Today -100: May 20, 1920: Of Matewan massacres, ignored hoovers, and dear old pals of mine

12 men are killed on the streets of Matewan, West Virginia in a gun battle between coal miners and the Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency, whose “detectives” arrived to evict strikers them from their company homes and tried to arrest Police Chief Sid Hatfield with a fake warrant. Shooting started, by whom is not clear. 7 detectives are dead, and Mayor Cabell Testerman. For further details, I refer you to John Sayles’s movie Matewan.

NY Gov. Alfred E. Smith vetoes several anti-Socialist bills, including ones establishing loyalty tests for teachers, barring socialists from the ballot and from appointive state offices, and creating a secret police bureau to investigate criminal anarchy.

Headline of the Day -100:

Rude.

The first entertainment radio broadcast, on Marconi-owned station XWA (Experimental Wireless Apparatus) in Montreal, plays records (“Dear Old Pal of Mine”) and has live singing by Dorothy Lutton (“Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms” and “Merrily Shall I Live” and others. It can barely be heard in Montreal, but reaches the meeting of the Royal Society of Canada in Ottawa. Ottawa broadcasts some ditties back to Montreal.

Don't see comments? Click on the post title to view or post comments.