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  • | Illustration

    Save Nebraska From Confederated Monopoly

    In 1894, Democrat William Jennings Bryan ran against Republican John M. Thurston for Nebraska's open seat in the United States Senate. During the race, the Omaha Bee, a Republican reform paper, campaigned against the Burlington & Missouri Railroad as an especially nefarious force endangering the republic. In this political cartoon, Editor Edward Rosewater broadened the paper's attack to include all monopolies.

  • | Illustration

    Firing into a Mob on Baltimore Street

    Railroad detective Allan Pinkerton's history of the strike emphasized the unruliness of the mob and the threat of foreign, anarchist, and communist influences on American labor. Here, his illustration shows the military defending law and order, firing their weapons into a mob in Baltimore during the 1877 strike.

  • | Illustration

    Attempt to Burn Camden Depot

    Railroad detective Allan Pinkerton's history of the strike emphasized the unruliness of the mob and the threat of foreign, anarchist, and communist influences on American labor. Here, his illustration shows the rioters' attempt to burn down Baltimore's Camden Station during the 1877 railroad strike.

  • | Illustration

    Women Leading a Mob in Baltimore

    Railroad detective Allan Pinkerton's history of the strike emphasized the unruliness of the mob and the threat of foreign, anarchist, and communist influences on American labor. He also emphasized the role of women in inciting the conflict. Here, his illustration shows women leading a mob against the police during the 1877 railroad strike in Baltimore.

  • | Illustration

    Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, August 4, 1877, full page

    This August 4, 1877 full page from Leslie's Illustrated demonstrates the impact groupings of illustrations had in this type of periodical.

  • | Illustration

    Governor Hartranft's Headquarters on a Car of the Pennsylvania Railroad company, At Pittsburgh.

    The conjunction of military and governmental forces in opposition to the riot is shown in this illustration.

  • | Illustration

    "The Moral of the Strikes"

    An illustration of "The Moral of the Strikes" which emphasizes their cost to working-class women and children.

  • | Illustration

    Pittsburgh Policemen Recovering Property Stolen by the Mob in the Recent Riots

    On August 18, 1877, Leslie's Illustrated depicted the confiscation of property taken during the riots. Note that goods are being removed from working-class homes, to the distress of women and children.

  • | Illustration

    Colonel Agramonte's Cavalry Charges the Mob

    This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts the U.S. cavalry charging into the crowd in Chicago on July 26, 1877, and emphasizes the crowd's fear and panic in the face of sabers-drawn, overwhelming military response.

  • | Illustration

    Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, August 11, 1877, front page

    This August 11, 1877 front page from Leslie's Illustrated is meant to capture the immediacy of the violence and action associated with the strikes.

  • | Illustration

    Construction Gang Repairing the Tracks at Corning

    The strike spread from Baltimore into small towns, big cities, and rural areas in the summer of 1877. This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts a gang of workers under the protection of the 23rd New York State National Guard Regiment repairing the tracks near Corning, New York.

  • | Illustration

    Workingmen's Mass Meeting in Tompkin's Square, Wednesday Evening, July 25th

    An August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicting a New York City meeting in Tompkins Square; both supporters and opponents of the strike are visible in the image. Note the placard to the side of the stage: "Our Strength Lies in the Justice of Our Demands Let the Workingmen of the World Unite."

  • | Illustration

    Scene in the Armory of the Seventh Regiment, N.G.S.N.Y. — The troops awaiting orders.

    During the strikes, New York's Seventh Regiment occupied the armory for several days in preparation for violence in the city. Although there were several large meetings held, no mob action took place in New York.

  • | Illustration

    The Police Watching, In Concealement, The Crowd in Tompkins Square

    Although there was no large-scale unrest in New York, crowds did gather in Tompkins Square during the Railroad Strike. Tompkins Square had been the site of civil unrest and rioting at several points in New York history, including during the 1863 Draft Riots, and police feared speakers would rile up strike supporters.

  • | Illustration

    The Ruins at Pittsburgh

    This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts the smoldering ruins of the roundhouse and shops at Pittsburgh after the riots. Such scenes of devastation, rendered from the vantage point and perspective to see the whole scope, were similar to images of destruction in the Civil War.

  • | Illustration

    Rioters Tearing Up Rails at the Bridge at Corning

    This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts strikers tearing up the track and bridge near Corning, New York in advance of an oncoming engine. These confrontations were both organized and spontaneous, dependent on the deep experience and expertise of the railroad workers with the operation of the roads.

  • | Illustration

    Construction Gang Righting Overturned Cars

    Scenes of repair and destruction of railroads in this August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated were similar to illustrations throughout the Civil War. This lithograph depicts a construction gang, under the protection of the New York State Militia, righting overturned cars near Corning, New York.

  • | Illustration

    The Strike on the Erie Railroad

    An August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicting masses of strike supporters stoppping a train at Corning, New York, even as armed soldiers make their presence known.

  • | Illustration

    Robert M. Ammon Directs the Strikers

    This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts Robert M. Ammon, leader of the Pittsburgh and Fort Wayne strike, sending information to the strikers via telegraph.

  • | Illustration

    Mob Threatens the Ninth Regiment

    This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts the crowd threatening infantrymen of the Ninth New York State National Guard in Albany on July 24, 1877. Such discussions tested the loyalties of local and state militias, as strikers justified their cause and gained solidarity with militia.