Frank Duffy (6 May 1861 – 11 July 1955) was an American

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leader and secretary-general of the

United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America The United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America, often simply the United Brotherhood of Carpenters (UBC), was formed in 1881 by Peter J. McGuire and Gustav Luebkert. It has become one of the largest trade unions in the United State ...

from 1901 to 1950.

Early life and union work

Duffy was born in

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, in 1861. He had only a few years of schooling before he married. He and his family emigrated to the United States in 1881. The Duffys settled in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, where Duffy became a carpenter. Duffy joined the United Order of American Carpenters. When the New York City local formed a district council, Duffy was elected its first president. After the United Order merged with the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America in 1888, Duffy was elected to a number of posts in the new Local 478 in New York City.

UBCJ and AFL-CIO offices

In 1900, Duffy was elected to the national executive council of the Carpenters. He played a key role in ousting long-time Carpenters president Peter J. McGuire in 1901. The same year, he was elected the union's general-secretary, a position which he held until 1950. He was a close associate of UBCJ president

William Hutcheson William Hutcheson (February 6, 1874 – October 20, 1953) was the leader of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America from 1915 until 1952. A conservative craft unionist, he opposed the organization of workers in mass production ...

. In 1903, Duffy was elected a vice-president of the nascent Structural Building Trades Alliance, a federation of building and construction trades unions. When the

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refused to join the Alliance, preventing Bricklayer president George P. Gubbins from assuming his duties as Alliance president, Duffy assumed the duties of president for a year until a new president was elected. In 1918, Duffy was elected a vice-president of the

American Federation of Labor The American Federation of Labor (A.F. of L.) was a national federation of labor unions in the United States that continues today as the AFL-CIO. It was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1886 by an alliance of craft unions eager to provide mutual ...

. He served until 1940. In 1919, Duffy served as one of several American labor representatives to the

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in 1919. Duffy retired in 1950 at the age of 89. He died in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

, in 1955.

References

*Christie, Robert. ''Empire in Wood: A History of the Carpenters' Union.'' Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1956. *Fink, Gary, ed. ''Biographical Dictionary of American Labor.'' Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1984. *Galenson, Walter. ''The United Brotherhood of Carpenters: the First Hundred Years.'' Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1983. . *Palladino, Grace. ''Skilled Hands, Strong Spirits.'' Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2005.

External links

*
Frank Duffy Papers, University of Notre Dame.
American trade union leaders United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America people Irish emigrants to the United States People from County Monaghan Activists from New York City 1861 births 1955 deaths Vice presidents of the American Federation of Labor {{worker-activist-stub