Coxey's Army at the U.S. Capitol

Coxey’s objective in organizing his march on Washington was to convince Congress to adopt his economic proposal intended to relieve the suffering of the unemployed struggling during the Panic of 1893. The country at the time lacked comprehensive social safety programs, such as unemployment assistance or welfare relief, leaving the unemployed and the poor at the mercy of sporadic, temporary local relief efforts or the assistance of family, friends, and charity. Given the severity of the economic depression hitting the country, existing relief programs failed to meet the country’s needs. Under his “Good Roads Plan,” Coxey proposed that the U.S. government hire the unemployed to build infrastructure projects across the country. Through the issuance of $500 million in legal tender notes, Coxey argued, the government could afford to employ four million workers. Coxey also proposed a bond bill that would authorize state and local authorities needing public improvements to issue no-interest bearing bonds equal to half the assessed value of property within their jurisdiction. The bonds could be exchanged for legal tender notes from the U.S. Treasury, thereby giving control for infrastructure improvements to local officials at no cost. Both proposals would increase inflation and currency in circulation, an outcome Coxey and other reformers believed would restore economic vibrancy to the country. Although modest public works projects had been tried in the past, nothing on such a large scale as what Coxey envisioned had ever been attempted.

Coxey’s road building plan had received some interest even before he launched his protest march but seemed to be lacking traction. He hoped his march on Washington would energize Congress to incorporate his ideas into legislation. The 53rd U.S. Congress included 13 Populist members who sought to advance bold social and economic reform initiatives like Coxey’s proposal. The Populist movement emerged in the late-19th century as a grassroots effort to advance the interests of American farmers and laborers. A third-party, the People’s Party, emerged out of this movement. Because Populist members of Congress lacked the votes to advance bold initiatives on their own, they needed the support of other political parties to back reform bills. As a result, Populist congressmen differed as to whether Coxey’s march on Washington would help or hurt Populist tactics in Congress. Senator William Stewart of Nevada, for example, wrote to Coxey before he departed Massillon, Ohio to dissuade him from marching, fearing that a mass movement might turn off support for Populists. Change should come from the ballot box and not from mass protests, he argued. Once Coxey’s march was underway, Populist senators did put forward a resolution to welcome him, but it failed in Congress, which left the Populists alone to decide whether they should at least endorse his march. The Populists were divided on this issue, with some believing an endorsement might thwart violence, while others thought it could diminish Populist electoral prospects.

The police, on the other hand, were clear minded about how they intended to receive Coxey in Washington. The 1882 Act to Regulate the Capitol Grounds made it illegal to block roads or sidewalks, to parade or display banners, or walk on the grass on the Capitol grounds. After he arrived at the Brightwood Riding Camp, Coxey met with local officials to review the parade route and seek a permit for his march, which District of Columbia authorities issued to Coxey on April 30. However, to enter the Capitol Grounds to speak, he needed the approval of Congress. After meeting with the Senate Sergeant at Arms, who was responsible for security matters, Coxey heard that permission would not be granted. He appealed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and to the Vice President, but to no avail. Undeterred, Coxey believed the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution gave him the approval he needed to petition the government and to speak on the Capitol steps.

1.     “Climax of Folly.” The Washington Post, May 2, 1894, 1.

2.     Prout, Jerry. “Hope, Fear, and Confusion: Coxey’s Arrival in Washington.” Washington History Vol 25 (2013): 1-19.

3.     “Carl Browne to His Men, To-day’s March in Detail.” The Washington Times, May 1, 1894.

4.     Commager, Henry Steele. Documents of American History. New York: Meredith Publishing, 1963, 605 (Coxey’s No-Interest Bearing Bond and Good Roads proposals in draft bill form).

5.     Postel, Charles. The Populist Vision. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.

6.     McMath, Robert. American Populism: A Social History 1877-1898. New York: Hill and Wang, 1993.

7.     Prout, Jerry. “Populism and the Populists: The Incoherent Coherence of Coxey’s March.” The American Journal of Economics and Sociology, 78 (May 2019).

Images:

1.     https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2017647110/

2.     http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3a52255