THE DUNNE BROTHERS
And the Strikes of 1934

Although the strikes of 1934 happened in Minneapolis, they affected many people in our area who worked in the City.  Much of the following information is from "The Dunne Boys of Minneapolis" by Dale Kramer, as published in Harpers Magazine, March 1942.

The Dunne Brothers organized a truck drivers' strike in Minneapolis that shut down commerce for five months and featured violent confrontations. Brothers Vincent, Miles (“Mickey”), Grant, and Fenton Dunne were Trotskyites during the time that Trotsky had split from Stalin after the death of Lenin.

The Communist Party was becoming more popular after WWI, and although it went underground for awhile in the wake of action by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer (the “Palmer Raids”), Minneapolis was ripe for labor agitation in the early days of the Depression. The Gateway had been the place for laborers to be hired for railroad gangs, lumber camps, or harvest crews. When those jobs evaporated, some got jobs in other industries, but the area deteriorated into a skid row that would persist until urban renewal in the 1950’s. Social unrest was inevitable and there were many political factions competing for support. Much of the story of the strike has to do with battles between rival union organizations as it does the drivers and their employers.

Vince Dunne had obtained a job “teaming,” which involved handling horses. He worked himself into the class of express drivers, “sweeping through the streets ahead of the rest.” As the brains of the bunch, his efforts were concentrated on unionizing the teamsters in order to obtain higher wages.

The first strike of 1934 started on May 19 and was centered on the market north of Hennepin Ave. Strikers battled police and hundreds of ersatz deputies: “observers gave the edge to the drivers, but the battle was not decisive.” The battle caused such a commotion that 25,000 people showed up the next day to watch the violence, and radio coverage ensured that everyone could keep score. On one side were 700 police and about 1,000 deputies – one in a football helmet and one in his polo outfit. The action was over in less than an hour.  A deputy was found dead, and union members referred to the skirmish as the “Battle of Deputies Run.” Governor Olson, a Farmer-Laborite, reluctantly sent State troops to keep order.

The second strike began on July 19. On the second day (“Bloody Friday”), Chief of Police Mike Johannes (“Bloody Mike”) opened fire on a group of strikers who were stopping a truck. Two men were killed and 67 injured, most of them shot in the back. Governor Olson again declared martial law, and the strike was settled by negotiation a month later.

The Dunne Brothers were charged with sedition in 1940. Before the trial, brother Fenton had dropped out, and Grant shot and killed himself. Vincent and 17 others were convicted of conspiring to undermine the loyalty of U.S. military forces and publishing material advocating the overthrow of the Government. They were found not guilty of sedition. Miles and four others were acquitted of all counts. Vincent was sentenced to 18 months in jail. Despite their heavy-handed ways, Minnesota labor leaders credit the Dunnes with making Minneapolis a union town.

There is much more to the story; the Labor Standard website can lead you to more sites.
 

A great site for information about the labor movement in Minneapolis comes from the Hennepin County Library.
 

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This information comes from a variety of sources: newspapers, books, yearbooks, phone directories, interviews, etc. Given the varied sources, we cannot guarantee that all of this information is correct, and welcome any additions and corrections. Please contact us with your contributions and comments.