The draft riots in a drawing
The New York draft riots occurred on 13-16 July 1863 in response to the US Congress enacting the draft during the American Civil War. In the largest insurrection in United States history apart from the Civil War itself, 120 people were killed and 2,000 wounded as US Army troops were dispatched to put down the thousands of rioters, who ranged from Irish, Germans, Poles, and other working-class people to anyone who cared about slavery and the war. Some sources such as Herbert Asbury's The Gangs of New York suggested higher casualties such as 2,000 dead and 8,000 wounded, but these figures are almost certainly exaggerated; however, the riots were devastating to the city and caused an exodus of the population of African-Americans from Manhattan to Brooklyn.
Background[]
The American Civil War broke out in 1861 between the Union government of the north and the secessionist Confederate States of America of the south. The war was the deadliest war on American soil, and the Union employed its vast array of factories and industries to produce goods to fight the South. However, by 1863 the war was still taking its toll on both sides, and President Abraham Lincoln decided to introduce the draft in order to compel more Americans to enlist in the US Army and defeat the rebellion. The draft was seen as unfair by the working-class people, as only the wealthy could afford the $300 draft exemption; the working-class (whether it be the newly-arrived Irish immigrants, Germans, Poles, or African-Americans) was outraged that the wealthy did not have to fight. On 13 July 1863, when the draft was implemented, iron workers, street crawlers, and all other lower-class people from all across New York City took to the streets to riot against the government.
Riots[]
Start of the riots[]
Fires in New York City during the riots
The rioters rose up for four days and four nights from 13 to 16 July 1863, with several poor people ransacking various houses. They set fire to buildings, smashed windows, and attacked people in public, causing chaos in the city for four days. African-Americans were targeted in the streets and were lynched and set on fire, while their homes were also attacked, including black boarding schools; even the Irish took part in this violence, as they feared that freed African-American slaves might take their jobs. Even P.T. Barnum's American Museum was attacked, with many animals dying in the fire; however, some escaped animals could be seen wandering the streets, including an elephant. 11 black men were lynched during the violence, with the Colored Orphan Asylum being torched. African-Americans were not the only targets, but also the homes of abolitionists, as Confederate sympathizers attacked the abolitionists and their supporters due to their support of the Emancipation Proclamation and other policies.
Suppression[]
The soldiers before firing on the civilians
The most-targeted victims of the attacks were the wealthy, who were attacked by droves of protesters. They broke into houses and smashed windows and doors, charging into the houses. They attacked John F. Schermerhorn's house and set fire to many parts of it, and one of the members of the family took two pistols and shot at the protesters. Attacks on mansions were common during the riots, and wealthy people were beaten up or killed in public. Later, New York Militia and Union soldiers from the front lines at the recent Battle of Gettysburg were dispatched to New York under Harvey Brown, and they marched down the streets to put down the rioters. Some of the rioters armed themselves after storming the armories and taking weapons from them, and they also pelted police at their precinct headquarters with stones. The soldiers fired on the crowds of people at point-blank range when they refused to disperse, killing many of them and leaving puddles of blood in the streets in a violent quelling of the uprising. Both unarmed men and women were massacred, including immigrants, firefighters, or other protesters. In addition, the US Navy bombarded Paradise Square in the Five Points as the Dead Rabbits and Natives fought each other in a gang battle, and their fight left several more dead.
In the end, the riots were quelled, with 120 people being killed and 2,000 wounded. Tammany Hall boss William M. Tweed decided to give hot soup and bread to the Irish immigrants coming in (around 15,000 a week) in order to secure more votes, as the deaths of many people in the city lost him some voters. The city of New York gave candles to the families of the dead, and all of the victims were laid side-by-side, even the Natives and Dead Rabbits who had killed each other. The city was heavily damaged, but it was repaired in time; however, some wounds did not heal instantly, with many African-Americans moving to Brooklyn and leaving Manhattan. The riot's end was a relief, as the largest insurrection in America after the Civil War had ended.
Gallery[]
