On Christmas Eve, 1913, the striking Italian miners of Calumet gathered with their wives and children for a holiday party at Italian Hall. After the festivities began, someone — to this day no one knows who — yelled “Fire!” The miners, their wives, and children made a mad rush for the stairs, but found the door locked. In the ensuing chaos, 74 people were crushed and suffocated to death, 59 of them children. There was no fire.
In the version of events that found its way into Woody's song, the "copper-boss thug-men" had plotted to yell “Fire!” while holding the door of Italian Hall shut, preventing escape. The town itself is still divided over exactly what happened. And no one can explain why Italian Hall was torn down in 1984.
1913 Massacre includes interviews with the last living witnesses of the tragedy and reconstructs Calumet's past from individual memories, family legends, and songs, tracing the event's legacy to the present day, as the town -- out of work, out of money, out of luck — struggles to come to terms with this painful episode from its past.
The film and discussion with filmmakers is part of the Mariposa's 3-month series, This World is Your World: Woody Guthrie and the Art of Change. The series also includes a panel exhibition Strokes of Electiricity; The Visual Artworks and Lyrics of Woody Guthrie open through October 31st, as well as numerous films and performances. Check the Mariposa website www.mariposamuseum.org for a full calendar of events.
Admission $10; Members $7.
The Mariposa is wheelchair accessible
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