FinnForum IX: A Conclusion

FinnForum IX came and went and as anticipated it was a great conference. Met some folks I had only known through email, met and talked union with a Canadian Fellow Worker, reconnected with a Finnish friend, heard some really great presentations on Finnish, Finnish American (U.S.), and Finnish Canadian labor history, hung out on Bay St. a bit, and had mojakka at the world famous Hoito...all in all the perfect time.

Above are some images from the trip. Doors of the famous Hoito and a current photo of the Finnish Labour Temple.

Perhaps one of the best parts of the conference was the amount of labor history scholarship, and that this scholarship came from people I've read and admired for some time, and also from some really good younger scholars.

Also, really exciting to see that the Labour Temple was receiving some attention in the restoration department for its 100th birthday. The building is such an incredible cultural artifact, and still maintains its function as a hall and meeting place today.

FinnForum IX Update

The Wage Slave's masthead from 1908. From Michigan Tech's Copper Country Historical Archive in the Garden Level of the JRVP Library.

FinnForum IX is quickly approaching (May 26-27, 2010). Thought I'd post an explanation of my conference paper topic, which is tentatively titled "Forging a Unique Solidarity: Finnish Immigrant Socialists and the Early 20th Century Socialist Party of America":

Finnish immigrants are often thought of as clannish outsiders in the Socialist Party of America’s (SPA) Finnish language federation, but research into early Socialist Party of America sources reveals the immersion of Finnish immigrant leaders and rank-and-file into the greater U.S. socialist movement. The prominence of Finns in the U.S. socialist movement is displayed in English language print media dated 1908, which announces creation of the Finnish Translator's Office located in the Chicago, Illinois, national headquarters of the Socialist Party of America. The success of this office in converging “two proletarian worlds” is demonstrated by the 1914 election of three Finnish immigrants to prominent posts in the Socialist Party of Michigan.

Additionally, the integration of the Työmies Publishing Company's presses and staff while in Hancock, Michigan, for use by English language media such as the Wage Slave (the newspaper of Michigan's state Socialist Party), and the Miner's Bulletin (the newspaper of striking workers during the 1913-14 Michigan Copper Miners' Strike) demonstrated the uniting of resources between Finnish immigrant socialists and their U.S. counterparts. Työmies also published Finnish translations of English language books, translated and published English labor songs in Finnish language songbooks, and translated English language material for periodicals and newspaper articles. Perhaps the most prolific of U.S. media influences was the work of American socialist cartoonists such as Art Young and Ryan Walker. However, the move to join the U.S. socialist and labor movement occurred while Finnish immigrants made a strident attempt to maintain a sense of ethnic identity through media forms and the treasured Finn Hall culture.

Finn Forum IX--2010

Image of Finnish Labour Temple, Thunder Bay, Ontario, ca. 1910

A great opportunity for Finnish immigrant and Finnish American history: Finn Forum IX being held on the campus of Lakehead University in beautiful Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. This cultural studies and history conference is being held May 26-27, 2010.

I have been given the chance to present at the conference and am really excited to head north of the U.S. border. Thunder Bay, in itself, is an exciting place for Finnish immigrant and Finnish American history. There is a strong labor tradition in Thunder Bay, which includes the incredible Finnish Labour Temple (which is celebrating its 100th Anniversary), the amazing Hoito Restaurant, and of course, historic Bay Street.


I have relatives in Thunder Bay, and when my grandpa Neal was still alive, we'd head to Thunder Bay some summers to visit. We'd always have to stop at the Hoito, and if memory serves right, it was family style dining. We had an old bachelor lumber-jack relative who lived in an apartment on Bay Street, which is where the old jacks congregated and ate at the Hoito because the food was good, the price great, and the portions big. Good memories.


More details on the presentation later and for information about Finn Forum from Lakehead University's web site: http://www.finnforumix.ca/. Also, web page about the Labour Temple and Hoito: http://www.hoito.ca/article/history-of-the-finnish-labour-temple-4.asp.