Bakery and Confectionary Workers’ International Union of America
Date
1885-1966
Description
This journal was the house organ for the Journeymen, Bakers’ and Confectioners’ International Union von Amerika. It is a treasure trove of information about the production of some of America’s favorite foods and the working people who prepared them. The publishing history of this union journal is complex and difficult to ascertain as almost no complete sets of its more than eighty-year (1888-1966) run are extant. In its final years the periodical was entitled The Baker’s and Confectioners’ Journal. For many years after its first publication in 1885 the journal was printed only in German. Later numbers were printed in German and English, and at the end of its life, only in English. Scattered throughout the bilingual (now trilingual) editions are many pages of Yiddish.
The depth and variety of labor, political, social, and economic history within this journal is remarkable. One can unearth the story of an industry and craft.in transition from small artisanal shops to international conglomerates. Many hundreds of photographs show workers plying their trade and illustrate equipment, utensils, machinery, and activities on the factory floor. There are detailed histories of union members and baking companies from all over the United States and Canada. The publication also made a serious attempt to involve worker’s families, both wives and children. Its pages document the battle between the socialists and communists and the almost palpable expression of hope when Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected President. The union was proudly socialist.
The battle between labor and management was a constant theme in The Baker’s Journal. In July 1917, with the United States at war, the publication reproduced an inflammatory letter offering professional strike-breaking services. The accompanying article was entitled, “The Patriotism of Private detective Agencies.
