In this first volume of Mob Work: Anarchists in Grand Rapids, topics include the German anarchist movement in Grand Rapids during the 1880s and its connections to Chicago and the International Workingpeople’s Association (IWPA), the famous anarchist Voltairine de Cleyre who lived in Grand Rapids for a few years, Jo Labadie and his visits to Grand Rapids, and the repression following the assassination of President William McKinley.

Mob Work: Anarchists in Grand Rapids is a four volume exploration of the history of anarchists in Grand Rapids, Michigan. While a mid-sized town with a reputation for conservative views, below the surface Grand Rapids has a history of radicalism that has largely gone unexplored. Part of that history includes the presence of anarchists active in a number of different ways since the 1880s. Anarchist activity has often connected to what anarchists have been doing in the larger U.S. context and as such this history situates Grand Rapids anarchists in larger national trends.