George A. Pettibone (May 1862 – August 3, 1908) was an

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...

miner. Pettibone was best known as a defendant in trial of three leaders of the

Western Federation of Miners The Western Federation of Miners (WFM) was a labor union that gained a reputation for militancy in the mines of the western United States and British Columbia. Its efforts to organize both hard rock miners and smelter workers brought it into ...

for the 1905 assassination by bombing of

Frank Steunenberg Frank Steunenberg (August 8, 1861December 30, 1905) was the fourth governor of the State of Idaho, serving from 1897 until 1901. He was assassinated in 1905 by onetime union member Harry Orchard, who was also a paid informant for the Cripple ...

, former governor of

Biography

Pettibone was convicted of

contempt of court Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the co ...

and criminal

conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, ploy, or scheme, is a secret plan or agreement between people (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder, treason, or corruption, especially with a political motivat ...

in the Coeur d'Alene labor strike of 1892. He was later implicated in the 1905 assassination of

, ex-

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of Idaho, by a confession and testimony from Harry Orchard.

(WFM) general secretary

Bill Haywood William Dudley Haywood (February 4, 1869 – May 18, 1928), nicknamed "Big Bill", was an American labor organizer and founding member and leader of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and a member of the executive committee of the Socia ...

and WFM president Charles Moyer were also implicated. Haywood was represented by

Clarence Darrow Clarence Seward Darrow (; April 18, 1857 – March 13, 1938) was an American lawyer who became famous in the 19th century for high-profile representations of trade union causes, and in the 20th century for several criminal matters, including the ...

, the most renowned defense lawyer of the day, who obtained an acquittal. Pettibone was tried after Haywood, and was defended by Orrin N. Hilton of Denver. Pettibone was also acquitted, and charges against Moyer were dropped.Carlson, ''Roughneck: The Life and Times of Big Bill Haywood,'' 1983. Pettibone fell ill with cancer during his trial. After his acquittal he returned home to

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

. On August 1, 1908, Pettibone underwent surgery for stomach cancer in Denver.Associated Press
"Pettibone Suffers from Cancer Stomach,"
''Grand Junction ODaily Sentinel,'' Aug. 1, 1908, p. 1. Surgeons pronounced Pettibone terminal following the operation and he died in Denver two days later.

Notes

References

*Carlson, Peter. ''Roughneck: The Life and Times of Big Bill Haywood.'' New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1983. *"George Pettibone Dead." ''New York Times.'' August 4, 1908.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pettibone, George Trade unionists from Idaho American miners 1908 deaths 1862 births American people acquitted of murder Deaths from stomach cancer in the United States Deaths from cancer in Colorado

Biography

See also

Notes

References

External links