Introduction

On the morning of July 6, 1892, war broke out at Homestead, Pennsylvania. The showdown was precipitated by a labor dispute between the Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers and the manager of the Homestead plant, Henry Clay Frick. By the end of the day, dozens of workers and Pinkerton detectives had been injured or killed. Meanwhile, Andrew Carnegie, the principal owner of the Homestead plant, remained eerily distant, fly-fishing in Scotland.

Assignment

You are to evaluate the significance of the Battle at Homestead. Why did it begin? Who were the principal participants involved? How did the Battle develop? How did it end? Why is Homestead considered a landmark event in American labor history?

Primary Sources

- Joseph Frazier Wall, "Andrew Carnegie," American National Biography [ pdf ]
- Leon Wolff, "Battle at Homestead" [ link ]
- Joseph Frazier Wall, "The Rich Man's Burden and how Andrew Carnegie Unloaded It" [ link ]
- John Gordon, "The Passions of Henry Clay Frick" [ link ]
- Video: The Homestead Strike [ vid 1 ] [ vid 2 ] [ vid 3 ] [ full video ]

Primary Sources

- The Musical Saga of Homestead [ link ]
- A Show of Support: Farmers Feed Homestead Strikers [ link ]
- “An Awful Battle at Homestead, Pa.” [ link ]
- Looking a Gift Horse in the Mouth: Workers Protest Carnegie Library [ link ]
- “I Will Kill Frick”: Emma Goldman Recounts the Attempt to Assassinate Frick [ link ]
- Swinton’s Silver Lining: Taking Comfort in the 1892 Strikes [ link ]
- Frick’s Fracas: Henry Frick Makes His Case [ link ]
- A Workingman’s Prayer for the Masses [ link ]
- Telling Tales: Byington’s Study of Homestead [ link ]
- Outside Looking In: Byington on Homestead’s Women [ link ]