By 1910, Tampa was producing one million cigars per day and its 10,000 cigar workers represented over half of the community's entire labor force.
Strikes by Tampa's cigar workers were rarely focused on issues of wages and hours but instead on being able to control their working conditions.
As a result, cigar workers at several factories went on strike in support of the prisoners.
For years cigar workers had a reputation for being amongst the better educated and politically active groups.
He also built worker housing, brought doctors to the area, and converted a factory into a theater for cigar workers.
In contrast, Tampa was a small town with a population of about 3,000 and no resident cigar workers.
Some of the lectors continued to speak to the cigar workers in other ways.
Even before leaving Germany, Schroeder seems to have learned the trade of a cigar worker.
In time, many did become cigar workers, including Italian women.
For a time he was a cigar worker.