Baltimore railroad strike of 1877
| Baltimore railroad strike of 1877 | |
|---|---|
| Part of Great Railroad Strike of 1877 | |
Sixth Maryland Regiment firing on the rioters in Baltimore - 1877
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| Date | July 16–29, 1877 |
| Location |
Baltimore, Maryland 39°17′00″N 76°37′10″W / 39.28346°N 76.619554°WCoordinates: 39°17′00″N 76°37′10″W / 39.28346°N 76.619554°W |
| Result | Minor concessions |
| Casualties | |
| Death(s) | 10-22 |
| Injuries | 51-86+ |
| Arrested | 165-212 |
The Baltimore railroad strike occurred in Baltimore, Maryland as part of the Great Railroad Strike of 1877. Strikes broke out along the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) on July 16, the same day that 10 percent wage reductions were scheduled to go into effect. Strikes continued mostly peacefully until July 20, when Maryland Governor John Lee Carroll ordered the 5th and 6th Regiments of the Maryland National Guard to muster and travel from Camden Station in Baltimore to Cumberland, Maryland.
The National Guard clashed with large crowds at the station. On the way from their armory, the 6th regiment was forced to stop multiple times, firing into the crowd that followed them, killing several strikers. That night, and the next day, several buildings were set on fire throughout the city.
Over the following days, President Rutherford B. Hayes ordered hundreds of federal troops to the city. Additional militia and police were also recruited. Peace was restored on July 22.
Negotiations between strikers and the B&O were unsuccessful, and most strikers chose to quit rather than return to work at the newly reduced wages. The company easily found enough workers to reopen the lines, under the protection of the military and police, on July 29. The company promised minor concessions at the time, and eventually enacted some reforms later that year.
The Long Depression, sparked in the US by the Panic of 1873, had far-reaching implications for US industry, shuttering more than a hundred railroads in the first year and cutting construction of new rail lines from 7,500 miles (12,100 km) of track in 1872 to 1,600 miles (2,600 km) in 1875. Approximately 18,000 businesses failed between 1873 and 1875, production in iron and steel dropped as much as 45 percent, and a million or more lost their jobs. In 1876, 76 railroad companies went bankrupt or entered receivership.
In early July, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) announced it would reduce the wages of all its workers by ten percent. One hundred miles would constitute a day's work, and crews would not receive allowances for time spent on delays at stations. Various meetings of the working men followed, and a committee was formed to meet with officers of the railroad. They appealed to the Vice President, Mr. King, but he declined to meet with them.
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Wikipedia