Farmers Weekly Review

By Sandy Vasko

When we last met, it was Monday, July 23, 1877. Sheriff Noble and his posse had just been “thrown out of town” by armed striking miners. The miners had won a battle and were fired up for the next stage — getting rid of the strike breakers, known as “black legs.” Be prepared for violence, it’s Tuesday, July 24, 1877.

We read in the Wilmington Advocate, “On Tuesday the strikers’ committee informed the blackleg (Negro) miners that they must get out of Braidwood, peaceably or forcibly, but that get out they must at once. The blacklegs took in the situation and accepted the terms, and have since been leaving in squads hourly, some going south, others north; some in debt to the coal companies and others with accounts unsettled.

“The trains being stopped on Tuesday night subjected them with all other classes, to much inconvenience. An incident of the excitement on Tuesday morning was in the fact that a wagon containing bread, meat, etc. for the blacklegs was stopped on Main Street by a woman while a number of men confiscated the contents and appropriated the provisions to their own use.”

Can you imagine the scene — hundreds of people fleeing, mostly on foot, out on the prairie, with just the clothes on their back, no money, and no shelter. The Negro strike breakers must have thought it was the Civil War, all over again.

Luckily, many found their way to Wilmington, a former stop on the Underground Railroad, and sympathetic to the black man’s plight. We read, “The population of our city was increased on yesterday by the arrival of the 368 colored miners from Braidwood. They were chartered on the island and visited by hundreds of our citizens last evening. They will leave as soon as transportation can be procured.”

After a night on the prairie, the group on the island was a pitiful site. The citizens of Wilmington rushed to their aid; the Mayor called for bread and cheese to be purchased at the city’s expense, and tents were provided for shelter. The coal companies quickly acted as well, taking over the feeding of the black families and providing them with transportation and shelter.

The white miners back in Braidwood were not doing too well either. Many of the merchants had been forced to close during the months of strikes, and besides, the striking miners had no money. Food was scarce and credit non-existent. If it were just the miners, the situation would have been tolerable, but because the women and children were also starving, an added pressure was put on the Miners Union to go back to work.

The situation was on the front page all over the country. The Governor of Illinois, Shelby Moore Cullom, decided to resolve the situation before more deaths occurred. The National Guard was called out. We read in the Chicago Times:

“The Illinois state troops, under command of Maj. Gen. A. Ducat, left the Chicago and Alton depot at a quarter to 1 o’clock this afternoon. Nine passenger coaches, an express car, two flats, and one freight car accommodated the troops as far as Joliet. Here accessions to the brigade called for three additional freight cars, making a total of 15 cars to this point. Men with loaded muskets were posted on all the platforms of the cars on the entire route. This was the first train over the Chicago and Alton road for some days, and a good many thought that some foolish mob might interfere with its passage.

“Capt. Maxwell, commanding the guard, asked for instructions in case of disturbance. Gen. Ducat replied, “Never mind jeers from non-combatants, but if any persons attempt to obstruct our progress shoot them down.

“Full ammunition and rations were distributed to the soldiers before starting, so that in case of a crisis there might be no confusion Gen. Ducat was kind enough to invite the Times reporter to accompany himself and staff, a privilege which he speedily availed himself of. A special telegraph operator was taken along to construct a field apparatus in case of serious resistance outside of the precincts of Braidwood. Gen. Ducat. and staff were also provided with correct maps of the town and vicinity, locating the shafts and other points of disturbance. Not more than half dozen citizens in all, including reporters, were allowed on board the train.

“Gen Ducat received telegrams at every halt, and the train passed nearly all the small stations, halting only at the Sag, Lemont, Lockport, Joliet, Elwood, Wilmington, and this place (Braidwood). The people turned out very strong at Joliet, and some of them cheered the troops very heartily. The chief demonstration, however, was at Wilmington, where the ladies waved their handkerchiefs with enthusiasm, and the colored people, who had been expelled from their Braidwood homes a few days before, came down to the Kankakee River and cheered themselves hoarse – men and women – at the sight of the formidable array of soldiers.

“At Joliet Sheriff Noble got on board, accompanied by Messrs. E. Ham, of the C. W. & V. Company; W. Maltby, of the Eureka; Alexander Crombie, of the Wilmington Star Company, and D. Mackie, of the W. C. M. Company.

“At Wilmington reports reached Gen. Ducat that miners were prepared for resistance and determined to fight. He accordingly took precautionary measures, ordering the train to be stopped at a road which crossed the railroad track about half a mile from Braidwood, so that skirmishers might be thrown out and everything made secure for a formal movement in force.”

The two sides were ready, the battle for Braidwood was imminent, and that is where we will pick up this story next time.