W. L. Bowes to John D. Black on the Asbestos Workers Union's Lung Study (1956)

A one-page Owens-Corning Fiberglas memo of October 11, 1956, from W. L. Bowes in Boston to John D. Black in Toledo. Acting on a tip from the Hartford business agent of the Asbestos Workers Union, Bowes met the president and business agent of the Boston local, who said x-rays of over half their members showed "a cloudiness in the lungs" and that they were working with the Massachusetts labor commissioner to have their trade classed as "hazardous." "My great concern," Bowes wrote, "is that they keep talking about glass in their lungs."

What it shows

The memo opens a run of Owens-Corning letters (Motley documents 176 to 183) about the insulators' union looking into lung disease among its members. The company's concern was the union's view of fiber glass; Bowes reported that locals in Albany and Syracuse were also investigating. Black's replies are Motley document 177 and Motley document 178.

In Johns-Manville's index

Johns-Manville's legal department indexed the Motley 1,000 in 1984. Its index describes this document as follows:

W.L. Bowes (Owens-Corning Fiberglas, Boston) memo to John D. Black (OCF, Toledo), 10/11/56, re investigation conducted by Asbestos Workers Union in Hartford, Connecticut into the lung conditions of its members. Some results indicate that "fibrous products were detrimental." Bowes indicates that investigations are also being conducted in other parts of the country.

Related documents

• John D. Black to M. D. Burch Forwarding the Boston Union Report (1956)
• John D. Black to W. L. Bowes on Following Up with the Union's International Officers (1956)

About this copy

This is document 176 of the Motley 1,000, from the set the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust's records facility certified as true copies, pages CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001198 to CRMC-Motley1000-Subj-001198.