The Toiler was a transitional publication of the American Communist movement. Although little-known, the paper occupied a significant place between its state-oriented Socialist Party predecessor,The Ohio Socialist, and its well-known national Communist successor, The Daily Worker. Some 113 issues were produced on the road from Point A to Point B, a trip which took more than two years.
Beginning in Cleveland as a "legal" publication of the Communist Labor Party in the fall of 1919, The Toiler moved to New York City along with party headquarters around the first of 1920. There it gained a strong trade union orientation as the so-called "labor organ" of the CLP and its successor, the United Communist Party.
Both broadsheet and small format were used, with the editorial staff valorously practicing discretion on matters of "force and violence" to preserve the publication’s legal status. Editors included Elmer Allison (1919) and Jim Cannon (1920), although in a tip of a hat to the conspiratorial method, names of the paper’s staff were seldom mentioned in print after 1920.
As a reflection of the unifying spirit of the new Workers Party of America in January 1922, The Toiler was merged with the bi-weekly The Workers Council. The following month the combined publication was given a new name, The Worker, beginning with issue #208. Despite the modified moniker, the "new" publication looked and felt like The Toiler in every way, even making use of the same numbering run.
Tim Davenport
Corvallis, OR
Sept. 29, 2011
November 2022 ADDENDUM to introduction: We of MIA are delighted to announce we now present a 100% compete digital record of all issues of The Toiler. This archive, initially composed of scans from original paper in the private collections of Marty Goodman of the Riazanov Library digital archive project and in the private collection of Tim Davenport has been gradually enhanced with scans of missing issues from microfilm made by the New York Public Library and scans obtained from the Library of Congress Chronicling America web page, and now has digital images of all issues of The Toiler
.Special 1921 May Day Red Album [For a very high resolution 54MB scan, click here]
[Issues Nos. 95 Nov 26, 1919 - 130 July 30 1920 are 4 page broadsheet size paper issues.]
No. 95, 26 November 1919
No. 96, 3 December 1919
No. 97, 10, December 1919
No. 98, 17 December 1919
No. 99, 24 December 1919
No. 100, 31 December 1919
No. 101, 7 January 1920
No. 102, 14 January 1920
No. 103, 21 January 1920
No. 104, 30 January 1920
No. 105, 6 February 1920
No. 106, 13 February 1920
No. 107, 20 February 1920
No. 108, 27 February 1920
No. 109, 5 March 1920
No. 110, 12 March 1920
No. 111, 19 March 1920
No. 112, 26 March 1920
No. 113, 2 April 1920
No. 114, 9 April 1920
No. 115, 16 April 1920
No. 116, 23 April 1920
No. 117, 30 April 1920
No. 118, 7 May 1920
No. 119, 14 May 1920
No. 120, 21 May 1920
No. 121, 28 May 1920
No. 122, 4 June 1920
No. 123, 11 June 1920
No. 124, 18 June 1920
No. 125, 25 June 1920
No. 126, 2 July 1920
No. 127, 9 July 1920
No. 128, 16 July 1920
No. 129, 23 July 1920
No. 130, 30 July 1920
[Issue Nos. 131 Aug 6 1920 - 155 Jan 22, 1921 are 8 1/2 x 11 inch size paper issues of 16 or more pages long]
No. 131, 6 Aug 1920
No. 132, 13 August 1920
No. 133, 20 August 1920
No. 134, 27 August 1920
No. 135, 3 September 1920
No. 136, 10 September 1920
No. 137, 17 September 1920
No. 138, 24 September 1920
No. 139, 1 October 1920
No. 140, 8 October 1920
No. 141, 16 October 1920
No. 142, 23 October 1920
No. 143, 30 October 1920
No. 144, 6 November 1920
No. 145, 13 November 1920
No. 146, 20 November 1920
No. 147, 27 November 1920
No. 148, 4 December 1920
No. 149, 11 December 1920
No. 150, 18 December 1920
No. 151, 25 December 1920
No. 152, 11 December 1920 [Damaged issue & date of number error]
No. 153, 18 December 1920
No. 154, 15 December 1920
Issues Nos. 156 Jan 29 1921 - 189 Sep 17 1921 are 4 page broadsheet size paper issues.
No. 155, 22 January 1921
No. 156, 29 January 1921
No. 157, 5 February 1921
No. 158, 12 February 1921
No. 159, 19 February 1921
No. 160, 26 February 1921
No. 161, 5 March 1921
No. 162, 12 March 1921
No. 163, 19 March 1921
No. 164, 26 March 1921
No. 165, 2 April 1921
No. 166, 9 April 1921
No. 167, 16 April 1921
No. 168, 23 April 1921
No. 169, 30 April 1921
No. 170, 7 May 1921
No. 171, 14 May 1921
No. 172, 21 May 1921
No. 173, 28 May 1921
No. 174, 4 June 1921
No. 175, 11 June 1921
No. 176, 18 June 1921
No. 177, 25 June 1921
No. 178, 2 July 1921
No. 179, 9 July 1921
No. 180, 16 July 1921
No. 181, 23 July 1921
No. 182, 30 July 1921
No. 183, 6 August 1921
No. 184, 13 August 1921
No. 185, 20 August 1921
No. 186, 27 August 1921
No. 187, 3 September 1921
No. 188, 10 September 1921
No. 189, 17 September 1921
[Issue Nos. 190 Oct 01 1921 - No. 207 Jan 28 1922 are 8 1/2 x 11 inch size paper issues of 16 or more pages long]
No. 190, 1 October 1921
No. 191, 10 October 1921
No. 192, 15 October 1921
No. 193, 22 October 1921
No. 194, 29 October 1921
No. 195-supp, November 1921
No. 196, 12 November 1921
No. 197, 19 November 1921
No. 198, 26 November 1921
No. 199, 3 December 1921
No. 200, 10 December 1921
No. 201, 17 December 1921
No. 202, 24 December 1921
No. 203, 31 December 1921
No. 204, 7 January 1922
No. 205, 14 January 1922
No. 206, 21 January 1922
No. 207, 28 January 1922
November 13, 2022