North Loop in Minneapolis in Hennepin County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Bloody Friday in Minneapolis

Photographed by McGhiever, June 23, 2024

1. Bloody Friday in Minneapolis Marker

Inscription.

Bloody Friday in Minneapolis. . , On this site, 20 July 1934, 67 unarmed workers were shot by police during the strike by Teamsters Local 574.. , [Captions:] Bloody Friday; the police decoy truck with strikers ambushed at 3rd Street and 6th Ave. on July 20, 1934., Deputies Run; the confrontation between Citizen's Alliance deputies and police against strikers on May 21, 1934., Members of Teamsters Local 574 Women's Auxiliary feeding striking workers., Strikers Henry Ness and John Belor died of their wounds on what became known as Bloody Friday. An investigation commission appointed by Governor Floyd B. Olson found that almost all 67 strikers were shot in the back., The 1934 strike was a watershed moment in the history of the American labor movement. More than 6,000 workers demanded and won union recognition for Teamsters Local 574. The workers defeated the Citizens Alliance, an unti-union group of employers that controlled city government. The victory made Minneapolis a union town., The strike was notable for its militancy. Workers engaged in mass picketing. They published a daily strike newspaper. Cruising pickets halted the movement of trucks throughout the city. Women played an important role on the picket line and operated a commissary that fed the workers. The union forged powerful alliances with farmers and unemployed workers. About 100,000 turned out for Henry Ness's funeral., A democratically elected Committee of 100 led the strike. Veteran union militants V.R. Dunne and Carl Skoglund, expelled from the American Communist Party in 1928 as Trotskyists, were key strategists of the strike., The strike established the industrial form of union organization for the first time in the trucking industry and set the stage for massive organizing that eventually transformed the International Brotherhood of Teamsters into a union of more than one million members., Teamsters Local 574 became Minneapolis Teamsters Local 544 in the mid-1930's and in 1998 merged with Teamsters Local 120, creating a Twin Cities-wide Teamsters union of 11,000 drivers, helpers, warehouse workers and others., The Remember 1934 committee thanks Teamsters Local 120 and other supporters for their contributions to this project.

On this site, 20 July 1934, 67 unarmed workers were shot by police during the strike by Teamsters Local 574.

[Captions:]
Bloody Friday; the police decoy truck with strikers ambushed at 3rd Street and 6th Ave. on July 20, 1934.

Deputies Run; the confrontation between Citizen's Alliance deputies and police against strikers on May 21, 1934.

Members of Teamsters Local 574 Women's Auxiliary feeding striking workers.

Strikers Henry Ness and John Belor died of their wounds on what became known as Bloody Friday. An investigation commission appointed by Governor Floyd B. Olson found that almost all 67 strikers were shot in the back.

The 1934 strike was a watershed moment in the history of the American labor movement. More than 6,000 workers demanded and won union recognition for Teamsters Local 574. The workers defeated the Citizens Alliance, an unti-union group of employers that controlled city government. The victory made Minneapolis a union town.

The strike was notable for its militancy. Workers engaged in mass picketing. They published a daily strike newspaper. Cruising pickets halted the movement of trucks

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throughout the city. Women played an important role on the picket line and operated a commissary that fed the workers. The union forged powerful alliances with farmers and unemployed workers. About 100,000 turned out for Henry Ness's funeral.

A democratically elected Committee of 100 led the strike. Veteran union militants V.R. Dunne and Carl Skoglund, expelled from the American Communist Party in 1928 as Trotskyists, were key strategists of the strike.

The strike established the industrial form of union organization for the first time in the trucking industry and set the stage for massive organizing that eventually transformed the International Brotherhood of Teamsters into a union of more than one million members.

Teamsters Local 574 became Minneapolis Teamsters Local 544 in the mid-1930's and in 1998 merged with Teamsters Local 120, creating a Twin Cities-wide Teamsters union of 11,000 drivers, helpers, warehouse workers and others.

The Remember 1934 committee thanks Teamsters Local 120 and other supporters for their contributions to this project.

Erected by The Remember 1934 Committee.

Topics. This historical

Bloody Friday in Minneapolis Marker at the east corner of 701 N. 3rd Street image. Click for full size.

Photographed by McGhiever, June 23, 2024

2. Bloody Friday in Minneapolis Marker at the east corner of 701 N. 3rd Street

marker is listed in these topic lists: Disasters • Labor Unions • Women. A significant historical date for this entry is July 20, 1934.

Location. 44° 59.197′ N, 93° 16.68′ W. Marker is in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in Hennepin County. It is in North Loop. It is at the intersection of North 3rd Street and North 7th Avenue on North 3rd Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 701 N 3rd St, Minneapolis MN 55401, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area.

It is also in the American Midwest,

in the Corn Belt,

and in the Great River Road Region.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Sunshine Bakery (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Bag Factory & Gambles HQ (about 500 feet away); Glass Factory (about 600 feet away); Birthplace of the Milky Way Bar

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(about 600 feet away); Washers & Tools (about 700 feet away); Buggies, Plows & Tractors (approx. 0.2 miles away); Lutefisk Processing Plant (approx. 0.2 miles away); Buggy Assembly Plant (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Minneapolis.

Also see . . . Remember 1934. Teamsters 464 website entry (Submitted on April 28, 2026, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

Credits. This page was last revised on April 28, 2026. It was originally submitted on September 9, 2024, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota. This page has been viewed 496 times since then and 77 times this year. Last updated on November 18, 2024, by Jim McGuire of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 9, 2024, by McGhiever of Minneapolis, Minnesota. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.