Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: Martyr of Loray Mill
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE:
CITY: Asheville
STATE: NC
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
https://mountainx.com/arts/working-class-hero-a-qa-with-author-kristina-horton-on-the-martyr-of-loray-mill/ * http://kmherald.com/horton-to-talk-about-ella-may-p10616-144.htm
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.:
no2015128519
LCCN Permalink:
https://lccn.loc.gov/no2015128519
HEADING:
Horton, Kristina
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__ |a Martyr of Loray Mill, c2015: |b t.p. (Kristina Horton)
PERSONAL
Female.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer and educator. Has taught in elementary schools in Asheville, NC.
WRITINGS
Contributor of chapters to books, including The North Carolina Roots of African American Literature: An Anthology, 2006.
SIDELIGHTS
Kristina L. Horton is a writer and educator based in Asheville, North Carolina. She has worked as a teacher at local elementary schools.
In 2015, Horton released her first book, Martyr of Loray Mill: Ella May and the 1929 Textile Workers’ Strike in Gastonia, North Carolina, a biography of her great-grandmother, Ella May Wiggins. Wiggins was raised in the Appalachian Mountains in Tennessee, and her family was poor but happy. She became known for her musical talent, which she used when she ultimately became a union organizer at the Loray textile mill. Horton discusses Wiggins’s death, which she believes was a murder, though some have suggested it could have been accidental. Wiggins was killed during a strike of National Textile Workers Union members at the Loray Mill in 1929. Horton reveals information that led her to identify a particular person she believes was responsible for killing Wiggins.
In an interview with Max Hunt, contributor to the Asheville Mountain Xpress website, Horton explained how she came to be interested in her relative’s story. She stated: “Oddly enough, I don’t remember any childhood stories about Ella May. My grandmother Millie passed away when I was ten, so I lost an opportunity there to find out things from her. I didn’t really start digging until I went to college. My freshman year, we had a writing course where we were asked to write about an ancestor who inspires us. I became more curious in her; as a senior, I wrote a thirty-page paper on Ella May.” Horton continued: “At that point, I realized there was a really big story here, something that not only I would be interested in, but others would be too.” Regarding the value of Ella May’s story, Horton told Hunt: “I think there’s a great importance for us to understand our ancestors’ struggles, because they went through them for us. There are many lessons to be learned. They made so many sacrifices for the future generations, and it’s our duty to remember them and what they went through. … I think Ella May’s story isn’t just important for me, it’s important to North Carolina and this nation’s history. I really see her as a champion for the working class. I think we need to have more heroes like that.”
Dannye Romine Powell, reviewer on the Charlotte Observer website, offered a favorable assessment of Martyr of Loray Mill. Powell suggested: “Horton’s biography is infused with an intense and passionate curiosity about her great-grandmother.” Powell concluded: “This is not a ‘my-mother-told-me’ book. It is thoroughly researched and highly readable.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
ProtoView, October, 2015, review of Martyr of Loray Mill.
ONLINE
Charlotte Observer Online, http://www.charlotteobserver.com/ (September 13, 2015), Dannye Romine Powell, review of Martyr of Loray Mill.
Kings Mountain Herald Online (NC), http://kmherald.com/ (March 8, 2017), article about author.
Malaprops Bookstore Website, http://www.malaprops.com/ (August 17, 2017), article about author.
McFarland Books Website, http://www.mcfarlandbooks.com/ (August 17, 2017), synopsis of Martyr of Loray Mill.
Mountain Xpress Online (Asheville, NC), https://mountainx.com/ (January 5, 2016), Max Hunt, author interview.*
Horton to talk about Ella May
Wed, Mar 08, 2017
Kristina L. Horton, great-granddaughter of Ella May, who made a name for herself in the 1929 Textile Workers’ strike in Gastonia, will talk about “The Martyr of Loray Mill,’’ Saturday, March 11, at 2 p.m. at the Kings Mountain Historical Museum.
The Loray Mill strike of 1929 was the biggest communist-led strike in United States history. Ella May’s union involvement, ability to move audiences with her music, and her efforts to support desegregation and labor rights for African Americans at the height of Jim Crow made her a target of violence. At only 28 years old, pregnant, and mother of five children, Ella May was assassinated on her way to a union meeting in Gastonia. Although there were many witnesses, no one was ever held accountable for the crime.
Horton will discuss the 1929 strike and ongoing efforts to memorialize Ella May’s legacy, as well as her personal journey in discovering an unsung heroine in one of her ancestors.
The book talk is free to the public.
KRISTINA HORTON presents MARTYR OF LORAY MILL
Local author and elementary school teacher Kristina Horton discusses her new biography about her great-grandmother, Ella May Wiggins. Ella May, instrumental to organizing both white and black workers at the mill, was murdered in broad daylight with many witnesses, but no one was ever held accountable for the crime. After discovering a newspaper clipping in some family papers, Horton launched into extensive research about Ella May. Martyr of Loray Mill: Ella May and the 1929 Textile Workers’ Strike in Gastonia, North Carolina is “infused with an intense and passionate curiosity” according to the Charlotte Observer.
Event date:
Sunday, January 17, 2016 - 3:00pm
Event address:
Martyr of Loray Mill
Ella May and the 1929 Textile Workers’ Strike in Gastonia, North Carolina
Kristina Horton
Print ISBN: 978-0-7864-9964-9
Ebook ISBN: 978-1-4766-2243-9
48 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
232pp. softcover (6 x 9) 2015
Buy Now!
Price: $29.95
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Available for immediate shipment
About the Book
Union organizer and balladeer Ella May became a martyr for workers nationwide when she was murdered on her way to a union meeting in Gastonia, North Carolina, at age 28. A mother of nine and bookkeeper for the communist-led National Textile Workers Union, May worked to organize fellow mill workers in Gaston County. Her efforts to organize black workers—along with her brash, outspoken manner—incensed the local community and she was shot by an anti-union vigilante group on September 14, 1929.
Written by her great-granddaughter, this book tells Ella May’s story, including her involvement in the Loray Mill Strike, the largest communist-led strike on American soil. Her most famous ballad, “Mill Mother’s Lament,” reveals her motivation: “It is for our little children.”
About the Author(s)
Kristina Horton, the great-granddaughter of Ella May, is a public elementary teacher in Asheville, North Carolina.
Review(s)
"excellent"--Appalachian Journal
"fascinating and recommend[ed]"--Northern Review of Books.
Read all reviews
Martyr of Loray Mill: Ella May and the 1929
Textile Workers' Strike in Gastonia, North
Carolina
ProtoView.
(Oct. 2015): From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2015 Ringgold, Inc. http://www.protoview.com/protoview
Full Text:
9780786499649
Martyr of Loray Mill: Ella May and the 1929 Textile Workers' Strike in Gastonia, North Carolina Kristina Horton
McFarland
2015
224 pages
$29.95
HD5325
The text tells the story of Ella May, union organizer and workers' rights activist before and during the 1929 Loray Mill strike in North Carolina. She became a martyr to the cause after she was murdered on her way to the communist-led National Textile Workers Union meeting in late 1929. Written by her great-granddaughter, the text not only tells the story of Ella May and her family, but also delves into the societal ills of the times on a greater scale. Ella May was also a skilled musician and an appendix is included listing lyrics to a number of union ballads. There are a great many historical and contemporary photographs included in the text. ([umlaut] Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Martyr of Loray Mill: Ella May and the 1929 Textile Workers' Strike in Gastonia, North Carolina." ProtoView, Oct.
2015. PowerSearch, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do? p=GPS&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA430840903&it=r&asid=2b2b44cd8fda6feef33b4bcbe8ed1f2f. Accessed 7 Aug. 2017.
about:blank Page 1 of 2
8/7/17, 5(46 PM
Gale Document Number: GALE|A430840903
QUOTED: "Oddly enough, I don’t remember any childhood stories about Ella May. My grandmother Millie passed away when I was 10, so I lost an opportunity there to find out things from her. I didn’t really start digging until I went to college. My freshman year, we had a writing course where we were asked to write about an ancestor who inspires us. I became more curious in her; as a senior, I wrote a 30-page paper on Ella May."
"At that point, I realized there was a really big story here, something that not only I would be interested in, but others would be too."
"I think there’s a great importance for us to understand our ancestors’ struggles, because they went through them for us. There are many lessons to be learned. They made so many sacrifices for the future generations, and it’s our duty to remember them and what they went through. ... I think Ella May’s story isn’t just important for me, it’s important to North Carolina and this nation’s history. I really see her as a champion for the working class. I think we need to have more heroes like that."
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Working Class Hero: a Q&A with author Kristina Horton on “The Martyr of Loray Mill”
Posted on January 15, 2016 by Max Hunt
WORKING CLASS HERO: Appalachian native, storied balladeer and labor organizer Ella May Wiggins played a central role in the Loray Mill strike of 1929. Her life, legacy and untimely murder is examined in a new book authored by her great-granddaughter, Haw Creek Elementary teacher Kristina Horton. Image courtesy of Kristina Horton.
WORKING CLASS HERO: Appalachian native, storied balladeer and labor organizer Ella May Wiggins played a central role in the Loray Mill strike of 1929. Her life, legacy and untimely murder is examined in a new book authored by her great-granddaughter, Haw Creek Elementary teacher Kristina Horton. Image courtesy of Kristina Horton.
In the spring of 1929, workers at the Loray Mill in Gastonia, the largest textile mill in the world at that time, took to the picket lines to demand better wages and working conditions. Among the strike leaders was Ella May Wiggins, a southern Appalachian native, “mill mother” and balladeer, who defied social norms by organizing black mill workers at the height of Jim Crow.
Her tireless energy, iconic ballads and tragic assassination in broad daylight while driving to a Union meeting in 1929 made international headlines and inspired folk legends like Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie to carry on the fight for worker equality.
In July 2015, local author and teacher Kristina Horton — Wiggins’ great-granddaughter — published Martyr of Loray Mill, a biography of her forebear, with McFarland Publishing.
Xpress spoke with Horton ahead of her reading at Malaprop’s on Sunday, Jan. 17, to discuss Wiggins’ life, the meaning of her struggles and why it remains important to remember Ella May’s sacrifice.
Xpress: How did you first become interested in the story of your great-grandmother?
Horton: Oddly enough, I don’t remember any childhood stories about Ella May. My grandmother Millie passed away when I was 10, so I lost an opportunity there to find out things from her.
I didn’t really start digging until I went to college. My freshman year, we had a writing course where we were asked to write about an ancestor who inspires us. I became more curious in her; as a senior, I wrote a 30-page paper on Ella May.
At that point, I realized there was a really big story here, something that not only I would be interested in, but others would be too.
A MOUNTAIN MENTALITY: Born and raised in the southern Appalachians, Ella MAy Wiggins' upbringing allowed instilled her with a strong independent streak, a love of music and the ability to see past many of the prejudices common to the time period, says Horton. Photo courtesy of Kristina Horton.
A MOUNTAIN MENTALITY: Born and raised in the southern Appalachians, Ella May Wiggins’ upbringing allowed instilled her with a strong independent streak, a love of music and the ability to see past many of the prejudices common to the time period, says Horton. Photo courtesy of Kristina Horton.
Was Ella May discussed much within your family growing up?
My grandmother never talked about Ella May much, nor did her sisters and brothers. Ella May was hated by the majority of the community in 1929, and her children lived in fear — I mean, their mother was murdered! They were scared to death.
The last year of Ella May’s life was an extremely violent time. The spring [the family] received their water from was poisoned; Myrtle, Ella May’s eldest child, was raped when she was 11 in front of her sisters and brothers.
After their mother died, the children held onto that fear. They were afraid that by association, their children could be attacked. Even today, when Ella May is seen as a hero, there’s still a discomfort I see in my mother’s generation.
There’s no shame there — it’s just the unknown and the fear their parents had when they talked about her.
What was Ella May’s childhood like? How did growing up in the mountains influence her later work?
She grew up in Sevierville, Tenn., where Dollywood is currently located. In her early years, she lived on a subsistence farm like most mountain families. They lived a very meager existence, but there was pride in being in charge of yourselves, deciding what work you do and how you do it.
From all accounts, she had a happy childhood. She was a bit mischievous: She apparently loved to jump into the water every chance she got, which drove her parents crazy. I was a swimmer in college, so little things like that I really connect to. She’s not just this larger-than-life figure: She’s a mother, grandmother, a human being.
At the age of 13, her family moved around with the logging industry. That’s really where her music started to shine. Anyone that writes about Ella May talks about how she had the type of personality people are drawn to.
I really believe that Ella May being brought up in the mountains influenced the person she was. Mountain culture instills pride, independence and self-determination. Those that live in the mountains are accustomed to being in charge of their lives.
How did she become involved in the textile industry and subsequently the labor movement among Southern mill workers?
Her husband was injured in a logging accident and suddenly found it hard to find employment. At the same time, the logging industry was dwindling, so they decided to move to the Piedmont. The textile industry was one of the few places where women could work at that point in history.
Like many workers, she had high hopes, but found that she really couldn’t make a livable wage. When 1928 came along, she was working for $9 a week. At that point in time, four of her nine children had died. She couldn’t feed them properly or provide proper medical care. Oftentimes, if she stayed home to care for a sick child, she would be fired.
Ella May also had a reputation for speaking her mind, which didn’t go over well with her employers.
When Communist labor organizers came south to the Loray Mill, Ella May joined right away. She was a secretary for the Union. As the strike progressed, she took a more vocal role.
Ella May’s music resonated much more than [the Northern organizers’] speeches did. She didn’t have an especially pretty voice, but her presence moved people deeply. Nothing moves workers more than hearing one of their own speak about their experiences.
MILL MOTHER'S LAMENT: Low wages for mill workers often meant their children were denied basic medical and dietary needs. Of Ella May's nine children, four would die due to the conditions related to poverty. Photo courtesy of Kristina Horton.
MILL MOTHER’S LAMENT: Low wages for mill workers often meant their children were denied basic medical and dietary needs. Of Ella May’s nine children, four would die due to the conditions related to poverty. Photo courtesy of Kristina Horton.
Why do you think Ella May was able and willing to organize black mill workers during such a racially charged time?
There were no airs about her. Most whites living in the Piedmont at the time thought of themselves as superior to black workers. But Ella May didn’t grow up in a place were there was much prejudice or even classes. She carried that heritage with her. She saw black workers as her equals.
When she’d go to Union meetings, there’d be a rope dividing whites and blacks. She was the only white person who would go across to the other side. And honestly, she was as poor as them. She lived in a black mill community. She suffered alongside of them. She knew what they were going through, because she was going through it too.
How has writing this book impacted your understanding of her death?
When I started researching this, I wanted to find out who killed Ella May. I was very angry about how she and all these textile workers were treated — the beatings, the rapes — just for trying to make a better life for their families. It was just atrocious.
But as I dove deeper, I realized that at that time, not only the mill owners but entire communities were afraid. The textile industry was the Piedmont’s bread and butter, so to see these Northerners coming down — they felt like their lives were under attack. Of course, fear does not justify violence, but I have a better understanding of why it happened.
Besides the book tour, what other projects are you working on?
In addition to her book tour, Horton, who teaches fourth grade at Haw Creek Elementary School, says she is working towards erecting a commemorative statue of Ella May, gauging interest in a movie based on her ancestor and would like to work on a children's book about Ella May's legacy in the future. Photo courtesy of Kristina Horton.
PASSING THE TORCH: In addition to her book tour, Horton, who teaches fourth grade at Haw Creek Elementary School, says she is working towards erecting a commemorative statue of Ella May, gauging interest in a movie based on her ancestor and would like to work on a children’s book about Ella May’s legacy in the future. Photo courtesy of Kristina Horton.
I’m part of the Ella May Wiggins Memorial Committee. We’re a nonprofit organization dedicated to getting a life-size statue of Ella May. Just recently we reached the $10,000 mark; we expect it to cost $80,000 in total.
Also, there’s a Mill Mother’s Lament album that North Carolina musicians have put together of Ella May’s songs and ones of a similar nature. I’m selling the CD on my book tour, as well as on our website, ellamaywiggins.org. All the proceeds goes to funding the Ella May statue.
I also really want to work on trying to get a movie made. In the 1980s, my family had an agreement for a movie, but it didn’t end up going through. That was before there was a book, so I’m pretty confident that I’ll be able to get some traction with that. I’m also thinking about writing a children’s book on her, geared to the fourth grade level.
Why is it important to remember Ella May’s legacy today? What can we learn from her story?
I think there’s a great importance for us to understand our ancestors’ struggles, because they went through them for us. There are many lessons to be learned. They made so many sacrifices for the future generations, and it’s our duty to remember them and what they went through. Even more than that, we need to pay it back by giving to the next generation.
I actually used to work at a Union door factory as management. I felt like my job was to drive people to work harder and harder. I wasn’t making their lives better necessarily, whereas, as a teacher, I can have an impact, especially on young children.
I think Ella May’s story isn’t just important for me, it’s important to North Carolina and this nation’s history. I really see her as a champion for the working class. I think we need to have more heroes like that.
Kristina Horton will hold a reading and presentation on Martyr of Loray Mill on Sunday, Jan. 17, beginning 3 p.m., at Malaprop’s Book Store & Cafe, 55 Haywood St., downtown Asheville. To learn more about the Ella May Memorial Committee, donate to the Ella May Statue Fund, or purchase the Mill Mother’s Lament CD, visit ellamaywiggins.org or check them out on Facebook.
LIKE4.4 K VIEWSART NEWSARTSCOMMUNITY NEWSEDUCATIONLITERATURENONPROFITSASHEVILLEBOOK READINGELLA MAY WIGGINSGASTONIAKRISTINA HORTONLABOR STRIKESLURAY MILL STRIKEMALAPROP'SMARTYR OF LORAY MILLNORTH CAROLINA HISTORYTEXTILESWNC
About Max Hunt
Max Hunt grew up in South (New) Jersey and graduated from Warren Wilson College in 2011. History nerd; art geek; connoisseur of swimming holes, hot peppers, and plaid clothing. Follow me @J_MaxHunt
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QUOTED: "Horton’s biography is infused with an intense and passionate curiosity about her great-grandmother."
"This is not a 'my-mother-told-me' book. It is thoroughly researched and highly readable."
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READING MATTERS
Great-granddaughter writes about Ella May Wiggins
BY DANNYE ROMINE POWELL
dpowell@charlotteobserver.com
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SEPTEMBER 13, 2015 3:00 AM
With two novels underway about Ella May Wiggins -- one from Raleigh’s Kim Church and another from Wilmington’s Wiley Cash -- we now have in hand a non-fiction account of the woman’s life. This one is from by great-granddaughter Kristina Horton, who did not know Wiggins but who stumbled on a newspaper clipping about her in some family papers.
In the introduction of “Martyr of Loray Mill: Ella May and the 1929 Textile Workers’ Strike in Gastonia, North Carolina” (McFarland, $29.95 paper) Horton, who teaches elementary school in Asheville, asks:
“So was Ella May’s death a random act of violence against a NTWU striker? Did the shooter get caughter up in the heat of the moment and shoot wildly and by chance strike Ella May? It is very unlikely that Ella May’s murder was in any way accidental. It is morelikely that the shooter knew exactly what he was doing and who he was doing it to. Ella May stood still and the shooter was only a few feet away. There were twenty other strikers around her and many of them were men, who were normally preferred targets. Ella was well recognized as the minstrel of the strike and as the organizer of black workers. Either would be cause enough for some to kill her.”
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Horton’s biography is infused with an intense and passionate curiosity about her great-grandmother. She plunges into the question of who actually shot Wiggins, and she gives the name of the man she believes is the most likely suspect. I admire her determination and investigative spirit. This is not a “my-mother-told-me” book. It is thoroughly researched and highly readable.
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What Really Happened Behind the Scenes of 'NCIS'
Daughter Sees Long-Dead Mother on Google Street View
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Joe Person: Panthers dodge bullet with slight injury to Mario Addison
Joe Person: Panthers dodge bullet with slight injury to Mario Addison 0:47
Joe Person: Panthers dodge bullet with slight injury to Mario Addison
What to wear at the PGA Championship 0:05
What to wear at the PGA Championship
Has Bigfoot been spotted in NC? One resident says he caught it on camera. 0:23
Has Bigfoot been spotted in NC? One resident says he caught it on camera.
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READING MATTERS
Dazzling line-up of writers for AAUW luncheon
Hoping for sequel to Charlotte lawyer’s debut novel
Novelist Sue Miller to read in Davidson
Edgar to talk on American Revolution in the Carolina Backcountry at Winthrop
Conroy, Rash, Frazier: Lots of book news
READING MATTERS
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