US History

Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877)

This collection uses primary sources to explore northern draft riots that occurred during the Civil War.

An illustration of the riot on Lexington Avenue in New York. 

An illustration of the riot on Second Avenue in New York. 

An illustration of the rioters attacking the *New York Tribune* building. 

An illustration of the burning of the Colored Orphan Asylum, which housed 233 children. 

An 1863 illustration of a conflict between the rioters and the military. 

An 1887 illustration, “Battle of the Barricades.” 

An 1887 illustration, “The Mob’s Destructive Work,” with brief text describing damages to some buildings. 

“Don’t Unchain the Tiger,” an 1863 broadside from a German-language newspaper after the riots, urging readers not to resort to violence.

Translation:

When the traitors of South Carolina met in convention in Charleston 
and passed their ordinance to abolish the American Union, and to crush 
out the democratic principles of free government in America, and when 
they afterwards fired upon Fort Sumter, and I knew that secession 
meant a terrible war, I said to myself and to them— Don't unchain the 
Tiger! 

But they did it— and for two years we have seen and suffered the con- 
sequences, written in tears, and blood, and ruin, in our once happy land ; 
and now, when the rebellion is being nearly crushed, and Jeff. Davis is 
finding his plans defeated, and Southern traitors in the loyal States are 
trying to help him by making civil war at home, I say to myself— Don’t
unchain the Tiger! 

When I hear Working-Men talk about resisting the law, burning 
houses, killing public officers, and bursting the doors wide open for every 
kind of crime and disorder, it seems to me they do not think of all the 
cost and of all the horrors, or of widows and orphans, and their scalding 
tears, and I say to them, " Brothers ! in the name of God— Don't unchain 
the Tiger!" 

When I see well-dressed demagogues filling the ears of the people with 
lies, just as the traitors of the South have done, only to get the Working- 
Men aroused to deeds of crime and violence, while they themselves take 
good care to keep out of the way, I wish I had the voice of a thunderer, 
that I might say to them—Don’t unchain the Tiger! 

Working-Men ! When any man asks you to break the law, and tries to 
etir up your passions, while he skulks out of sight, you may set him down 
as your worst enemy. Spurn him as you would a viper. The patriotic 
Working-Men of the North cannot afford to spend time in killing each 
other. Be wise, and above all things, 

DON'T UNCHAIN THE TIGER! 


A Democratic Workingman. 

New York, July 24, 1863. 

An 1863 letter from William Lloyd Garrison worrying that New York riots would prompt similar responses in the "volcanic" North.

Boston, July 14, 1863.

Dear Johnson:

Enclosed, you will find the notice for the 1st of August celebration at Abington. Also, the disclaimer of Conway's mischievous overture to Mason, by the Executive Committee of the American Anti-Slavery Society. Both for insertion in this week's Standard. You will see that we have tried to deal with poor Conway as tenderly as possible. The most astonishing thing of it all is, that, in the first sentence of his letter, he tells two falsehoods, in order to assume to be duly empowered to negotiate with Mason! He certainly meant well, but he acted upon the vicious maxim of the Jesuits, that "the end sanctifies the means"—the end being, in this case, to make Mason avow that, not even to ensure independence, will the Confederacy 

[page two]

consent to the abolition of slavery. Let us trust it may be all "overruled for Good."
Should you copy that portion of the proceedings of the Framingham celebration, July 4th, which relates to Mason and Conway, (and I think it would be well for you to do so,) please alter where I say of Conway, "he has put himself on his back," by substituting, "he has put himself in a tight place."
We are slowly getting the particulars of the horrible excesses of the mob in your city, whose example is very likely to be imitated in degree at least, in all our great cities. I shall not be surprised to hear that both the Standard and Independent offices have been sacked. To-day, there are symptoms that a riot is brewing in this city; and, should it break out with violence, it would naturally seek to vent its fury upon such as Phillips and myself, and upon our dwellings. The whole North is volcanic.

[page three]

I have no doubt that all this is understood and provided for at Richmond—that there is a perfect understanding between the leading rebels and the leading copperheads—and that they both mean to conflagrate and shed blood to any extent at the North, rather than to have President Lincoln succeed in putting down the rebellion at the cost of slavery.
My heart bleeds to think of the poor, unoffending colored people of New York, outraged, plundered, murdered by the demons in human shape who now hold mastery over New York. "How long, O Lord, how long?"

How sad the fate of Superintendent Kennedy! How honorably he deserves to be remembered for the manner in which he aimed to discharge the responsible duties of his position!

Yous, without wavering,

Wm. Lloyd Garrison.

Oliver Johnson

An excerpt from *The Volcano Under the City* (1886), an account of the draft riot of 1863.

An excerpt from “Report of the Committee of Merchants for the Relief of Colored People, Suffering from the Late Riots in the City of New York,” 1863. 

An excerpt from *The Battle of New York; A Story for all Young People*.

Questions

1. In the excerpts from [*The Volcano Under the City*](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/northern-draft-riots-during-the-civil-war/sources/729) and [*The Battle of New York*](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/northern-draft-riots-during-the-civil-war/sources/731), how are the rioters described? In particular, how do these texts address the rioters’ nationalities or relationship to America?
2. Compare the [1863 illustration](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/northern-draft-riots-during-the-civil-war/sources/724) and the [1887 illustration](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/northern-draft-riots-during-the-civil-war/sources/725). How are the riots depicted? How is the militia depicted? What inferences can you make about the illustrators’ perspectives on the draft riot? 
3. Using the excerpt from the “[Report of the Committee of Merchants](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/northern-draft-riots-during-the-civil-war/sources/730)” and the [illustration of the burning of the Colored Orphan Asylum](http://dp.la/primary-source-sets/northern-draft-riots-during-the-civil-war/sources/723), describe how the riots impacted the African American community in New York City.
4. The Civil War has been described as a “rich man’s war and a poor man’s fight.” How does this connect to the tensions in the North over newly arrived immigrants?
5. Using the items in this set as evidence, describe how Northern racism was a factor in the riots.

Activity

1. Split students into groups either supporting or opposing the draft and have them craft arguments for their position. What might their argument be for or against the bill? For or against the riot? In what ways might their description of the riot differ, depending on their perspectives on the draft? 
2. Ask students to discuss in what ways the draft riots mirror more modern day political protests (for example, protests against the Vietnam draft). What are some of the differences? Some of the similarities?


Teaching Guide: Exploring the Northern Draft Riots 

Resources

1. [150 years ago today, Civil War draft riots grip New York](http://americanhistory.si.edu/blog/2013/07/150-years-ago-today-civil-war-draft-riots-threaten-a-new-york-piano-factory.html), National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution. 
2. [New York City Draft Riots 1863](http://maap.columbia.edu/place/52.html), Mapping the African American Past, Columbia University. 
3. [The Boston Draft Riot](http://www.ma150.org/day-by-day/1863-07-14/boston-draft-riot), Massachusetts Sesquicentennial Commission of the American Civil War. 
4. [On this day: 1863, The New York City Draft Riots](https://www.tenement.org/blog/on-this-day-1863-the-new-york-city-draft-riots/), Tenement Museum. 

Overview

In July of 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, Americans were fighting on battlefields across the country—Vicksburg, Gettysburg, and New York City. The latter battle, which became known as the New York Draft Riots, was not a fight between Union and Confederate troops, however. The three-day riot was the destructive resistance of the city’s immigrant poor against a Congressional mandate that made all men aged twenty to forty-five eligible for the draft—and had a provision that let the rich buy their way out. The fighting left over one hundred people dead and buildings, homes, and orphanages destroyed. In particular, the mob of lower-class workers and immigrant gangs attacked African Americans and the city’s rich before the draft was postponed and militias quelled the violence. This source set brings together illustrations and texts showing the riots and their aftermath. 

English

Northern Draft Riots During the Civil War

northern-draft-riots-civil-war_01_649f367dc5b658216d83844037d7b4f3.jpg

“New York—The Riot In Lexington Avenue,” Digital Public Library of America, https://dp.la/item/649f367dc5b658216d83844037d7b4f3.

An illustration of the riot on Lexington Avenue in New York.

Cite this item

Tips for Students

Item 1 of 12 in the Primary Source Set Northern Draft Riots During the Civil War