The 1863 New York City Draft Riots: Race and Rage

In July 1863, the largest civil insurrection in American history erupted not in the South but in New York City. The Enrollment Act of 1863, which allowed wealthy men to buy their way out of Civil War conscription for $300, ignited a firestorm of working-class fury. For four days, white mobs — many Irish immigrants — rampaged against the draft, but their rage quickly turned into a murderous pogrom against Black New Yorkers. They lynched Black men from lampposts, burned the Colored Orphan Asylum to the ground, and killed over 100 people. The arrival of Union troops fresh from Gettysburg finally crushed the rebellion. This episode digs into the class and racial dynamics of the riots, the role of the Tammany Hall political machine, the disproportionate casualties among Black New Yorkers, and the lasting legacy of a rebellion that tried to stop a war for emancipation. #NewYorkCityDraftRiots #CivilWar #EnrollmentActOf1863 #EmancipationProclamation #IrishImmigrants #ColoredOrphanAsylum #TammanyHall #Gettysburg #AbrahamLincoln #WorkingClassHistory #RaceRiots #FourteenthAmendment #NewYorkHistory #Conscription #ClassWarfare #AfricanAmericanHistory #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo