The Weatherman, also known as the Weathermen or later the Weather Underground Organization, was an American left-wing militant organization that carried out a series of militant activities from 1969 through the 1970s which included bombings, jailbreaks, and riots.
Following is a list of the organization's various activities and incidents.
Activities 1969 June 18–22 – Students for a Democratic Society SDS National Convention held in Chicago, Illinois. Publication of "Weatherman" founding statement. Members seize control of SDS National Office.CaplanGilbert 31 Summer - A group of members invade the Harvard Center for International Affairs, beating staff and destroying property July – Members Bernardine Dohrn, Eleanor Raskin,Wittman Dianne Donghi,FBI Surveillance Files 97, 107 Peter Clapp, David Millstone and Diana Oughton travel to Cuba and meet representatives of the North Vietnamese and Cuban governments. August – Weatherman member Linda Sue Evans travels to North Vietnam. Weatherman activists meet in Cleveland, Ohio, in preparation for "Days of Rage" protests scheduled for October, 1969 in Chicago. September 3 – Female members participate in a "jailbreak" at South Hills High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where they run through the school shouting anti-war slogans and distributing literature promoting the "National Action." The term "Pittsburgh 26" refers to the 26 women arrested in connection with this incident. September 24 – A group of members confronted Chicago Police during a demonstration supporting the "National Action" and protesting the commencement of the Chicago Eight trial stemming from the 1968 Democratic National Convention.Berger 325 October 6 – The Haymarket Police Statue in Chicago was bombed; Weathermen later claimed credit for the bombing in their book, Prairie Fire. October 8–11 – The "Days of Rage" riots occurred in Chicago, damaging a large amount of property. 287 Weatherman members were arrested; some became fugitives when they failed to appear for trial. November 8 - Sniper attack on Cambridge Police Station. Two shots were fired. Two Weathermen, James Kilpatrick and James Reaves, were indicted and subsequently released when a witness recanted his testimony. November–December – Karen Ashley and Phoebe Hirsch were among the few Weatherman members to join the first contingent of the Venceremos Brigade (VB) that departs for Cuba to harvest sugar cane. December 6 – Bombing of several Chicago police cars parked in a precinct parking lot at 3600 North Halsted Street, Chicago. The WUO claims responsibility in Prairie Fire, stating it was a protest of the fatal police shooting of Illinois Black Panther Party leaders Fred Hampton and Mark Clark on December 4, 1969. December 27–30 – Weathermen held a "War Council" in Flint, Michigan, where plans were finalized to change into an underground organization that would commit strategic acts of sabotage against the government. Thereafter they were called "Weather Underground Organization" (WUO).Berger 326
1970 January - Silas and Judith Bissell placed a homemade bomb under the steps of the ROTC building. The bomb was made from an electric blasting cap, an alarm clock, a battery and a plastic bag filled with gasoline and explosives. February – The WUO closed the SDS National Office in Chicago, concluding the major campus-based organization of the 1960s. The first contingent of the VB returned from Cuba and the second contingent departed. By mid-February the bulk of the leading WUO members had gone underground. February 16 – A bomb planted at the Park Police Station detonated at 10:45 p.m., apparently intended to align with a shift change, and killed a police sergeant, Brian McDonnell. Several investigators and one informant attest this was a Weatherman action overseen by Dohrn, but others doubt the group's involvement, and all Weather associates deny it. The case remains unsolved, but if perpetrated by Weather, then McDonnell would be the first known fatality from a Weatherman action. February 21 – The house of Judge Murtagh, who was presiding over the Panther 21 trial, is fire-bombed with three Molotov cocktails by a WUO cell in New York City. March – Warrants are issued for several WUO members, who become federal fugitives when they fail to appear for trial in Chicago. March 6 – WUO members Theodore Gold, Diana Oughton, and Terry Robbins are killed in the Greenwich Village townhouse explosion, when a nailbomb they were constructing detonates. The bomb was intended to be planted at a non-commissioned officer's dance at Fort Dix, New Jersey. March 30 – Chicago police discover a WUO "bomb factory" on Chicago's north side. April 1 - Based on a tip Chicago Police find 59 sticks of dynamite, ammunition, and nitroglycerin in an apartment traced to WUO members. The discovery of the WUO weapons cache ends WUO activity in this city. April 2 - A federal grand jury in Chicago returns a number of indictments charging WUO members with violation of federal anti-riot laws. Also, a number of additional federal warrants charging "unlawful flight to avoid prosecution" are returned in Chicago based on the failure of WUO members to appear for trial in local cases. (The Anti-riot Law charges were later dropped in January, 1974.) April 15 – The FBI arrests WUO members Linda Sue Evans and Dianne Donghi in New York City with the help of WUO infiltrator, Larry Grathwohl. May 10 – The National Guard Association of the United States building in Washington, D.C. is bombed.Berger 327 May 21 – The WUO releases its "Declaration of a State of War" communiqueGilbert 32 under Bernardine Dohrn's name. June 6 – In a letter, the WUO claims credit for bombing of the San Francisco Hall of Justice, although no explosion has occurred. Months later, workmen locate an unexploded bomb. June 9 - The New York City Police headquarters is bombed by Jane Alpert and accomplices. Weathermen state this is in response to "police repression." The bomb made with ten sticks of dynamite exploded in the NYC Police Headquarters. The explosion was preceded by a warning about six minutes prior to the detonation and subsequently by a WUO claim of responsibility. July 23 – A federal grand jury in Detroit, Michigan, returns indictments against thirteen WUO members and former WUO members charging violations of various explosives and firearms laws. (These indictments were later dropped in October, 1973.) July 25 - The United States Army base at The Presidio in San Francisco is bombed on the 11th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution. [NYT, 7/27/70] On the same day, a branch of the Bank of America is bombed in New York. July 28 - Bank of America HQ in NYC is bombed around 3:50 AM. WUO claims responsibility. September 15 – The WUO helps Dr. Timothy Leary escape from the California Men's Colony prison.Berger 328 October 6 - Second bombing of Chicago's Haymarket Police monument Chicago Historical Society October 8 - Bombing of Marin County courthouse. WUO states this is in retaliation for the killings of Jonathan Jackson,Gilbert 33 William Christmas, and James McClain October 10 - A Queens traffic-court building is bombed. WUO claims this is to express support for the New York prison riots. [NYT, 10/10/70, p. 12] October 11 - A Courthouse in Long Island City, NY is bombed. An estimated 8 to 10 sticks of dynamite are used. A warning was given around 10 min. prior to the 1:23 AM blast by the WUO. October 14 - The Harvard Center for International Affairs is bombed by The Proud Eagle Tribe of Weather (later renamed the Women's Brigade of the Weather Underground). WUO claims this is to protest the war in Vietnam. [NYT, 10/14/70, p. 30] The bombing was in reaction to Angela Davis' arrest and was the first action undertaken by an all-women's unit of WUO. October - Bernardine Dohrn, Katherine Ann Power, and Susan Edith Saxe were put on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted List December – Fugitive WUO member Caroline Tanker, who fled the country for Cuba, is arrested by the FBI in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. December 5 - Five Weatherman are captured for trying to bomb First National City Bank of NY and other buildings on the anniversary of the death of Fred Hampton. These individuals subsequently plead guilty. December 11 - Vivian Bogart and Patricia Mclean from the WUO are arrested after throwing an incendiary bomb at the Royal National Bank in NYC around 1:30 AM. December 16 - Fugitive WUO member Judith Alice Clark is arrested on the Days of Rage indictments by the FBI in New York.
1971 March 1 - The United States Capitol is bombed. WUO states this is to protest the invasion of Laos. President Richard M. Nixon denounces the bombing as a "shocking act of violence that will outrage all Americans." [NYT, 3/2/71] April – FBI agents discover what is dubbed "Pine Street Bomb Factory", an abandoned apartment utilized by WUO in San Francisco, California. August 30 - Bombings of the Office of California Prisons in Sacramento and San Francisco, allegedly in retaliation for the killing of George Jackson. [LAT, 8/29/71]Berger 329 September 17 - The New York Department of Corrections in Albany, New York is bombed, as per WUO to protest the killing of 29 inmates at Attica State Penitentiary. [NYT, 9/18/71]Berger 330 October 15 - The bombing of William Bundy's office in the MIT research center. [NYT, 10/16/71] Dec 2 - Fugitive WUO member Matthew Steen, suspected in the US Capitol bombing, is arrested in Seattle by the FBI for bank robbery but convicted of federal conspiracy and sentenced to ten years.
1972 May 19 - Bombing of The Pentagon, "in retaliation for the U.S. bombing raid in Hanoi." The date was chosen for it being Ho Chi Minh's birthday. [NYT, 5/19/72]
1973 May 18 - The bombing of the 103rd Police Precinct in New York. WUO states this is in response to the killing of 10-year-old black youth Clifford Glover by police.Berger 331Audre Lorde wrote a poem entitled, "Power" which was inspired by Clifford Glover. Read the poem here., 1983 September 19 – A WUO member is arrested by the FBI in New York. Released on bond, this member again submerges into the underground. September 28 - ITT headquarters buildings in New York City and Rome, Italy are bombed. WUO states this is in response to ITT's alleged role in the Chilean coup earlier that month. Around October, 1973 the Government requested dropping charges against most of the WUO members. The requests cited a recent decision by the Supreme Court that barred electronic surveillance without a court order. This decision could hamper prosecution of the WUO cases. In addition, the government did not want to reveal foreign intelligence secrets that the court has ordered disclosed.
1974 March 6 - Bombing of the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare offices in San Francisco. WUO states this is to protest alleged sterilization of poor women. In the accompanying communiqué, the Women's Brigade argues for "the need for women to take control of daycare, healthcare, birth control and other aspects of women's daily lives." May 31 - The Office of the California Attorney General is bombed. WUO states this is in response to the killing of six members of the Symbionese Liberation Army. June 17 - Gulf Oil's Pittsburgh headquarters is bombed. WUO states this is to protest the company's actions in Angola, Vietnam, and elsewhere. July – The WUO releases the book Prairie Fire, in which they indicate the need for a unified Communist Party. They encourage the creation of study groups to discuss their ideology, and continue to stress the need for violent acts. The book also admits WUO responsibility of several actions from previous years. The Prairie Fire Organizing Committee (PFOC) arises from the teachings in this book and is organized by many former WUO members.