 1905 BUT SOON FOUND THE GROUP TOO RADICAL JONES CONTINUED TO SUPPORT STRIKES WHEN SHE WAS IN HER EIGHTIES
