The documents in the first section below outline key events leading up to the Great Strike of 1877. The second section explores the strike itself, which began on July 16, 1877, and quickly spread along railroad lines. Over the next two weeks, thousands of workers across the nation would join in the protests, leading to fears that America was experiencing a general rebellion. The third section investigates the aftermath of the Great Strike. By early August, the strike was finally over. In the ensuing weeks and months, American commentators struggled to make sense of the shocking events that had rocked the nation and to derive lessons about how to prevent similar incidents from occurring again.
