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Part 1

1. Knights of Labor

The Knights of Labor union, which began operating in 1869, was a US federation formed

to push for an 8-hour workday for laborers. It wanted the society to transform from capitalism to

and allow workers to start owning the industries within which they worked. The Knights also

wished to eliminate child labor, and it was the first successful union in the US. The Knights

organized all workers and aspired to form a cooperative society, but it collapsed in 1886 after the

Haymarket Square riots in Chicago (Parfitt 36). The significance of this event to the US history
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is that it helped in liberating workers and ensuring that they could stand for their rights without

fear.

Fig 1. Stephens Uriah Smith. The founder of the knights of labor.

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The Image of Stephens Uriah Smith is crucial in understanding the emergence of the

Knights of Labor because he led the nine Philadelphian garment workers who formed the union.

2. Pullman Strike

The Pullman’s strike between May 11 and July 20 1894, involved a massive railroad

strike and boycott, which significantly disrupted rail traffic in the US Midwest. This event was

significant to the 1800 period because it marked the first time the federal government used an

injunction to break a strike (Ovetz 298). It also resulted in the creation of the June 28 labor day

as a way of reconciling with the American labor movement.

Fig 2. The burning of six hundred freight cars.

This image helps in understanding the topic by showing how the riots escalated, causing massive

destruction and disorder until the then President Cleveland ordered the US troops to intervene.

Works Cited

Ovetz, Robert. “Government by Injunction and Bayonet: Working-Class Recomposition in the

1894 Railroad Strike.” When Workers Shot Back: Class Conflict from 1877 to 1921. Brill,

2018. 252-297.
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Parfitt, Steven. “Constructing the Global History of the Knights of Labor.” Labor 14.1 (2017):

13-37.

Part 2: Longer Essays

Question 1

The West was special during the 1800s because it remained underexplored for long

despite having various resources. However, a westward expansion occurred due to the presence

of Gold and mining opportunities, availability of work in the cattle industry, and the ability to

own cheap land due to the Homestead Act. Inventions such as the Oregon Trail also occurred

during that time in1840s, and it was transporting settlers across the country. The trial stretched

for approximately 3200 kilometers and went over the rugged terrain, including the Native

Americans’ territories (MacLaren, Young and Lochrie 271). Some of the people living in the

West were Mexican Americans, the Chinese, and the White population from the US. They all

went to look for land and the newly discovered riches.

Some of the problems experienced by the people included poorly marked trails that made

traveling difficult, oxen dying due to thirst, diseases such as dysentery, and overloaded wagons,

among others. Farmers, miners, ranch, and railroad workers made less money because they had

to pay railroads for shipment of their products. Additionally, the interest rates were high

(MacLaren, Young, and Lochrie 279). During this period, the West was changing rapidly due to

activities like mining, improved transportation, and new agricultural machinery that enabled

farmers to increase crop production with minimal labor.

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Fig 1. The Oregon Trail

This trail was crucial because it acted as one of the leading immigration routes to the West

during the 19th century. The other roads were the Santa Fe Trail, and both routes had

connections to destinations in California.

Question 3

Some of the challenges facing workers in the late 1800s included low wages despite

undertaking difficult tasks for long, and unsafe working conditions (Nifdi.org 473). The workers

would spend the whole day operating machines in large crowded, noisy rooms. Others worked in

dangerous places such as the coal mines slaughterhouses and steel mills without protective gear.

The workers lacked people to defend them because their employers opposed unions.

Additionally, the government supported employers instead of helping employees to achieve

better working terms.

After much suffering, experiencing numerous challenges for long, the workers decided to

improve their situations by forming labor unions. Several unions would integrate to become

more powerful, and by 1835, approximately 50 different trade unions had formed in
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Philadelphia. The workers also used strikes as a way of compelling employers to address their

problems, as shown in the image below.

Fig 4. Shoemakers strike at Lyn, Massachusetts

The image is crucial because it highlights the struggles workers faced trying to get better

working terms and conditions.

Although some of the measures worked, others were not effective. For instance, 25 mills

in New Hampshire went on a strike to protest working for 13.5 hours per day in 1835.

Resultantly, the workdays reduced from 13.5 to 12 hours (Nifdi.org 474). In another instance, the

shoemakers in Lynn Massachusetts went on strike to demand higher wages. After more than 2-

months of struggle, they got a small increase, but their employers refused to work with the

unions, making it impossible for the employees to negotiate for better terms in the future.

After the early strikes, employers started opposing the workers’ efforts to strike. As such,

they started firing people in unions and blacklisting the leaders. Employees would also sign

yellow-dog contracts as a commitment that they would not join unions.

Works Cited
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MacLaren, Andrew C., Mark E. Young, and Sean Lochrie. “Enterprise in the American West:

taverns, inns and settlement development on the frontier during the 1800s.” International

Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management 25.2 (2013): 264-281.

Nifdi.org. “Workers’ Problems and Solutions.” Nifdi, www.nifdi.org/resources/free-

downloads/programs/science-and-social-studies/understanding-u-s-history/sample-

lessons-20/978-chapter-19.