| Description |
1 online resource |
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text file |
| Summary |
"In the depths of a depression in 1894, a highly successful Gilded Age businessman named Jacob Coxey led a group of jobless men on a march from his hometown of Massillon, Ohio, to the steps of the nation's Capitol. Though a financial panic and the resulting widespread business failures caused millions of Americans to be without work at the time, the word unemployment was rarely used and generally misunderstood. In an era that worshipped the self-reliant individual who triumphed in a laissez-faire market, the out-of-work "tramp" was disparaged as weak or flawed, and undeserving of assistance. Private charities were unable to meet the needs of the jobless, and only a few communities experimented with public works programs. Despite these limitations, Coxey conceived a plan to put millions back to work building a nationwide system of roads and drew attention to his idea with the march to Washington. In Coxey's Crusade for Jobs, Jerry Prout recounts Coxey's story and adds depth and context by focusing on the reporters who were embedded in the march. Their fascinating depictions of life on the road occupied the headlines and front pages of America's newspapers for more than a month, turning the spectacle into a serialized drama. These accounts humanized the idea of unemployment and helped Americans realize that in a new industrial economy, unemployment was not going away and the unemployed deserved attention. This unique study will appeal to scholars and students interested in the Gilded Age and US and labor history"-- Provided by publisher. |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Contents |
Contents -- Introduction-The Cause of the Unemployed -- 1-They Sleep on Marble Floors -- 2-The Good Roads Plan -- 3-A Millenarian Spectacle -- 4-Through the Prism of the Argus-Eyed -- 5-â#x80;#x9C;Coxey Is Comingâ#x80;#x9D; -- Epilogue-The Crusade Continued -- Notes -- Bibliography |
| Local Note |
eBooks on EBSCOhost EBSCO eBook Subscription Academic Collection - North America |
| Subject |
Coxey, Jacob Sechler, 1854-1951.
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Coxey, Jacob Sechler, 1854-1951. |
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Coxey's Army.
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Coxey's Army. |
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Labor -- United States -- History -- 19th century.
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Labor. |
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United States. |
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History. |
| Chronological Term |
19th century |
| Subject |
Unemployment -- United States -- History -- 19th century.
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Unemployment. |
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Working class -- United States -- History -- 19th century.
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Working class. |
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Unemployed -- United States -- History -- 19th century.
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Unemployed. |
| Chronological Term |
1800-1899 |
| Genre/Form |
Electronic books.
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History.
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| Other Form: |
Print version: Prout, Jerry, author. Coxey's crusade for jobs Dekalb : Northern Illinois University Press, [2016] 9780875804989 (DLC) 2016005090 |
| ISBN |
9781609091972 (electronic book) |
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1609091973 (electronic book) |
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0875804985 (electronic book) |
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9780875804989 (electronic book) |
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9781501756900 (electronic book) |
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1501756907 (electronic book) |
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