Walter Macarthur was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1862. At age 14 he started his sailing career, working his way up to able seaman by 1881. In 1889 he began taking jobs exclusively in the coastwise trade of the western U.S., shipping on vessels traveling up and down the coast. He ceased being an active seaman in 1891, when, inspired by his participation in the Coast Sailor's Union (later the Sailors' Union of the Pacific) he became the business manager of The Coast Seaman's Journal. He assumed the editorship of that publication in 1895, and made the paper into a strong voice for seamen's rights as well as for labor rights more generally. After an unsuccessful run for the U.S. House of Representatives in 1910, Macarthur left The Coast Seaman's Journal in 1913 to take up an appointment as U.S. Shipping Commissioner of San Francisco. As Commissioner, he focused on improving the lot of the common seaman, including through the Seamen's Act (also called the La Follette Act) of 1915. In 1932 he was forced to retire from his position due to a government policy that phased out federal employees at age 70. Macarthur published several books and articles on maritime and labor topics. His Handbook, Navigation Laws of the United States ran to 3 editions from 1915 to 1918. His other publications include The Red Record: A Brief Resume of Some of the Cruelties Perpetrated upon American Seamen at the Present Time (1895), Trade Union Epigrams (1904), The Seaman's Contract, 1790-1918 (1919), Under the Lee (as Martin Gale, 1924), Sea Routes of Commerce (1925), Last Days of Sail on the West Coast (1929), American Seamen's Law (1931, supplemented 1937), Voyage of the Sacramento (1934), and Last Ships Through the Golden Gate (1936). Walter Macarthur died in San Francisco in 1944.
From the description of Walter Macarthur papers, 1883-1944 (bulk 1913-1944). (University of California, Berkeley). WorldCat record id: 26681237
