The Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives Oral History Collection on the Transport Workers Union of America was initiated by Robert F. Wagner Labor Archives staff member Brenda Parnes in 1985 to fill gaps in documentation as she processed the papers of the union. The interviews were conducted by Parnes and Joseph Doyle from 1986-1988, then continued by Gail Malmgreen from 1990.

The Transport Workers Union (TWU) was founded in 1934 by Irish immigrants and represented transportation workers in both the public and private sectors. By 1950, the TWU had organized transit workers throughout the nation and had chartered more than 100 Locals. TWU's New York City-based Local 100 was its largest branch, which encompassed transit workers in the subway and bus systems, as well as private bus and taxi companies.

Union President Mike Quill was influential in the union's activities from his election in 1935 until his death in 1966. In 1948, Quill and the union broke ties with the Communist Party of the United States of America, and communists were excluded from union membership thereafter.

In the 1950s, the TWU was active in organizing for rail transport and airlines workers, as well as the civil rights struggles within the Southern labor movement. The TWU was the only international to hold out against the merger of the CIO with the AFL in 1955. In 1966, the union organized a transit strike and President Mike Quill passed away shortly after.