THE DAY INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER DIED IN MEMPHIS

This video could also be titled
THE DAY FRAYSER DIED

Footage from TV station WMC Action News-5 about that fateful day in 1983 when International Harvester announced it was soon to be closing its huge plant in Memphis, Tennessee.

This closing put over 650 people out of work in financially crippled north Memphis -- the areas known as Westside and Frayser -- and they haven't fully recovered to this day.

This 1983 video features the WMC-TV5 "Action News Tonight" opening theme, a very young Joe Birch, Brenda Wood, Dave Brown, and Jack Eaton. People interviewed include then Memphis mayor Dick Hackett, former Congressmen Ed Jones and Harold Ford, Sr., and others. The last part of the clip has an interview with David Cox, who was a machinist employed by IH at the time.

TRIVIA: At the beginning off the video you get to see some quick TV5 promos (Mid South Fair "ten wonderful days" and the Donahue Show) and hear the old channel 5 "showboat whistle" that was played directly before every program.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Memphis
• WMC
• TV5
• International
• Harvester
• IH
• Frayser
• Westside
• Dave
• Cox
• Bartlett
• Tennessee
• ActionNews5

[Scratcher1950]

The UAW and other unions are a lot of the reason our economy is where it's at today.

[nbreitbach]

Damn government couldnt bail them out but they throw money at all the banks wat a joke

[Tigersfan829]

Back when auto workers could make a great living. Those were the days

[TheLawilliams78]

Cool video, my dad, uncle, and grandfather worked here. I remember riding in my grandpa's scout and I still have a couple of ih toy tractors he used to give me.

[MrAndrew43]

@bduff007 Amen I couldnt agree more, my Father retired from IH just bately in time to get a patial pention.

[cbalducc]

I think International Harvester failed because they had too many irons in the fire - building agricultural equipment and trucks at the same time. Plus, most of the ag manufacturers basically put themselves out of business by building bigger equipment for a shrinking number of farms - bigger equipment meant fewer needed and farms were getting bigger while farmers were decreasing in number. God bless.

[bduff007]

Why is it always the employees fault when a company goes under. What about corporate greed and NAFTA! funny how nobody remembers all the good unions did for workers.

[thecvxman]

the answers were all in this video, first it says the guy made enough money to buy a new house, wife stopped working etc then the company went bust, ever wonder why, unions, not that clever after all eh.

[Seattlecarnut]

How long ago did this take place?

[railbum]

the UAW killed the only two plants we had here in Delaware. Now all of the unemployed are wondering what happened. YOU DID IT TO YOURSELVES! F*** UNIONS!

[geodeuce]

The Union killed IH in Louisville.

[aaronready1]

Great terra at 1:33. God save america....more history here of the destruction of america by the powers at be.