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  • | Newspaper

    The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Strike

    This article in the July 18, 1877 edition of the Baltimore Sun notes the extent of the trouble on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the rioting at Martinsburg, West Virginia, and the militia's ineffectiveness.

  • | Newspaper

    The Backbone Broken

    This article from the July 28, 1877 issue of the Pittsburgh Daily Post notes a major break in deliberations, as the Fort Wayne, Indiana strikers agree to allow freight trains to run.

  • | Newspaper

    The Attack on the Fifth

    This article from the July 21, 1877 edition of the Baltimore American gives an account of the attack on the Fifth Regiment by the mob, which threw stones and bricks, forcing the troops to charge into Camden Station with fixed bayonets.

  • | Photograph

    The "Industrial Army of America"

    This image from The Modern Railroad (1911) depicts a large number of railroad mechanics posing with a locomotive.

  • | Government report

    Testimony of Soloman Coulson, a police officer at the time of the Pittsburgh riot

    Testimony given on February 12, 1878 by Soloman Coulson, a Pittsburgh police officer, described the violence at the railroad roundhouse and the makeup of the crowd gathered outside the roundhouse.

  • | Government report

    Testimony of Robert Pitcairn to the Committee

    Robert Pitcairn served as the Pittsburg division superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad and had ordered the double-heading of trains on July 19th for all eastbound traffic. Because trains would be twice as long but run with fewer trainmen, workers on the Pennsylvania refused to run the trains and the strike spread from the Baltimore and Ohio onto the Pennsylvania lines. Pitcairn describes his view of the violence in Pittsburg, emphasizing the restraint of the military and the riotousness of the "crowd." Pitcairn places special emphasis on the role of the women in the crowd.

  • | Government report

    Testimony of Major Erasmus L. Wentz, Superintendent of Norfolk and Petersburg R.R

    Major Erasmus L. Wentz, supervising work on the Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad, testifies as to the quality of contraband labor over that of Irish workers. Wentz notes that the contrabands work for less pay.

  • | Newspaper

    Tearing Up Tracks

    This article from the July 21, 1877 issue of the Baltimore Sun describes the damage rioters caused to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad's tracks near Lee Street in Baltimore.

  • | Newspaper

    Tearing Down The Telegraph

    This article from the July 21, 1877 issue of the Baltimore American recounts the mob's destruction of railroad property, including tearing down the telegraph office, ripping up the railroad tracks, smashing locomotives, and burning depots.

  • | Illustration

    Taking Posession of the West Albany Freight Yards

    This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts the firmness and order of the Ninth New York State National Guard Regiment as it takes "posession" of the West Albany, New York freight yards on July 24, 1877, in the face of a pressing crowd.

  • | Newspaper

    Striking Everywhere

    This selection of articles from the July 25, 1877 issue of the Pittsburgh Daily Post reveals how the strike is affecting railroads and communities all over the country, as well as how citizens are responding.

  • | Newspaper

    Strikers in Full Possession of the Line

    This excerpt from the July 19, 1877 edition of the London Times offers a description of the strikers' control of the Baltimore and Ohio line.

  • | Newspaper

    Status of the Strike

    This article from the July 26, 1877 issue of the Pittsburgh Daily Post notes a stoppage in the railroad strike's violence, but mentions that an agreement between the railroad owners and the strikers seems unlikely.

  • | Newspaper

    Status of the Strike

    This article from the July 21, 1877 issue of the Pittsburgh Daily Post updates the status of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad strike.

  • | Newspaper

    Statement Of An Eye-Witness

    This article from the July 21, 1877 issue of the Baltimore American gives an eye-witness account of the confrontation between the military and the rioters.

  • | Letter

    Samuel G. White's Affidavit, October 27, 1854

    When two slaves were killed on the Blue Ridge Tunnel project, the Board of Public Works attorneys sought sworn affidavits from white men who knew the enslaved men to determine their value for compensation to the slaveholders. The legal process regularized and the practice of industrial slavery on the railroads.

  • | Letter

    S. E. Crance to W. F. Merrill, strike violence

    In the wake of the 1888 strike, railroad officials worked to compile lists of violent protesters and their victims; in this report, S. E. Crance lists violence at strategic points along the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad line.

  • | Letter

    S. E. Crance to W. F. Merrill, strike violence

    In the wake of the 1888 strike, railroad officials worked to compile lists of violent protesters and their victims; in this report, S. E. Crance lists violence at strategic points along the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad line.

  • | Diary

    Rutherford B. Hayes Diary entry, August 5, 1877

    This August 5, 1877 entry in his diary, President Rutherford B. Hayes affirms his views of limited government and the free labor right of contract, as well as his concerns about the "capitalists."

  • | Diary

    Rutherford B. Hayes Diary Entry, August 2, 1877

    This August 2, 1877 entry from President Rutherford B. Hayes' diary notes the proximity of his relatives to the violence in Pittsburgh.