The Most Dangerous Woman in America 1902–1904 After the
successful campaign in Anthracite Country, Mother Jones was
drawn back to West Virginia, where the UMW had yet to gain a
strong support base. On June 7, 1902, a strike began that led to
arrests, and to the increased threat of violence on the part of
authorities. Mother Jones herself was put on trial, during which
the district attorney called her the "most dangerous woman in
America." The conservative presiding judge labeled all the
defendants as agitators and condemned them to jail, thereby
establishing a precedent that would effectively prevent the
leadership of any successful strike. The judge suspended Mother
Jones's sentence, however, reasoning that he would not make her
a martyr. Despite the union's failure in West Virginia, Mother
Jones continued to work for UMW, and was sent to Colorado to
unionize workers in the newly developed Rocky Mountain coal
industry. Coal production was dominated by large corporations,
which built company towns where all e