One of the reasons the Red River Lumber Company located and created the town of Westwood, was due to its remoteness, thus creating a buffer from outside influences such as organized labor. By the 1930s, however, Red River had to deal with labor unions, and it was not by choice. There would be some very ugly labor disputes at Westwood.
One of these incidents was known as the “purge.” On July 13, 1938 all hell broke out at Westwood when an anti-CIO group held a vigilante mob to oust CIO members from the community. In the afternoon a kangaroo court was held at the corner of Ash and Third Streets. Once a suspected CIO was hauled to “court” which consisted of the bed of a Chevrolet pickup, clearly marked with Red River’s name and logo on the door panels, the trial was a simple affair. The accussed was surrounded by a large group of armed men. After the accussed name was given, the trial commenced by one person shouting, “He was one the picket line. He is a member of the CIO; he’s wearing a button. What’ll we do?” The crowd would shout, “Run him out of town! “ In all, some 400 men, women and children were chased out of town. It was the largest forced migration of United States citizens at that time.