Draft Riots, Civil War

Draft Riots, Civil War. By late 1862, as Civil War casualties mounted in costly military campaigns, the patriotic fervor that had inspired many northern men to enlist was waning. The Emancipation Proclamation further eroded support for the war in some quarters. Accordingly, in March 1863, Congress passed the Conscription Act to draft men into military service. Racial animosity, dissatisfaction with the Abraham Lincoln administration, and labor unrest all helped fuel draft opposition. Most odious to many was the commutation clause, which enabled a draftee to avoid service by hiring a substitute or paying a $300 fee. Draft resistance erupted across the Middle West, but was concentrated in Ohio, Indiana, and Iowa. New England resistance was centered mainly in Boston, Vermont, New Hampshire. Violent opposition also broke out in the Pennsylvania coal regions.

The most serious outburst arose in July 1863 in New York City, where Irish American immigrants bitterly resented the draft and feared job competition from free blacks. Violence erupted on 13 July and continued for four days, as mobs attacked draft offices, public buildings, the homes of city officials and Republican party leaders, and African Americans. Many blacks were lynched and an African American orphanage was destroyed. The rioting ended only after Lincoln dispatched to New York City Union troops from General George Meade's army, which was pursuing the Confederates after the Battle of Gettysburg. Overall, the violence claimed at least 105 lives.

The draft riots had several aftereffects. Draft resistance continued, but on a lesser scale after the New York City riot. In 1864, Congress repealed the commutation clause. Federal authorities vigorously enforced later drafts, employing sufficient military force to quell any resistance. In politics, Tammany Hall, the Democratic party's New York City machine, arose from the ashes of the riots by balancing the interests of immigrants and workers with those of the conservative elite.
See also Civil War: Domestic Effects; Conscription; Lynching; Riots, Urban.

Bibliography

Adrian Cook , The Armies of the Streets: The New York City Draft Riots of 1863, 1974.
Iver Bernstein , The New York City Draft Riots: Their Significance for American Society and Politics in the Age of the Civil War, 1990.

Jonathan M. Berkey