Allegheny Strike (1845) On this day in 1845, the Allegheny Textile Strike began in Pennsylvania in demand of a 10 hour day, down from the typical 12. The strike, led by women and children, was...
Allegheny Strike (1845) On this day in 1845, the Allegheny Textile Strike began in Pennsylvania in demand of a 10 hour day, down from the typical 12. The strike, led by women and children, was...
Allegheny Strike (1845)
Mon Sep 15, 1845
Image: A historical marker for the Allegheny Textile Strike, photographed By Mike Wintermantel on February 15th, 2011 [hmdb.org]
On this day in 1845, the Allegheny Textile Strike began in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in demand of a ten hour day. The strike was led by women and children, and part of a series of strikes that took place between 1845 - 1848.
More than 400 textile workers struck to push for a 10 hour day without a pay cut from their typical 12 hour day. In October, some workers began flinging mud and destroying factory fences with axes, presumably to scare off some scabs that had replaced them. This behavior scandalized the strike and damaged some public support of it.
The strike was initially unsuccessful, but, following a similar strike in 1848, a law was passed limiting the working day to 10 hours. This achievement was undercut by an amendment that allowed workers to sign a contract to increase the workday back to 12 hours.
- Date: 1845-09-15
- Learn More: uawd.org, en.wikipedia.org, explorepahistory.com.
- Source: www.apeoplescalendar.org