Chicago Linemen Union Information

According to the earliest records of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the union's first convention was held in St. Louis on November 21, 1891. Ten delegates, representing 286 members, met to form what was then called the National Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Those ten members are credited as being the founders of the IBEW. One of the delegates of that first convention was TJ Finnell from Chicago, Illinois. Less than two months later, on January 14, 1892, a small group of electrical workers, seven in number and believed to be the Charter Members of Local Union No. 9, were issued a charter by the National Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.