Lost jobs, high unemployment, inflationary food and fuel costs as well as dissatisfaction with the federal government are nothing new in American history. Well before the Great Depression of the 1930s, Americans felt the pinch of economic woes. The panic of 1893 was one of the country’s first encounters with nationwide money troubles. On March 25, 1894 a group of citizens decided to do something about it. Coxey’s Army is often forgotten in the collective memory of the American people despite being the first official protest march in the country’s history.

In 1893 two major American railroad companies, the Reading and the Philadelphia, went under. With so many banks relying on the accounts of the railroads, the economic problems quickly flowed across the country. By late spring the stock market was in free fall and consumer confidence was at an all time low. In total, over 70 railroad companies, 600 banks and 15,000 businesses failed. The recession was a reflection of a depression spreading across Europe and it seemed nothing could stop what was happening. Many thought no one was even trying.

Small charitable groups and municipal organizations did their best to help the almost three million Americans who lost their job during the panic. But their resources were not equipped to cope with such numbers. The federal government, under then president Grover Cleveland, had little to no reaction to the panic. There was no revitalization plan, no increase in the money flow, no direction for business to follow.

Jacob Coxey was a business owner in Ohio and found it difficult to run his sand quarry given the problems facing the economy. He, like so many others, was frustrated at the lack of assistance offered by the federal government to America’s workers. Coxey felt an influx of money into the system as well as municipal projects to create jobs would do a lot to help the country get back on its feet. He decided to go to Washington and share his thoughts with the people up on the hill.

Coxey created an “industrial army” of workers who followed his lead and began to march. They left Massillon, Ohio on Easter Sunday and began their slow trek to the capital city.

As the workers traveled to the capital to express their outrage their numbers continued to swell.  News of Coxey’s army had spread and groups of unemployed men and women came from across the country to enlist. Coxey had hoped for a thousand to join him. What began as a large crowd of about 100 became 500 as they reached Washington D.C. on May 1^st.

Rather than ending in a massive victory for the working people and businesses of America, Coxey and his protest resulted in charges of trespassing and no change to the government’s handling of the economy. What the protestors did do however, was prove to a nation that

determination can inspire others to join a cause, whether worker or business owner, and that government should be more involved in the lives of its people. The panic of 1893 lasted four years and things only began to improve after a change of president. Crop prices began to increase and public perception of change helped restart the economy. The growing Populist party advocated governmental reform and the nation slowly put the crisis behind itself. Coxey was one example of the spirit of the reform movement.

History Store Depression Era Pre-World War II Gold Bond Vintage 1940s Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Film on DVD WPA and The New Deal - Rebuilding America Film Collection on DVD Depression Era Tax Tokens

Tags: 1893, 1894, American History, Coxey's Army, Coxey's Industrial Army, Depression Era Pre-World War II Gold Bond, Depression Era Tax Tokens, economic depression, economic recession, Federal government, first official protest march in U.S. History, Great Depression, high unemployment, History Store, inflationary food prices, inflationary fuel costs, Jacob Coxey, lost jobs, Panic 1893, Philadelphia Railroad Company, Reading Railroad Company, Stock Market Crash, U.S. History, unemployment, Vintage 1940s Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Film on DVD, Washington DC, WPA and The New Deal - Rebuilding America Film Collection on DVD