McLaughlin Glass Company, Los Angeles, CA

LOS ANGELES, CALIF.

By J. M. Price

No doubt the Flints in general would like to receive a little information regarding Local Union No. 141 so I will try and let you know just how we are getting along out here. At this writing it looks as if the most of the members will have turkey for Christmas. In the six years I have been here I believe our members have had better work this winter than ever before. Thre are several of us who have not been so lucky.

The Mission Glass Company at Burbank, Calif., has been operating quite steadily. They have five pulled stem shops, one punch shop, one press shop and one machine making a general line of tumblers, sherbets and jellies. This is a feeder machine. In this factory they have three day tanks for colors and one continuous tank of crystal over in Glendale. This town adjoins Burbank. The Crystalite factory makes a line of letters, street light globes and some press ware. This factory has four day tanks and one small five pot furnace. They have only one shop employed at present. About one-half block West of the Crystalite, Mr. George Earnst has built a plant and they expect to start on milk bottles some time this month, however, I understand that later they intend to make glass tile.

We will now drop into old L. A., by the way of San Fernando boulevard. We take this route to keep out of Hollywood where there are 40,000 men, women, children and animals trying to crash or cash in on the squawkies. We drop down Santa Fe avenue, to 26th street and there we find the Southern Glass Company making a general line of bottles on machines. They have two continuous tanks and the mould makers have very steady work at this plant. From here we journey on to 48th street where the Technical Glass Company is located. This factory's main product is knobs and drawer pulls. They also make some blown ware. They have one feeder machine on which they make knobs. At present they have seven shops employed. This factory seems to be very successful and our members employed there have steady work. The plant has four large day tanks and two continuous tanks.

I hope those of you who are reading this are not getting tired of this sightseeing trip, so I will move over to 52nd St., and the McLaughlin Glass Company. At this plant we find two large continuous tanks and one small tank. They are also building a day tank. This company makes a line of pressed and blown ware. They also have a shop making five gallon water bottles, two shops on insulators, one press shop and one German system shop. This plant has been working pretty steady for the last year.

Well, we are off again. Some of you may think that the writer must have lots of time to do all this visiting, however, for your benefit will state that the six winters I have been here after the base ball season closes, I have been with the army of unemployed, enjoying the greatest sport of the ages hunting a job in Los Angeles and if you don't believe me just fill up the old bus with gas and take the rubber off the old bank roll and take a shot for yourself. We will now stop at 58th St., and there we have the Forgar Glass and Mould Shop. This plant is operated by Albert Forgar and his father, Henry Forgar. No doubt many of the old time flints remember the father. This plant has three day tanks and employs one shop on a line of pressed and blown lighting goods. The Illinois-Pacific Glass Company have a factory here making bottles on machines. I did not visit their plant as members of the Flints are not welcome.

The West Coast plant on East Slauson St., has been sold to the Pacific Glass Company of San Francisco and at present is closed. They made milk bottles at this place on feeder machines.

The McDonald Brothers who operated a small plant on 88th St., have moved to Seattle, Wash. Well, brothers, I will end this tour here but will resume the journey in my next news letter, that is if I think you have enjoyed the trip so far.

Now for a word about the brothers out here as I am sure that you all like to hear how your old pals are. Elmer (Mickey) McGowan is back with us again after a trip back to Niles, Ohio, to see his folks. Mickey says this is a great country to live in if you can make a living. He and I should know. We also have with us Frank Aberhamsn, E. Franzen, Peterson, Tom Mercer and the only Bert Anderson from Dunkirk and points east; Charles Wilson, one of the boys from the Black Cat, I am sure you all know what town that factory is located in; oh, and here we have Joe Bloomgren who never misses a meeting even though he has to drive twenty miles and you always know that Joe is present; Fred Glassen, Paul Anderson, Scott Littleton and his son George, Scott can still hold up his end on the old side lever and we all know that he is no spring chicken; Les (Jacker) Brannon and his brother Lee, better known as "Dutch," brothers of the great Shooter Brannon of Cambridge, Ohio. These are just a few of the members who are out here. In my next trip I will try and tell you about the rest, and you brothers who are out here please don't jump on me because I missed you this time as I will try and have your name in print in my next letter.

Our attendance at meetings I must say has been very good. We have members here that drive thirty-eight miles and very seldom miss a meting and of course like all other locals we have members that if they lived next door to the meeting hall on meeting day would have to attend to some other business. It is a strange thing that our members meeting once a month always have something more important to attend to on that day. I don't know of anything more important than their union. You can always rest assured that our dear friends, the M. and M.'s, and C. of C.'s, or any other body opposed to organized labor when they hold a meeting the members are there.

Well brothers, I have no apologies to make for this letter as I am not a writer of any great talent or I would be over in Hollywood making the daily rounds. In closing will tell you a baseball story as I know all flints like the old game. Umpire O'Hern working one day in Atlanta, Ga, was having a tough day so the Wolves seemed to think, and was riding the ump pretty hard. Along about the 8th inning they had O'Hern pretty hot when he walked up in front of the grandstand, raised his hand for silence and said, "Listen, the only two great men that ever were in this town was General Sherman and myself." The riot followed.

Wishing you all a Mary Anderson and a Happy New York.