Great+Railroad+Strike+of+1877

Great Railroad Strike of 1877

__ **Life after the Civil War:** __

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After the Civil War, there was a boom in railroad construction. There was roughly 35,000 miles of new track built. Railroad building became the second largest employer next to agriculture, providing more jobs for people. Another effect the growth of railroads had was to increase business within the U.S. More railroads meant more travel, which meant faster, more productive business.

__ **Before the Strike:** __

From 1873 to 1878, the United States was faced with an Industrial Depression. This occurred when Jay Cooke, the country’s top investment banker, issued millions of dollars in worthless stock. After this foolish act, the economy collapsed. The New York Stock Exchange closed for 10 days and foreclosures and factory closings became common.

Unemployment was at a high 14% by 1876, while employed workers suffered a large cut in wages.Workers worked an average of 12 hours/day, but only recieved $2.50/day.

[|ttp][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-4.][|html] This newspaper image shows the increasing poverty in America due to the economic problems. The newspaper wrote, “Thousands of men and women are to be seen nightly sleeping in our public parks...” Also, the labor life was very dangerous on the railroads. In 1889, the first count was taken of deaths on railroads. 2,000 workers that were killed and 20,000 that were injured. At this time there were no laws saying a company must prevent these causalities.

[|ttp][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-3.][|html] This cartoon, from //New York Daily Graphic//, shows railroad workers’ fears of getting hurt on the job. The railroad is literally drawn as a monster, whose main priority is to hurt the workers. [|ttp][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-7.][|html] Similar to the previous cartoon, //Harper’s Weekly// issued this cartoon, further showing that reckless railroad corporations had too much power over the workers. Out of the 364 American railroads, 89 shut down, as well as 18,000 other businesses failing between 1873 and 1875. This economic catastrophe became known as the Panic of 1873.

__ **The Strike:** __

// "It was everywhere, it was nowhere. It was as if the surrounding seas had swept in upon the land from every quarter, or some sudden central volcano had . . . belched forth burning rivers that coursed forth in every direction." // -Allan Pinkerton, detective, describes the strike

[|ttp][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-5.][|html] This was one of many striker’s meetings, where workers discussed the tactics of each strike. There were strikes in Baltimore, Chicago, Pittsburg, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Martinsburg, where the striking began. In Baltimore, Charles A. Malloy wrote, "We met a mob, which blocked the streets. They came armed with stones and as soon as we came within reach they began to throw at us."

An anonymous Baltimore worker describes what the strike is fighting for, saying, " The strike is not a revolution of fanatics willing to fight for an idea. It is a revolt of working men against low prices of labor, which have not been accomplished with corresponding low prices of food, clothing and house rent."

__ **Position of Business:** __

Individual proprietors had previously held power within industries. Now, new larger corporations hired for low wages. After the railroad boom, large layoffs took hold and train rates fell by one half. Railroad owners called the strike “un-American.” They thought, “Why are these workers destroying what has helped the American economy so much?”

__ **Position of the Labor:** __

Laborers felt the strike was necessary to defend equality and liberty in America. They argued owners were taking advantage of workers for their own wealth. One St. Louis workingman said, “Capital has overridden the Constitution. Capital had changed liberty in to serfdom, and we must fight or die.” The labor force felt like slaves under their bosses, and the only way to earn their freedom was through violence. This necessary violence is also shown with the quote below:

Irish Union Army veteran speaking to Chicago crowd, 1877 || [|http][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-5.][|html] __ **Government Ends the Strike:** __
 * // "The black man has been fought for, and we have given him the ballot. . . Now why not do something for the workingman? I was through the war, I fought for the big bug capitalists, and many of you have done the same. And what is our reward now? What have the capitalists done for us? The way to bring them to our level is with powder and ball. Powder and Ball!" //

Federal troops, ordered by president Hayes, came to each city to end the violence. Hayes said, “Shall the railroads govern the country, or shall the people govern the railroads?” Hayes is saying there needs to be more regulation within railroad industry preventing strikes and anger between workers.

[|ttp][|://][|diamondpotus][|.][|wikispaces][|.][|com][|/][|file][|/][|view][|/][|rb][|-][|hayes][|.][|jpg][|/46540667/][|rb][|-][|hayes][|.][|jpg] President Rutherford B. Hayes Forty-five days after the strike had started, the Great Railroad Strike of 1877 ended on August 5th, 1877.

In a diary entry made on August 5th, 1877, President Hayes shows his views on the strike. He wrote, “ The strikes have been put down by force; but now for the real remedy. Can't something [be] done by education of the strikers, by judicious control of the capitalists, by wise general policy to end or diminish the evil? The railroad strikers, as a rule, are good men, sober, intelligent, and industrious. Every man has a right, if he sees fit to, to quarrel with his own bread and butter, but he has no right to quarrel with the bread and butter of other people."

Here, Hayes is writing that workers have no right to prevent others who are happy with the wages from working if they are not happy with the wages. Hayes did not want the army to have to end the strike. He felt the strike was lead by unfair workers who influenced prior content workers to join in.

**__Immediate Effects__:**

There were minor achievements to the strike, such as wages being raised. Michigan Central Railroad increased it’s wages by 12% during the strike. Also, many strikers were treated as heroes after for fighting for their rights.

Joseph McDonnell, editor, //Labor Standard// || [|http][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-6.][|html] This quote, from a worker after the strike, shows that the strike could have been more successful if it was more organized. The damages from the strike outweighed the small achievements. As a result of the strike, about 100 people were killed. These people were mainly workers and some members of the army who came in to stop the strikes.
 * // "While we are disorganized, we are only a mob and a rabble; when organized we become a power to be respected. If the working men had been organized in every city the strike would be more successful. . ." //

Also, $4 million in rail equipment was damaged overall due to the strike.The Engineer’s and Fire-men's Brotherhood lost $600,000 from the strike and the Burlington Railroad lost at least $2,100,000 from the damage.

[|ttp][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-6.][|html] This photograph was taken after the strike, showing part of the damage for railroads. __**Long Term Effects:**__

The strike of 1877 ended the 1st Century and started a new Age of Industrial Conflict. Also, it set the stage up for violence that would last until the 1890’s.

The strike resulted in an increased grievance for railroad workers. In 1880, the B&O established the Baltimore and Ohio Employees’ Relief Association. This provided coverage for sickness, injuries from accidents, and a death benefit. They also were the first company to offer a pension plan, which is a plan that gives retired worker’s money even though they are not working with the company any more. This set the stage for businesses to give workers more care, as workers began to look for jobs which gave them the best benefits __**Back to Work:**__

After the strike, many unions were set up to protect worker’s rights and prevent future strikes. One large union was the Knights of Labor, which organized openly in 1879. They built labor assemblies, where any worker could work, regardless of occupation, skill, sex, or race.

The Knights wanted a new type of industrial society; they called for a “cooperative commonwealth” in their worker-owned businesses, where anyone could work for and own part of an enterprise. The Knights of Labor union had a positive impact. It reached a membership of 700,000 by 1886.

[|ttp][|://][|web][|.][|gc][|.][|cuny][|.][|edu][|/][|ashp][|/1877/][|f][|1877-6.][|html] The Knights promoted “8 hours of work! 8 hours of sleep!” during the 1880’s. This motto further shows how these new unions wanted better living conditions for workers by almost cutting the labor hours in half.

**This great song sums up the Great Railroad Strike of 1877!**

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**References:** What was the Great Stike of 1877? American Social History Project

The Great Strike, Illinois in the Guilded Age

The Great Railroad Strike of 1877, Digital History

Railroads in the Making of Modern American, University of Nebraska, Lincoln

The Great Strike, Illinois During the Guilded Age

1877: The Great Railroad Strike Anexerpt from Howard Zinns A People's History of the United States

Robert V. Bruce, //1877: Year of Violence//(U.S.A. Bobbs-Merrill Company Inc., 1959) Great Railroad Strike of 1877 ABC-CLIO