Dates

• Existence: -1976

Biography

Ben Henry was born in Hibgee, Missouri. He moved to Des Moines in 1938.

As a coal miner from 1914 to 1933, he was an official in the United Mine Workers of America and the American Federation of Labor. Elected the first secretary-treasurer of the Iowa-Nebraska States Council, he was a founder of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)

He was appointed CIO regional director in 1939 and elected president of the two-state council two years later. He served in both capacities until 1945 when he resigned to devote full time to his position as CIO regional director.

He was with the organizational staff of the AFL-CIO from the time the groups merged until 1957, when he was assigned to the public relations department. He retired in 1963 and was appointed to the Merit System Council by Governor Harold Hughes. He served on the council until November 1968.

During World War II, he served on several community and regional commissions, including the War Manpower Commission, the War Labor Board, and the War Production Board.

Mr. Henry died in Des Moines on March 7, 1976.

(Taken from Ben Henry, Iowa Labor Chief, Dies. The Des Moines Register, Tuesday, March 9, 1976.)

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