Disturbances During The Gilded Age Essay

There were several labor disturbances during the Gilded Age. A few of the most popular disturbances were the construction of new railroads, advancement in science and technology, and rise of big businesses. There were four important events that happened during the Gilded Age that was considered labor disturbances; 1877 Railroad Strike, the Haymarket Riots, the Homestead Act, and the Pullman Strike.
By 1916, 254,000 miles later the Railroad’s were complete. One out of every twenty-five American worked to complete the railroads. In 1877 the United States had their first crucial rail strike as well as their first strike in the nation’s history. The Pennsylvania Railroad lost more than four million dollars due to angry crowds from Philadelphia. The crowds set fire to parts of the city, buildings, engines, passenger cars, and freight cars. The strikes and violence led to ten states mobilizing 60,000 milita members to reopen the railroads. (digital history) After a bomb was thrown at the police, the labor protest rally turned into a riot near Chicago’s Haymarket Square on May 4, 1886. After this riot, several workers were wounded and at least eight dead. In the 1800s, strikes were common in the United States by industrial workers. The working conditions were dangerous, miserable and wages were extremely low. Many

In Homestead, Pennsylvania the strike won the steelworker’s a three-year contract in 1889. 750 out of the 3,800 workers at the Homestead plant belonged to the union. In 1892, Andrew Carnegie broke the union. The union workers refused to accept the new plan, so the plant manager locked the workers out of the plant. (history.com) In the spring of 1892, Andrew Carnegie gave Frick, the plants manager, the okay to shut down the plant until the workers buckled. (pbs.org) The Homestead Strike ended July 6,