born March 12, 1922, Camden, S.C., U.S. died Aug. 14, 1999, Washington, D.C. U.S. labour-union leader. He served as an officer in the U.S. merchant marine and joined the American Federation of Labor (AFL) as a staff researcher in 1948. He was elected secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO in 1969 and succeeded George Meany as president in 1979. During Kirkland's tenure (1979-95), the AFL-CIO's membership and political influence waned due to shrinking employment in the U.S. manufacturing sector
born March 12, 1922, Camden, S.C., U.S. died Aug. 14, 1999, Washington, D.C. U.S. labour-union leader. He served as an officer in the U.S. merchant marine and joined the American Federation of Labor (AFL) as a staff researcher in 1948. He was elected secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO in 1969 and succeeded George Meany as president in 1979. During Kirkland's tenure (1979-95), the AFL-CIO's membership and political influence waned due to shrinking employment in the U.S. manufacturing sector
born Dec. 1, 1741, Norwich, Conn. died Feb. 28, 1808, Clinton, N.Y., U.S. American clergyman. He was a Congregational missionary to Indian tribes of the Iroquois Confederacy and learned several Indian languages. In the American Revolution he served as chaplain to colonial troops and secured an alliance with the Oneida. He was rewarded with a land grant in New York state, where he founded the Hamilton Oneida Academy for Indian and white students (later Hamilton College)