National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards Records, 1916-1955, bulk 1935-1955

Printable guide [HTML]
Request items

Summary

Title:
National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards records.
Dates:
1916-1955, bulk 1935-1955
Creators:
National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards
Abstract:
The National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards (NUMCS) records documents union-related activity from the 1930s to the 1950s. The collection includes correspondence; files related to arbitration; War Labor and National Labor Relations Board cases; agreements with various companies; NUMCS constitional and biennial convention proceedings; committee minutes from various ports; NUMCS General Council minutes and reports; files related to the Pacific Coast Section Presidential Board of Inquiry and United States Maritime Commission hearings; and publications.
Extent:
22.5 Linear Feet (18 cartons)
Language:
English and Collection materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards records, BANC MSS 75/3c,The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Background

Scope and content:

The National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards (NUMCS) records document union-related activity from the 1930s to the 1950s. Please note that the union was variously referred to as the National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards and Marine Cooks and Stewards. Original folder titles were retained.

The collection is divided into 12 series: Correspondence; Arbitration; War Labor Board Cases; National Labor Relations Board Cases; Agreements (with various companies); NUMCS Constitional and Biennial Conventions; Port Committee Minutes (predominantly West Coast); NUMCS General Council Minutes and Reports; Pacific Coast Section Presidential Board of Inquiry; United States Maritime Commission Hearings (related to wages, manning, and working conditions); Miscellany; and Publications.

Biographical / historical:

The Marine Cooks and Stewards Association of the Pacific Coast, later the National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards (NUMCS), was founded in 1901. It represented the service workers in the steward departments of United States vessels that sailed in the Pacific. The union was originally dedicated to preserving these jobs for white men and excluding Asian and African American workers. But during and after the Depression-era maritime strikes in 1934 and 1936, communists and young radicals, as well as Black, Asian American, and gay workers, bridged their differences through collective struggle and transformed it into one of the most democratic, racially integrated unions in the United States. By the 1950s, the majority of the members and leaders of the union were people of color. However, anti-communism, homophobia, a federal maritime security program designed to screen out subversives, and the Taft-Hartley Act took its toll on the union. It was expelled by the Congress of Industrial Organizations in 1950 for being communist-dominated and soon thereafter was the focus of a power struggle between the Seafarers International Union (part of American Federation of Labor) and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union.

The history of the NUMCS is complicated. Please see these links for more details on how race, class, gender, and sexuality intersect in the union’s story:

Marine Cooks and Stewards, Waterfront Workers History Project, Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies, University of Washington: https://depts.washington.edu/dock/maritime_intro.shtml

George Robertson, "Desegregating a Maritime Union," Waterfront Workers History Project, Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies, University of Washington: https://depts.washington.edu/dock/mcs_desegregation.shtml

Allan Bérubé, "No Red-Baiting, No Race-Baiting, No Queen-Baiting!": The Marine Cooks and Stewards Union from the Depression to the Cold War: http://outhistory.org/exhibits/show/no-baiting/red-race-queen

Processing information:

Arranged to the folder level.

Processed by Marjorie Bryer in 2019.

Accruals:

No future additions are expected.

Physical location:
Many of the Bancroft Library collections are stored offsite and advance notice may be required for use. For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the library's online catalog.
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Marjorie Bryer
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2019-06-20 10:07:26 -0700 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Collection is open for research.

Terms of access:

Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by terms of University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user. For additional information about the University of California, Berkeley Library's permissions policy please see: http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/about/permissions-policies

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], National Union of Marine Cooks and Stewards records, BANC MSS 75/3c,The Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley.

Location of this collection:
University of California, Berkeley, The Bancroft Library
Berkeley, CA 94720-6000, US
Contact:
510-642-6481
bancref-library@berkeley.edu
Website