radicals, reformers, change makers: the progressive political tradition in minnesota
Learn more about the Farmer-Labor movement through MNopedia, an online encyclopedia sponsored by the Minnesota Historical Society. Following is a list of entries related to progressive social movements and politics in Minnesota history.
Roots of the Democratic Farmer-Labor Party
Farmers’ Alliance in Minnesota, 1881-1892
The Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party, 1924-1944
The Nonpartisan League, 1915-1924
Populism in Minnesota, 1868-1896
The Progressive Era in Minnesota, 1899-1920
Farmer, Labor, and Social Justice Organizing
African American Suffrage in Minnesota, 1868
American Indian Movement, 1968-present
DFL Feminist Caucus, 1971-present
Farmers’ Holiday Association, 1932-1937
Journeymen Barbers, 1890-1980
Mesabi Range Strike, 1907
Minneapolis Teamsters’ Strike, 1934
Minnesota Freedom Riders, 1961
Minnesota Woman Suffrage Association, 1881-1920
Timber Worker Strikes, 1937
Twin Cities Streetcar Strike, 1889
Willmar 8 Bank Strike, 1977-1979
Social Movement Leaders & Politicians
Elmer Benson, 1895-1985, Farmer-Labor governor and outspoken progressive
John-Toussaint Bernard, 1893-1983, Farmer-Labor congressman from the Iron Range
Frank Boyd, 1881-1962, labor and African American community leader
Ignatius Donnelly, 1831-1901, writer, politician, voice of Minnesota populism
Vincent Raymond Dunne, 1889-1970, labor radical and Teamster organizer
Hubert Humphrey, 1911-1978, U.S. Vice President and DFL Senator, co-founder of the DFL
John A. Johnson, 1861-1909, progressive Democrat and Governor of Minnesota
Nellie Stone Johnson, 1905-2002, African American labor leader, Farmer-Labor and DFL party activist
Coya Knutson, 1912-1996, DFL congresswoman, recalled for being a woman
Meridel Le Sueur, 1900-1996, writer, feminist, social movement advocate
John Lind, 1854-1930, Progressive-era Democratic Governor of Minnesota
Charles Lindbergh, 1902-1974, congressman, Farmer-Labor coalition candidate for governor
Eugene McCarthy, 1916-2005, DFL senator, anti-war candidate for President
Frederick McGhee, 1861-1912, nationally prominent champion of African American civil rights
Mee Moua, 1969-present, first Hmong American elected to a state legislature (2002)
Anna Dickie Oleson, 1885-1971, social reformer, women’s rights activist and candidate for U.S. Senate
Floyd B. Olson, 1891-1936, beloved three-term Farmer-Labor governor
Irene Paull, 1908-1981, labor journalist, Farmer-Labor and women’s rights advocate
Rudy Perpich, 1928-1995, DFL governor from the Iron Range
Henrik Shipstead, 1881-1960, U.S. Senator, Farmer-Labor Party
Lena Olive Smith, 1885-1966, African American civil rights advocate
Allan Spear, 1937-2008, gay rights activist, Minnesota state senator
Susie Williamson Stageberg, 1877-1961, writer, rural advocate, and Farmer-Labor party leader
Alice Tripp, 1918-2014, Powerline protest leader and DFL candidate
Clara Ueland, 1860-1927, champion of women’s suffrage and equality in Minnesota
Eva McDonald Valesh, 1866-1956, writer and labor advocate
Thomas Van Lear, 1873-1944, labor leader and socialist mayor of Minneapolis
John Francis Wheaton, 1869-1922, African American legislator
Roy Wilkins, 1901-1981, national civil rights leader, head of the NAACP
Paul Wellstone, 1944-2002, professor, community organizer, DFL senator