ABSTRACT
This chapter explores an emerging methodology for studying the transnational social networks that constituted the historical anarchist movement. It analyses the Cronaca Sovversiva, one of the most infamous Italian language anarchist newspapers printed in the United States during the early twentieth century. On 6 June 1909, The Charleston Daily Mail of West Virginia reported that Italian coal miners were refusing to follow the return-to-work orders of Ben Davis, president of the District 17 branch of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA). There are many different ways that migrants participate in networks and social fields. This is certainly the case with the Italian anarchists who, were always engaged with multiple different social fields. When anarchists began to organise fundraising events for the victims of the Messina Earthquake, many members of the broader community trusted them to gather and deliver aid to Italy rather than turning to alternatives such as the Red Cross.
