Great+Railroad+Strike+of+1877

 **__ Great Railroad Strike of 1877 __**

** The Problem: **

During the spring of 1877 the United States was still in the grip of the depression. Following the Panic of 1873, large firms on the East Coast began to fail and many dismissed workers and drastically cut wages. Throughout the nation, railroad companies had to cut wages, but continued to pay out dividends to stockholders. During the first half of 1877, Pennsylvania Railroad Company made two 10% wage cuts. In July, Pennsylvania Railroad cut costs again by doubling the length of freight trains without increasing the support crew. The other major eastern railroad company, Baltimore & Ohio, one of the last railroad companies to cut wages, cut wages twice during this time period and shortened the workweek to 2 or 3 days. On July 11, 1877, the president of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad announced to workers and officers, “That a reduction of ten per cent be made in the present compensation of all officers and employees, of every grade, in the service of the Company,, where the amount received exceeds one dollar per day, to take effect on and after July 16th, instant.” While the company viewed the wage cuts as a necessary measure, workers had enough and began to strike only a few days later.

** The Company: **

The Pennsylvania Railroad imposed it’s second ten percent wage cut in two years and shortly after that the Baltimore and Ohio railroads made their ten percent wage cuts for workers making more then a dollar a da ﻿ y ﻿. By the end of the strike owners and managers regained the upper hand. When the governor called the local militia the militia ended up sympathizing with the railroad workers. The governor then called the National Guard troops from Philadelphia. The National troops put an end to the strikes with much violence.

The workers during this strike felt that there was low prices for the labor they were putting up with. They thought the prices did not correspond with low prices of food, clothing, and house rent. They were angry with their slashed work weeks as well; they were only working two to three days a week. When the Pennsylvania railroad ﻿ double in length with no increase in size of crews the workers seized control of the rail yard switches and blocked the movement of trains.
 * The Workers: **

** Strike!: ** On July 17, 1877, Baltimore and Ohio workers went on strike in Martinsburg, West Virginia. They blocked freight trains from moving and threatened to continue until their pay cuts were reversed. The state militia was called in, but was unsuccessful in ending the strike and refused to use force on the workers. The governor of West Virginia called for federal troops, but by this point the strike had spread to Baltimore, Maryland and had evolved into a violent struggle between the workers and militia. The mob threw stones and in response, the militia fired on the crowd, killing 10 people. More than 14,000 protestors then proceeded to destroy railroad property.

The strike spread across the nation, wherever there were railroads. In Pennsylvania, violence was worse. In Philadelphia, mobs attacked the militia and destroyed buildings, locomotives, passenger cars, and railcars. In Pittsburg a strike began on July 21, 1877 and the local militia was called in. Again, the militia did not use force and the National Guard was sent in and fired on the mob, killing 20 people and wounding several hundred more. In response, striking workers assaulted railroad property, destroying railcars, locomotives, buildings, and took over the local telegraph office and the armory.

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** Public Reaction: **

In reaction to the Great Railroad Strike of 1877, riots and strikes across the nation broke out. In Martinsburg both the working class and middle class gathered and prevented stikers from being arrested by the police. In the picture to the right, a riot involving the destruction of the Union Depot and Hotel is depicted. Huge riots of thousands of people formed, setting fire to buildings, throwing stones and rocks at buildings and militias, and destroying all railroad property. The public used violence and destruction against the railroad companies and law enforcement. In Baltimore, the public reacted with great violence to the local militia by destroying railroad property. The strike then evolved into a general labor strike throughout the nation in cities like St. Louis and Chicago. In St. Louis, strikers crimpled the city for a week and in Chicago, more than 20,000 workers went on a strike organized by the Workingmen's Party. Violence emerged in Kansas City and San Francisco as well. After the strike, many strikers were regarded as heroes.

This strike led more strikes to occur across the nation in places like Chicago and St. Louis where trains stopped running and many workers from other jobs and industries joined in the strikes. Directly after the Great Railroad Strike of 1877 governors in ten states had to mobilize 60,000 militia members just to reopen rail traffic. It also bri ﻿ efly halted the country’s commerce. These strikes also set to stage for the Haymarket Square bombing and the Homestead steel strike. The strike ushered in the world’s first Labor Day Parade in 1882.
 * Impact/Changes: **


 * Resources: **

__Primary Source__: "Railroad strike of 1877." Image. Library of Congress. //American History//. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 13 May 2011. __Abc-Clio:__ "Great Railroad Strike of 1877." //American History//. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 13 May 2011. __Primary Source :__ Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, //Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Minute Book//; "Announcement of Wage Cuts on the B&O Railroad." July 11, 1877, [] switches, seizing control of the rail yard, and blocking the movement. "Digital History." Digital __Freebie:__ History. [] (accessed May 11, 2011). __Book:__ "Google Books." //Google Books//. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2011. . "Strike" : [] Video: []
 * Pictography: **