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The article presents a bibliography of periodicals and papers on the history of the American labor. According to the author the scope of this bibliography is, in fact, somewhat narrower than the title suggests, as it has been confined, with one or two exceptions, to learned periodicals. The list of papers on the period of labor development in the U. S. includes "Labor and the Federal Government: 1850-1933," by Albert A. Blum, , "Labor and the Radical Republicans: a Study of the Revival of the American Labor Movement, 1864-1868," by David Montgomery, "Cooperative Community in the North: Brigham City, Utah," by Leonard J. Arrington, "The Experimental Utopia in America," by Maren Lockwood, "The Failure of the Movement by the Unemployed for Public `Works in 1873," by Herbert G. Gutman, "Economic Growth and the Opportunities of Minorities: an Analysis of Changes in the Employment of Negroes and Women," by Dale Leroy Hiestand, and "The Poles and Anthracite Unions in Pennsylvania," by Victor R. Greene.

The article focuses on the origin and progress of the Texas labor archives. During the Southern Historical Association's meeting in Memphis in November 1966 a group of mostly young historians organized the Association of Southern Labor Historians (SHA). Its purpose was to promote Southern labor history by encouraging the collection of labor records and the delivery of labor papers at meetings concurrent with those of SHA. Inspired by this development, professor George Green of the University of Texas Arlington history department talked with the university librarian, John Hudson, about the absence of primary resource materials for graduate and undergraduate study in history at UTA and the lack of recent research in the South and Southwest on the history of labor. Professor Howard Lackman of the history department joined in the series of conversations. Researchers learned that no university in the Southwest was actively collecting labor records and that the labor community, possessing tons of non-current records, needed and wanted a labor archives.

The article focuses on the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and the child-labor legislation in the U.S. One of the lesser-known legislative activities of AFL during the first quarter of the century was its involvement in what amounted to a nation-wide campaign for child-labor legislation. While AFL was quite active legislatively throughout the first half-century or so of its existence, child-labor legislation represents a significant episode for several reasons. First, AFL either decided or was forced to shift its tactics and thinking several times. Second, quite in contrast with most of its legislative efforts, the Federation accomplished absolutely nothing in this case. Finally, in pursuing its child-labor goals, AFL got involved in a cooperative effort with a variety of non-labor groups who were also attempting to effect legislative change in the area. The paper describes the Federation's attempts to obtain some type of federal or state statutes limiting hours of work as well as measures limiting the employment of and providing minimum wages for children.