See the article in its original context from july 21, 1877, page 4 buy reprints. The great railroad strike of 1877 was the angry response of railroad workers to wage reductions, job cuts, and the profiteering by the huge railroad corporations that had risen to dominance after the civil war. Feb 16, 2010 apush class project on the great railroad strike of 1877. Sep 09, 2006 the strike spread to pittsburgh and the pennsylvania railroad. The chicago railroad strike of 1877 was a series of work stoppages and civil unrest in chicago, illinois, which occurred as part of the larger national strikes and rioting of the great railroad strike of 1877. Meetings of working men in chicago on july 26 led to workers from a number of industries striking on the following morning, and over the. Learn great railroad strike of 1877 with free interactive flashcards. These events influenced later events in the next two decades. The railroad strike of 1877 in reading by ronald l. Again, it happened outside the regular union, pentup anger exploding without plan. Albee captured an extraordinary series of photographs. This instructional packet uses newspaper articles from the nineteenth century to create a case study of a significant event in american labor history, the railroad strike of 1877, frequently referred to as the great strike.
Baltimore railroad strike of 1877 wikimedia commons. Louis strikers have been standing there for over a week and still not backing down. Read the great railroad strike of 1877 essay sample for. Streets, railroads, and the great strike of 1877 historical. Choose from 16 different sets of great railroad strike of 1877 flashcards on quizlet. Robert bruce, historian of the 1877 strikes, writes 1877. Media in category baltimore railroad strike of 1877 the following 19 files are in this category, out of 19 total. The railroads were the advance agents of industrialism, opening a national market for the first time and themselves providing a market for iron, steel, coal, and the. Railroad strike of 1877 in late july of 1877, chicagoans played their part in the first nationwide uprising of workers. Then federal troops went from city to city, putting down strike after strike until after a few weeks the great railroad strike of 1877 was over. This was the united states first major railroad strike.
Railroads were trying to make up for the financial losses by cutting wages, which. John risch, smart tds national legislative director, spoke with jaisal noor of on the significance of the 140th anniversary of the first national railroad strike that began july 14, 1877, also known as the great railroad strike and great upheaval. If it is not listed in the text, refer to another text. Annotated bibliography great railroad strike of 1877. How did the great railroad strike of 1877 demonstrate the. Great railroad strike of 1877 ohio history central.
The great railroad strike of 1877 was a national crisis and involved more than 100,000 railway workers in 14 states. The railroad strike of 1877 in reading berks history center. By the spring of 1877 the united states was entering its fourth year of a depression closely related to a collapse in the railroad industry. Initiated as a more or less spontaneous railway workers strike, it became generalized into a nationwide crescendo of street protests and pitched battles. Like morale after fredericksburg, this assessment asks students to source and corroborate a document. The baltimore railroad strike occurred in baltimore, maryland as part of the great railroad strike of 1877. Some images display only as thumbnails outside the library of congress because of rights considerations, but you have access to larger size images on site. Jul 31, 2018 the great railroad strike of 1877 began with a work stoppage by railroad employees in west virginia who were protesting a reduction in their wages. Introduction the strike of 1877, also known as the great strike took place on railroads across the nation. There was a possibility, that the next strike could come in the history as the continue reading great railroad strike of 1877 it was just the. The great railroad strike of july 1877 library of congress. Includes a tokenx language analysis of documents related to the strike, a gis map displaying the spread of the strike across the northeastern united states, and a gis map displaying the movements of strikers and sympathizers during the july 20, 1877 baltimore rail riots. The great railroad strike of 1877 was just the start, though a very powerful start.
If an image is displaying, you can download it yourself. Labor strikes for the rail workers still occurred in the future in 1884 to 1886, 1888 to 1889, and in 1894. In this assessment, students evaluate an excerpt of an 1877 newspaper article about railroad strikes in columbus, ohio. S history textbook, look up the railroad strike of 1877 sometimes called the great strike of 1877. Great railroad strike of 1877 flashcards and study sets. Rr strike learn with flashcards, games, and more for free. Terence powderly, director of the knights of labor, took lessons from the 1877 strike to channel worker outrage into effective protests. This strike finally ended some 69 days later, after it was put down by unofficial militias, the national guard, and federal troops. One of the important events during his presidency was the great railroad strike of 1877. This violent strike shortly paralyzed americas commerce leading to the mobilization of militia by ten state governors to reopen the rail road traffic. Then followed the great railroad strike of 1878, though it was not so great anymore and was suppressed brutally. That year, there were a series of dramatic strikes by railway workers in a dozen cities that shook the nation as no labor dispute had ever done in history.
The strike was the result of continued wage cuts of the laborers such as engineers and trainmen, while many of the companies continued to pay out dividends to its stockholders. Picturing burnt machinery and twisted debris, albee documented the local aftermath of what scholars consider the first national labor action in the united states the great railroad strike of 1877. The great railroad strike of 1877 began on july 17, 1877, in martinsburg, west virginia. Filippelli in the hot, midjuly of 1877, with the nation prostrate in the fourth year of a deep depression. Year of violence, about a flagman named gus harris. In 1877 an explosion of workingclass protest rocked the united states.
Great railroad strike of 1877, series of violent rail strikes across the united states in 1877. More than 100,000 workers participated in the strike, which lasted 45 days. The strikers refused to let the trains run until the most recent pay cut was returned to the employees. Choose from 8 different sets of the great railroad strike of 1877 revealed. The great railroad strike of 1877 began in martinsburg, w. Many strikes that occurred in the united states took place because of these railroad riots. The great railroad strike of 1877 was the countrys first major rail strike and witnessed the first general strike in the nations history. The federal troops were successful in ending the violence at martinsburg, and the strike ended later in the summer of 1877. Sometime after july 22, 1877, pittsburgh photographer s. The great railroad strike of 1877 new york state library. And that seemingly isolated incident quickly turned into a national movement. Streets, railroads, and the great strike of 1877 historical studies of urban america stowell, david o. Media in category baltimore railroad strike of 1877 the. The great railroad strike of 1877 moves on to the pennsylvania railroad.
More than half the freight on the nations 75,000 miles of track stopped moving. The strikes and the violence it spawned briefly paralyzed the countrys commerce and led governors in ten states to mobilize 60,000 militia members to reopen rail traffic. America came closer to social revolution than at any other time in its century of nationhood. That first week of july 1877, in baltimorea city where sewage ran through the streets9 babies died. In the previous quarter of a century, the nation, spurred. Media in category great railroad strike of 1877 the following 8 files are in this category, out of 8 total.
In towns throughout citys there were battles, arrests, injuries and deaths. Question 1 asks students to evaluate whether the excerpt provides enough evidence to draw conclusions about the broader railroad strike. The strike showed that west virginia authorities were illprepared to handle unrest among laboring groups and led to calls, mostly unheeded, for development of a professional national guard to control labor disturbances. The great railroad strike of 1877 began with a work stoppage by railroad employees in west virginia who were protesting a reduction in their wages. The great railroad strike of 1877 for kids rutherford hayes was the 19th american president who served in office from march 4, 1877 to march 4, 1881. The great railroad strike of 1877 came at a time when the country was in the grips of an economic depression.
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