Joe Hill, born Joel Hägglund in Sweden, was the IWW’s most beloved songwriter — author of "The Preacher and the Slave," "There Is Power in a Union," and "The Rebel Girl." In 1914 he was arrested in Salt Lake City and charged with the murder of a grocer and his son. The case against him was entirely circumstantial, and Hill refused to explain a gunshot wound he had received the same night, saying only that it involved a woman whose name he would not compromise.
Despite an international campaign for his release and appeals from the Swedish government and President Wilson, Hill was convicted and executed by firing squad on November 19, 1915. His final message — "Don’t waste any time mourning. Organize!" — and his reputed last word, "Fire!", made him a martyr. "I dreamed I saw Joe Hill last night," ran the song written in his memory; Joe Hill became the enduring symbol of the IWW’s struggle.