The Unsolved 1917 Murder of Frank Little That Shocked Montana

More than a century after his death, Franklin Henry Little, usually known as Frank Little, remains part of one of Montana’s most difficult and important historical stories.

Little was an organizer for the Industrial Workers of the World, often called the IWW or the Wobblies. His time in Butte was brief, but the events surrounding his death became part of Montana’s larger history of labor conflict, mining, wartime dissent, and free speech.

Why IWW Organizer Frank Little Came to Butte in 1917

Little came to Butte in July 1917 as the city’s miners were dealing with loss, unrest, and a general strike. Just weeks earlier, the Granite Mountain and Speculator Mine fire had killed more than 160 miners, according to the Montana Historical Society.

Workers were demanding safer conditions and higher wages. Butte was under martial law, and the United States had recently entered World War I.

Little worked to connect the Metal Mine Workers’ Union with the IWW. He also spoke publicly against the war and military draft. His approach was controversial, including among local labor leaders who did not share the IWW’s position on the war or its larger political goals.

The Unsolved 1917 Lynching of Frank Little in Butte

In the early morning hours of August 1, 1917, masked men entered the North Wyoming Street boarding house where Little was staying. The Butte Silver Bow Public Archives says Little was beaten, taken from the city, and lynched from a railroad trestle.

A warning note was left on his body. The note included the number 3 7 77, a reference to a vigilante code associated with Virginia City’s historic vigilance committee, along with the initials of other union leaders.

Little’s killers were never identified. The Library of Congress notes that a coroner’s inquest failed to identify those responsible.

How Frank Little’s Murder Shaped Montana Sedition Laws

Little’s death was not an isolated event. The National Council on Public History identifies his murder as a way to examine labor, corporate power, mining, war, civil rights, immigration, and class conflict in the American West.

The Montana Historical Society reports that Governor Sam Stewart received messages from labor organizations and concerned citizens across the country after Little’s death. Its historical account also says the killing was later used to help justify Montana’s Sedition Act and Criminal Syndicalism Act, which were passed during the wartime crackdown on dissent.

Thousands of people followed Little’s funeral procession to Mountain View Cemetery in Butte, where he is buried. The Montana Historical Society describes it as the largest funeral in Butte history.

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The Legacy of Frank Little and Butte's Mining Conflicts

Frank Little’s story reflects a dangerous period in Montana mining history, when workers, companies, elected officials, and labor organizations were clashing over safety, wages, war, and power.

His killing remains unsolved. But Montana historians and the Butte Silver Bow Public Archives have continued to preserve the story because it helps explain the people, conflicts, and forces that shaped Butte and Montana.