During the late 19th century in the United States, industrial plants and outputs were expanding due to the increasing numbers of machines. The Industrial factories, which began to depend less on factory workers, created labor problems such as low wages, long work days, unsanitary working conditions, and child exploitation. These factories along with the laissez-faire capitalism widened the gap between the rich and poor in the country, with the rich easily abusing their concentration of power and wealth over the working class. Eventually, in hopes of improving their working conditions, the workers formed labor unions, collectively bargaining, which strengthened their position. As the capital continuously denied the unions' pleas of better pay, reduced hours, and improved working conditions, violent labor conflicts emerged in the latter half of the 19th century. .
In 1877, the Great Railroad Strike was the first rail strike (and general strike) that the nation had ever witnessed. Northern railroads, including the nation's largest railroad company, the Pennsylvania Railroad, were still distressed from the Financial Panic of 1873. Therefore, cutbacks in salaries and wages had to be made in able to stay afloat. In May, the Pennsylvania Railroad cut workers' wages by 10 percent with the other railroad lines following suit. The Baltimore & Ohio line cut the worksheet to only two or three days as well as cutting the wages by 10 percent of employees who made over a dollar a day. Soon, disgruntled workers would blockade all freight trains near Baltimore and in West Virginia not carrying passengers. Once the announcement that the Pennsylvania Railroad would double the length of eastbound trains from Pittsburg without increasing the crew members, employees seized control of the rail yard switches and impeded train movement. The strikers in Baltimore, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania would not relent until the 10 percent cuts were eliminated, causing state militias to be mobilized.