MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
July 2009
James P. Crane
President-Business Manager, 1954-1962
At their December 17, 2008 meeting, Local 150’s Executive Board voted unanimously to pass a resolution recognizing former President-Business Manager James P. Crane on his 103rd birthday for his lifetime of dedication and service to Local 150. In addition to being the oldest member of Local 150, he has been one of the most influential leaders in its history.
Crane was born on December 21, 1905, in Earl Park, Indiana. As a young man, he drove a truck and worked various jobs to make ends meet before joining Local 150.
On August 7, 1936, Crane became a member of Local 150. He worked out of District 1 as a crane operator in steel mills and placed the breakwater stones in Lake Michigan near Navy Pier. He served as the business representative for downtown Chicago and Chief Advisor under President-Business Managers William Maloney, John Lynch and William Law. In a period when the positions of Vice President and Recording Secretary-Treasurer did not exist, the Chief Advisor was essentially the President-Business Manager’s right-hand man.
In 1954, Crane was appointed President-Business Manager, and four years later in 1958, he became the first President-Business Manager to be elected by the members in the history of Local 150, a fact that he remains infinitely proud of today. Prior to his election, President-Business Managers were appointed by Trustees. At the time that he was elected, the federal government was highly involved in the internal affairs of labor unions, and Crane’s leadership brought Local 150 out of an uncertain time a stronger Local Union. Every contract he negotiated included wage increases, and there were no significant strikes during his years as President-Business Manager.
In 1960, Crane was one of several labor leaders called to speak at the McClellan Hearings, the historic investigation of organized crime that was led by Robert F. Kennedy and Senator Barry Goldwater. Crane’s grandson, District 3 Executive Board member Dan Schrader, said that after Crane was cleared of any wrongdoing, “Goldwater approached him and said, ‘I want to shake the hand of an honest union man.’ He grabbed Goldwater’s hand with both of his and squeezed as hard as he could.”
Crane lost his bid for re-election in 1962 to William Martin, and he went back to work in the field for two years before retiring in 1964. He lived in Chicago Heights and continued to be active at union meetings until 1995.
Today, Crane resides in Bradenton, Florida, where he moved in 2003. Schrader says that his grandfather’s favorite pastimes include “drinking Manhattans, smoking cigars and watching the world go by.” For a man who grew up in a time when people traveled by horse-drawn carriages, we can only what looking at the world today must be like.
Crane’s legacy is apparent every day with the democratic elections that the Local has continued to hold since he was elected. In addition to his grandson Dan, Crane has three more family members still active in Local 150. Jim Crane, his grandson, is an equipment operator with the Cook County Highway Department. Grandson Ron Schrader is a business representative in District 3, and Ron’s son, Mark, is a third-year apprentice and a member of the Apprenticeship Advisory Committee.