Three Days of May 1844, Columbia Mourns Her Citizens Slain

Credit: Library of Congress
Media type: engraving
Museum Number: LC-USZ62-46533
Annotation: On May 3, 1844, a collection of Nativist Party supporters set up a public speech denouncing the perceived threat posed by Irish-Catholic immigrants in the middle of the almost entirely Irish suburb of Philadelphia. After being driven away, the Nativists returned three days later with a throng of three thousand supporters, inciting three days of intense riots that saw much of Philadelphia burned as Nativist supporters torched Irish homes and Catholic churches. The mayor of Philadelphia was stoned as he attempted to calm mobs of Nativists, and martial law was imposed over Philadelphia for a week. This image was made to commemorate the deaths and injuries of Nativist “martyrs” during the Philadelphia riots.
Year: 1844