Frans Reinhold Cedervall (1904-1996) was a Swedish-American plasterer and labor organizer most well known for his time as a leading figure in the

Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), members of which are commonly termed "Wobblies", is an international labor union that was founded in Chicago in 1905. The origin of the nickname "Wobblies" is uncertain. IWW ideology combines genera ...

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. He was the lead organizer of the Metal and Machinery Workers Industrial Union and leader of its Cleveland Local 440. Cedervall joined the Industrial Workers of the World in 1931 and was a

soapbox A soapbox is a raised platform on which one stands to make an wiktionary:impromptu, impromptu speech, often about a Politics, political subject. The term originates from the days when speakers would elevate themselves by standing on a wooden c ...

speaker for the organization. After years of arrests and physical attacks, Cedervall stopped organizing on behalf of the organization, though he maintained membership until his death. Future Teamsters leader

Jimmy Hoffa James Riddle Hoffa (born February 14, 1913 – disappeared July 30, 1975; declared dead July 30, 1982) was an American labor union leader who served as the president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) from 1957 until 1971. F ...

learned about public speaking from Cedervall, saying "I was with the IWW, and I followed Frank Cedervall around and learned how to make speeches from him. You spoke on a table top in a park, and you had to holler loud enough to be heard." Cedervall died in 1996 at LakeWest Hospital in

Willoughby, Ohio Willoughby is a city in Lake County, Ohio and is a suburb of Cleveland. The population was 22,268 at the time of the 2010 census. History Willoughby's first permanent settler was David Abbott in 1798, who operated a gristmill. Abbott and his ...

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Interview
Wayne State University 1904 births 1996 deaths Industrial Workers of the World leaders Trade unionists from Ohio Activists from Cleveland {{trade-unionist-bio-stub