Coxey's Army
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Yakima Valley Museum
Abstract
Coxey's Army waiting for train at the North Yakima Depot. This is the second depot, built in 1886, the first was a box car. From "Yakima-A Centennial Perspective"--- In 1893-4 our nation was the scene of a number of union-management confrontations, the most famous being the violent Pullman Strike. Unorganized labor was also frustrated by the effects of the depressed economy, so many resorted to the spontaneous tactic of forming volunteer "armies" to march to the nation's capitol to present their needs. "Coxey's Army" was one of these efforts. -- Obeying the call of their self appointed leader, Jacob Coxey of Ohio, thousands of unemployed set out from all over the country. In May, 1894, hundreds of Coxeyites", heading for Washington D.C. arrived in North Yakima on a Northern Pacific train. These men had had problems in Ellensburg. They had more in Yakima. -- Fights, shooting, and arrests resulted. Trials were eventually held in Seattle resulting in 29 Coxeyites being given 60-day sentences and two local citizens being found guilty. As "Coxey's Army" was stopped in Yakima, so it failed elsewhere. Only a few hundred actually appeared at the nation's capitol where the movement died". North Yakima
Description
6.25"W x 4.5"H B&W photo
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Keywords
Transportation--Railroads--Depots;
Citation
Smith, L.E. "Coxey's Army." Yakima Memory, 2002-802-157, 2001, http://192.168.27.66:81/cdm/ref/collection/memory/id/2257