Streets, Railroads, and the Great Strike of 1877

by David O. Stowell

Book Overview

For one week in late July of 1877, America shook with anger and fear as a variety of urban residents, mostly working class, attacked railroad property in dozens of towns and cities. The Great Strike of 1877 was one of the largest and most violent urban uprisings in American history.

Whereas most historians treat the event solely as a massive labor strike that targeted the railroads, David O. Stowell examines America's predicament more broadly...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0226776697
• ISBN13: 9780226776699
• Release Date: June 1999
• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Length: 189 Pages
• Weight: 0.79 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.1" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

great book

This is an excellent book. Stowell provides clear and abundant evidence to forward his argument that the Great Strike was more just an uprising of discontented railroad workers. As a high school student, I found this book to be an invaluable resource in writing my American History term research paper. It is packed with useful information, but is also stylistically well done, so as to hold the reader's interest. By exploring the human passions at the core of the issue, Stowell provides a fresh perspective on a topic which may otherwise seem (I thought) rather dull.

A great read!

This is a wonderful book for the lay person and professional historian alike. It puts a new spin on understanding the Great Strike and brings the streets of 1877 back to life. I have given this book as a gift to friends as well as enjoyed it in college classes. I am already looking forward to the author's next book.

a Five Star Book--Outstanding

Dr. David Stowell has written a page-turner while also managing to break fresh, new ground in the field of labor history. This exciting and insightful monograph should serve as an example to historians of all stripes on just how history should be written. Stowell's narrative and analysis mesh seamlessly as he masterfully recreates the tensions, forces, and personalities that ultimately clashed in the Great Strike of 1877. This is a must for any one interested in the late-19th century and labor. A wonderful display for labor history at its finest.