August 11, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 11, 1877 | Newspaper
This August 11, 1877 image from Leslie's Illustrated depicts the crowd marching down the New York Central railroad track at West Albany, New York on July 24, 1877.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
This August 11, 1877 image from Harper's Weekly depicts the Sixth Regiment fighting its way through Baltimore.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
This August 11, 1877 image depicts the blockade of railroad engines in Martinsburg, West Virginia, by orderly and well-dressed citizens. Unlike Allan Pinkerton's depictions, this Harper's illustration features the role of women less as unruly participants and more as witnesses and forces of restraint and care in the stand-off.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
This August 11, 1877 full page from Leslie's Illustrated demonstrates the impact groupings of illustrations had in this type of periodical.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
This August 11, 1877 image from Harper's Weekly depicts the burning of the Lebanon Valley Railroad bridge by rioters during the Great Railroad Strike.
August 11, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 13, 1877 | Newspaper
This August 13, 1877 article reports on the violence and destruction of the Great Railroad strike in cities across the eastern United States.
August 18, 1877 | Illustration
The conjunction of military and governmental forces in opposition to the riot is shown in this illustration.
August 18, 1877 | Illustration
An illustration of "The Moral of the Strikes" which emphasizes their cost to working-class women and children.
August 18, 1877 | Illustration
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.
August 4, 1877 | Illustration
This August 4, 1877 full page from Leslie's Illustrated demonstrates the impact groupings of illustrations had in this type of periodical.
1878 | Government report
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.
1878 | Pamphlet
This 1878 Burlington and Missouri Railroad publicity pamphlet provided information to potential settlers about land in Iowa and Nebraska. It featured information about land agents, land prices, social and cultural oportunities, potential crop yields, and other information to entice settlers to purchase railroad land.
1878 | Time Table