New York city Draft riots - wikipedia New York city Draft riots New York City Draft Riots of 1863 Part of the American Civil War A drawing from a British newspaper showing armed rioters clashing with Union Army soldiers in New York City. Date July 13, 1863 ( 1863 - 07 - 13 ) -- July 16, 1863 ( 1863 - 07 - 16 ) Location Manhattan, New York, U.S. Resulted in Riots ultimately suppressed Casualties Death ( s ) 119 -- 120 Injuries 2,000 Recruiting poster for the Enrollment Act or Civil War Military Draft Act of the federal government for the conscription of troops for the Union Army in New York City on June 23, 1863 Northern Theater of the American Civil War Detroit Race Riot Battle of Portland Harbor New York City draft riots Philo Parsons Affair St. Albans Raid The New York City draft riots ( July 13 -- 16, 1863 ), known at the time as Draft Week, were violent disturbances in Lower Manhattan, widely regarded as the culmination of working - class discontent with new laws passed by Congress that year to draft men to fight in the ongoing American Civil War. The riots remain the largest civil and racially charged insurrection in American history, aside from the Civil War itself. U.S. President Abraham Lincoln diverted several regiments of militia and volunteer troops after the Battle of Gettysburg to control the city. The rioters were overwhelmingly working - class men, mostly Irish or of Irish descent, who feared free black people competing for work and resented that wealthier men, who could afford to pay a $300 ( equivalent to $9,157 in 2017 ) commutation fee to hire a substitute, were spared from the draft. Initially intended to express anger at the draft, the protests turned into a race riot, with white rioters, predominantly Irish immigrants, attacking black people throughout the city. The official death toll was listed at either 119 or 120 individuals. Conditions in the city were such that Major General John E. Wool, commander of the Department of the East, said on July 16 that `` Martial law ought to be proclaimed, but I have not a sufficient force to enforce it. '' The military did not reach the city until the second day of rioting, by which time the mobs had ransacked or destroyed numerous public buildings, two Protestant churches, the homes of various abolitionists or sympathizers, many black homes, and the Colored Orphan Asylum at 44th Street and Fifth Avenue, which was burned to the ground. The area 's demographics changed as a result of the riot. Many black residents left Manhattan permanently with many moving to Brooklyn. By 1865, the black population fell below 11,000 for the first time since 1820. Contents 1 Background 2 Riots 2.1 Monday 2.2 Tuesday 2.3 Wednesday and Thursday : order restored 3 Aftermath 4 Order of battle 4.1 New York Metropolitan Police Department 4.2 New York State Militia 4.3 Union Army 5 Fiction 6 See also 7 Notes 8 References 9 Further reading 10 External links Background New York 's economy was tied to the South ; by 1822 nearly half of its exports were cotton shipments. In addition, upstate textile mills processed cotton in manufacturing. New York had such strong business connections to the South that on January 7, 1861, Mayor Fernando Wood, a Democrat, called on the city 's Board of Aldermen to `` declare the city 's independence from Albany and from Washington '' ; he said it `` would have the whole and united support of the Southern States. '' When the Union entered the war, New York City had many sympathizers with the South. The city was also a continuing destination of immigrants. Since the 1840s, most were from Ireland and Germany. In 1860, nearly 25 percent of the New York City population was German - born, and many did not speak English. During the 1840s and 1850s, journalists had published sensational accounts, directed at the white working class, dramatizing the `` evils '' of interracial socializing, relationships, and marriages. Reformers joined the effort. Newspapers carried derogatory portrayals of black people and ridiculed `` black aspirations for equal rights in voting, education, and employment ''. Pseudo-scientific lectures on phrenology were popular, although countered by doctors. At the time, some areas of the city, such as Lower Manhattan, had mixed populations of residents. The Democratic Party Tammany Hall political machine had been working to enroll immigrants as U.S. citizens so they could vote in local elections and had strongly recruited Irish, most of whom already spoke English. In March 1863, with the war continuing, Congress passed the Enrollment Act to establish a draft for the first time, as more troops were needed. In New York City and other locations, new citizens learned they were expected to register for the draft to fight for their new country. Black men were excluded from the draft as they were largely not considered citizens, and wealthier white men could pay for substitutes. New York political offices, including the mayor, were historically held by Democrats before the war, but the election of Abraham Lincoln as president had demonstrated the rise in Republican political power nationally. Newly - elected New York City Republican Mayor George Opdyke was mired in profiteering scandals in the months leading up to the riots. The Emancipation Proclamation of January 1863 alarmed much of the white working class in New York, who feared that freed slaves would migrate to the city and add further competition to the labor market. There had already been tensions between black and white workers since the 1850s, particularly at the docks, with free blacks and immigrants competing for low - wage jobs in the city. In March 1863, white longshoremen refused to work with black laborers and rioted, attacking 200 black men. Riots Monday John Alexander Kennedy, NYC police superintendent ( 1803 -- 1873 ) There were reports of rioting in Buffalo, New York, and certain other cities, but the first drawing of draft numbers -- on July 11, 1863 -- occurred peaceably in Manhattan. The second drawing was held on Monday, July 13, 1863, ten days after the Union victory at Gettysburg. At 10 a.m., a furious crowd of around 500, led by the volunteer firemen of Engine Company 33 ( known as the `` Black Joke '' ), attacked the assistant Ninth District provost marshal 's office, at Third Avenue and 47th Street, where the draft was taking place. The crowd threw large paving stones through windows, burst through the doors, and set the building ablaze. When the fire department responded, rioters broke up their vehicles. Others killed horses that were pulling streetcars and smashed the cars. To prevent other parts of the city being notified of the riot, they cut telegraph lines. Since the New York State Militia had been sent to assist Union troops at Gettysburg, the local New York Metropolitan Police Department was the only force on hand to try to suppress the riots. Police Superintendent John Kennedy arrived at the site on Monday to check on the situation. Although not in uniform, people in the mob recognized him and attacked him. Kennedy was left nearly unconscious, his face bruised and cut, his eye injured, his lips swollen, and his hand cut with a knife. He had been beaten to a mass of bruises and blood all over his body. Police drew their clubs and revolvers and charged the crowd but were overpowered. The police were badly outnumbered and unable to quell the riots, but they kept the rioting out of Lower Manhattan below Union Square. Immigrants and others in the `` Bloody Sixth '' Ward, around the South Street Seaport and Five Points areas, refrained from involvement in the rioting. Rioters attacking a building on Lexington Avenue. The Bull 's Head hotel on 44th Street, which refused to provide alcohol to the mob, was burned. The mayor 's residence on Fifth Avenue, the Eighth and Fifth District police stations, and other buildings were attacked and set on fire. Other targets included the office of the New York Times. The mob was turned back at the Times office by staff manning Gatling guns, including Times founder Henry Jarvis Raymond. Fire engine companies responded, but some firefighters were sympathetic to the rioters because they had also been drafted on Saturday. Later in the afternoon, authorities shot and killed a man as a crowd attacked the armory at Second Avenue and 21st Street. The mob broke all the windows with paving stones ripped from the street. The mob beat, tortured and / or killed numerous black people, including one man who was attacked by a crowd of 400 with clubs and paving stones, then lynched, hanged from a tree and set alight. Attack on the Tribune building The Colored Orphan Asylum at 43rd Street and Fifth Avenue, a `` symbol of white charity to blacks and of black upward mobility '' that provided shelter for 233 children, was attacked by a mob at around 4 p.m. A mob of several thousand, including many women and children, looted the building of its food and supplies. However, the police were able to secure the orphanage for enough time to allow the orphans to escape before the building burned down. Throughout the areas of rioting, mobs attacked and killed at least 120 black people and destroyed their known homes and businesses, such as James McCune Smith 's pharmacy at 93 West Broadway, believed to be the first owned by a black man in the United States. Near the midtown docks, tensions brewing since the mid-1850s boiled over. As recently as March 1863, white employers had hired black longshoremen, with whom Irish men refused to work. Rioters went into the streets in search of `` all the negro porters, cartmen and laborers... '' to attempt to remove all evidence of a black and interracial social life from the area near the docks. White dockworkers attacked and destroyed brothels, dance halls, boarding houses, and tenements that catered to black people. Mobs stripped the clothing off the white owners of these businesses. Tuesday Heavy rain fell on Monday night, helping to abate the fires and sending rioters home, but the crowds returned the next day. Rioters burned down the home of Abby Gibbons, a prison reformer and the daughter of abolitionist Isaac Hopper. They also attacked white `` amalgamationists '', such as Ann Derrickson and Ann Martin, two white women who were married to black men, and Mary Burke, a white prostitute who catered to black men. Governor Horatio Seymour arrived on Tuesday and spoke at City Hall, where he attempted to assuage the crowd by proclaiming that the Conscription Act was unconstitutional. General John E. Wool, commander of the Eastern District, brought approximately 800 soldiers and Marines in from forts in New York Harbor, West Point, and the Brooklyn Navy Yard. He ordered the militias to return to New York. Wednesday and Thursday : Order restored The situation improved on Wednesday, when assistant provost - marshal - general Robert Nugent received word from his superior officer, Colonel James Barnet Fry, to postpone the draft. As this news appeared in newspapers, some rioters stayed home. But some of the militias began to return and used harsh measures against the remaining mobs. Order began to be restored on Thursday. The New York State Militia and some federal troops were returned to New York, including the 152nd New York Volunteers, the 26th Michigan Volunteers, the 27th Indiana Volunteers and the 7th Regiment New York State Militia from Frederick, Maryland, after a forced march. In addition, the governor sent in the 74th and 65th regiments of the New York State Militia, which had not been in federal service, and a section of the 20th Independent Battery, New York Volunteer Artillery from Fort Schuyler in Throggs Neck. The New York State Militia units were the first to arrive. By July 16, there were several thousand Federal troops in the city. A final confrontation occurred on Thursday evening near Gramercy Park. According to Adrian Cook, twelve people died on the last day of the riots in skirmishes between rioters, the police, and the Army, including one African American, two soldiers, a bystander, and two women. The New York Times reported on Thursday that Plug Uglies and Blood Tubs gang members from Baltimore, as well as `` Scuykill Rangers ( sic ) and other rowdies of Philadelphia '', had come to New York during the unrest to participate in the riots alongside the Dead Rabbits and `` Mackerelvillers ''. The Times editorialized that `` the scoundrels can not afford to miss this golden opportunity of indulging their brutal natures, and at the same time serving their colleagues the Copperhead s and secesh ( secessionist ) sympathizers. '' Aftermath Bull 's Head Hotel, depicted in 1830, was burned in the riot. The exact death toll during the New York Draft Riots is unknown, but according to historian James M. McPherson, 119 or 120 people were killed, most of them were black. In all, eleven black men were hanged over five days. The riots forced hundreds of black people to flee the city. Violence by longshoremen against black men was especially fierce in the docks area. Among the murdered blacks was the seven year old nephew of Bermudian First Sergeant Robert John Simmons of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, whose account of fighting in South Carolina, written on the approach to Fort Wagner 18 July, 1863, was to be published in the New York Tribune on the 23rd of December, 1863 ( Simmons having died in August of wounds received in the attack on Fort Wagner ). The most reliable estimates indicate at least 2,000 people were injured. Herbert Asbury, the author of the 1928 book Gangs of New York, upon which the 2002 film was based, puts the figure much higher, at 2,000 killed and 8,000 wounded, but it is not widely accepted. Total property damage was about $1 -- 5 million ( $19.9 million -- $99.4 million, adjusted for inflation ). The city treasury later indemnified one - quarter of the amount. Historian Samuel Eliot Morison wrote that the riots were `` equivalent to a Confederate victory ''. Fifty buildings, including two Protestant churches and the Colored Orphan Asylum, were burned to the ground. During the riots, landlords, fearing that the mob would destroy their buildings, drove black residents from their homes. As a result of the violence against them, hundreds of black people left New York, including physician James McCune Smith and his family, moving to Williamsburg, Brooklyn or New Jersey. The white elite in New York organized to provide relief to black riot victims, helping them find new work and homes. The Union League Club and the Committee of Merchants for the Relief of Colored People provided nearly $40,000 to 2,500 victims of the riots. By 1865 the black population in the city had dropped to under 10,000, the lowest since 1820. The white working - class riots had changed the demographics of the city, and white residents exerted their control in the workplace ; they became `` unequivocally divided '' from the black population. Colored Orphan Asylum was burned On August 19, the government resumed the draft in New York. It was completed within 10 days without further incident. Fewer men were drafted than had been feared by the working class : of the 750,000 selected nationwide for conscription, only about 45,000 were sent into active duty. While the rioting mainly involved the working class, middle and upper - class New Yorkers had split sentiments on the draft and use of federal power or martial law to enforce it. Many wealthy Democratic businessmen sought to have the draft declared unconstitutional. Tammany Democrats did not seek to have the draft declared unconstitutional, but they helped pay the commutation fees for those who were drafted. In December 1863, the Union League Club recruited more than 2,000 black soldiers, outfitted and trained them, honoring and sending men off with a parade through the city to the Hudson River docks in March 1864. A crowd of 100,000 watched the procession, which was led by police and members of the Union League Club. New York 's support for the Union cause continued, however grudgingly, and gradually Southern sympathies declined in the city. New York banks eventually financed the Civil War, and the state 's industries were more productive than those of the entire Confederacy. By the end of the war, more than 450,000 soldiers, sailors, and militia had enlisted from New York State, which was the most populous state at the time. A total of 46,000 military men from New York State died during the war, more from disease than wounds, as was typical of most combatants. Order of Battle New York Metropolitan Police Department See also : List of New York City Police Department officers : 1845 -- 1865 New York Metropolitan Police Department under the command of Superintendent John A. Kennedy. Commissioners Thomas Coxon Acton and John G. Bergen took command when Kennedy was seriously injured by a mob during the early stages of the riots. Of the NYPD Officers - there were four fatalities - 1 killed and 3 died of injuries Precinct Commander Location Strength Notes 1st Precinct Captain Jacob B. Warlow 29 Broad Street 4 Sergeants, 63 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 2nd Precinct Captain Nathaniel R. Mills 49 Beekman Street 4 Sergeants, 60 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 3rd Precinct Captain James Greer 160 Chambers Street 3 Sergeants, 64 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 4th Precinct Captain James Bryan 9 Oak Street 4 Sergeants, 70 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 5th Precinct Captain Jeremiah Petty 49 Leonard Street 4 Sergeants, 61 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 6th Precinct Captain John Jourdan 9 Franklin Street 4 Sergeants, 63 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 7th Precinct Captain William Jamieson 247 Madison Street 4 Sergeants, 52 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 8th Precinct Captain Morris DeCamp 126 Wooster Street 4 Sergeants, 52 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 9th Precinct Captain Jacob L. Sebring 94 Charles Street 4 Sergeants, 51 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 10th Precinct Captain Thaddeus C. Davis Essex Market 4 Sergeants, 62 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 11th Precinct Captain John I. Mount Union Market 4 Sergeants, 56 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 12th Precinct Captain Theron R. Bennett 126th Street ( near Third Avenue ) 5 Sergeants, 41 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 13th Precinct Captain Thomas Steers Attorney Street ( at corner of Delancey Street ) 4 Sergeants, 63 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 14th Precinct Captain John J. Williamson 53 Spring Street 4 Sergeants, 58 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 15th Precinct Captain Charles W. Caffery 220 Mercer Street 4 Sergeants, 69 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 16th Precinct Captain Henry Hedden 156 West 20th Street 4 Sergeants, 50 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 17th Precinct Captain Samuel Brower First Avenue ( at the corner of Fifth Street ) 4 Sergeants, 56 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 18th Precinct Captain John Cameron 22nd Street ( near Second Avenue ) 4 Sergeants, 74 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 19th Precinct Captain Galen T. Porter 59th Street ( near Third Avenue ) 4 Sergeants, 49 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 20th Precinct Captain George W. Walling 212 West 35th Street 4 Sergeants, 59 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 21st Precinct Sergeant Cornelius Burdick ( acting Captain ) 120 East 31st Street 4 Sergeants, 51 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 22nd Precinct Captain Johannes C. Slott 47th Street ( between Eighth and Ninth Avenues ) 4 Sergeants, 54 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 23rd Precinct Captain Henry Hutchings 86th Street ( near Fourth Avenue ) 4 Sergeants, 42 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 24th Precinct Captain James Todd New York waterfront 2 Sergeants and 20 Patrolmen Headquartered on Police Steamboat No. 1 25th Precinct Captain Theron Copeland 300 Mulberry Street 1 Sergeant, 38 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen Headquarters of the Broadway Squad. 26th Precinct Captain Thomas W. Thorne City Hall 1 Sergeant, 66 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 27th Precinct Captain John C. Helme 117 Cedar Street 4 Sergeants, 52 Patrolmen, and 3 Doormen 28th Precinct Captain John F. Dickson 550 Greenwich Street 4 Sergeants, 48 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 29th Precinct Captain Francis C. Speight 29th Street ( near Fourth Avenue ) 4 Sergeants, 82 Patrolmen, and 3 Doormen 30th Precinct Captain James Z. Bogart 86th Street and Bloomingdale Road 2 Sergeants, 19 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen 32nd Precinct Captain Alanson S. Wilson Tenth Avenue and 152nd Street 4 Sergeants, 35 Patrolmen, and 2 Doormen Mounted police New York State Militia 1st Division : Major General Charles W. Sandford Unit Commander Complement Officers Other Ranks 65th Regiment Colonel William F. Berens 401 74th Regiment Colonel Watson A. Fox 20th Independent Battery Captain B. Franklin Ryer Unorganized Militia : Unit Commander Complement Officers Remarks Veteran Corps of Artillery of the State of New York Guarded State Arsenal from rioters Union Army Department of the East : Major General John E. Wool headquartered in New York Defenses of New York City : Brevet Brigadier General Harvey Brown, Brig. General Edward R.S. Canby Artillery : Captain Henry F. Putnam, 12th United States Infantry Regiment. Provost marshals tasked with overseeing the initial enforcement of the draft : Provost Marshal General U.S.A. : Colonel James Fry Provost Marshal General New York City : Colonel Robert Nugent ( During the first day of rioting on July 13, 1863, in command of the Invalid Corps : 1st Battalion ) Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton authorized five regiments from Gettysburg, mostly federalized state militia and volunteer units from the Army of the Potomac, to reinforce the New York City Police Department. By the end of the riots, there were more than 4,000 soldiers garrisoned in the troubled area. Unit Commander Complement Officers Notes Invalid Corps 1st and 2nd Battalions ; just over 9 companies. Over 16 injured ; 1 killed 1 missing 26th Michigan Volunteer Infantry Regiment Colonel Judson S. Farrar 5th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment Colonel Cleveland Winslow 7th New York National Guard Regiment Colonel Marshall Lefferts 800 Recalled back to New York ; on the way, one Private drowned. On July 16, 1863 during a skirmish with rioters, the regimental casualties were one Private received a buckshot in the back of the hand and two Privates had their coats cut by bullets 8th New York National Guard Regiment Brigadier General Charles C. Dodge 150 9th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment Colonel Edward E. Jardine ( wounded ) Regiment had been mustered out in May 1863 but 200 volunteered to serve again during the draft riots 11th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment Colonel Henry O'Brien ( killed ) Original regiment mustered out on June 2, 1862. Colonel O'Brien was in the process of recruiting at the time of the draft riots. The regiment was never brought back to strength and enlisted members were transferred to 17th Veteran Infantry. 13th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment Colonel Charles E. Davies Regiment suffered 2 fatalities during the riots. 14th New York Volunteer Cavalry Regiment Colonel Thaddeus P. Mott All cavalry regiments in New York City were eventually put under the command of General Judson Kilpatrick who volunteered his services on July 17 17th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment Major T.W.C. Grower Regimental losses during the Draft Riots totaled 4 ; they were 1 enlisted man killed and 1 officer and 2 enlisted men wounded ( recovered ) 22nd New York National Guard Regiment Colonel Lloyd Aspinwall 47th New York State Militia / National Guard Regiment Colonel Jeremiah V. Messerole 152nd New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment Colonel Alonso Ferguson Fiction The Banished Children of Eve, A Novel of Civil War New York ( 1995 ) by Peter Quinn My Notorious Life : A Novel ( 2014 ) by Kate Manning On Secret Service ( 2000 ) by John Jakes Paradise Alley ( 2003 ) by Kevin Baker New York : the Novel ( 2009 ) by Edward Rutherfurd Newt Gingrich 's alternate history novel Grant Comes East ( 2004 ) An Assassins Creed Series : Last Descendants ( 2016 ) by Matthew J. Kirby Riot ( 2009 ) Walter Dean Myers Theatre and film : The short - lived 1968 Broadway musical Maggie Flynn was set in the Tobin Orphanage for black children ( modeled on the Colored Orphan Asylum ). Gangs of New York ( 2002 ), a film directed by Martin Scorsese, includes a fictionalized portrayal of the New York Draft Riots. See also American Civil War portal Fishing Creek Confederacy History of New York City ( 1855 -- 97 ) List of identities in The Gangs of New York § Draft Riots List of incidents of civil unrest in New York City List of incidents of civil unrest in the United States Opposition to the American Civil War Notes Jump up ^ McPherson, James M. ( 1982 ), Ordeal By Fire : The Civil War and Reconstruction, New York : Alfred A. Knopf, p. 360, ISBN 978 - 0 - 394 - 52469 - 6 Jump up ^ `` VNY : Draft Riots Aftermath ''. Vny.cuny.edu. Retrieved August 1, 2017. ^ Jump up to : Barnes, David M. ( 1863 ). The Draft Riots in New York, July 1863 : The Metropolitan Police, Their Services During Riot. Baker & Godwin. pp. 5 -- 6, 12. ^ Jump up to : Eric Foner ( 1988 ). Reconstruction : America 's Unfinished Revolution, 1863 -- 1877, The New American Nation series, pp. 32 -- 33, New York : Harper & Row ; ISBN 0 - 06 - 093716 - 5 ( updated ed. 2014, ISBN 978 - 0062354518 ). Jump up ^ `` Wolfram - Alpha : Computational Knowledge Engine ''. Wolframalpha.com. Retrieved August 1, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Prologue : Selected Articles ''. Archives.org. August 15, 1990. Retrieved August 1, 2017. Jump up ^ `` The Draft in the Civil War '', u-s-history.com ; accessed August 28, 2015. ^ Jump up to : `` Maj. Gen. John E. Wool Official Reports for the New York Draft Riots ''. Shotgun 's Home of the American Civil War blogsite. Retrieved August 16, 2007. ^ Jump up to : Harris, Leslie M. ( 2003 ). In the Shadow of Slavery : African Americans in New York City, 1626 -- 1863. University of Chicago Press. pp. 279 -- 88. ISBN 0226317757. Jump up ^ `` King Cotton Cotton Trade '', New York Divided : Slavery and the Civil War, New - York Historical Society ; accessed May 12, 2012. ^ Jump up to : Roberts, Sam ( December 26, 2010 ). `` New York Does n't Care to Remember the Civil War ''. The New York Times. Retrieved April 26, 2014. ^ Jump up to : New York Divided : Slavery and the Civil War Online Exhibit, New York Historical Society ( November 17, 2006 to September 3, 2007, physical exhibit ) ; accessed May 10, 2012. ^ Jump up to : `` The Mob in New York ''. The New York Times. July 14, 1863. ^ Jump up to : Schouler, James ( 1899 ). History of the United States of America, Under the Constitution. Dodd, Mead & Company. p. 418. ^ Jump up to : Rhodes, James Ford ( 1899 ). History of the United States from the Compromise of 1850. Macmillan. pp. 320 -- 23. Jump up ^ Bernstein, Iver ( 1990 ), pp. 24 -- 25. Jump up ^ `` On This Day '', New York Times ; accessed March 17, 2016. Jump up ^ History of the United States from the Compromise of 1850. Macmillan. pp. 320 -- 23. Jump up ^ Bernstein, Iver ( 1990 ), pp. 25 -- 26 Jump up ^ Cook, Adrian `` The Armies of the Streets : The New York City Draft Riots of 1863, '' 1974, The University Press of Kentucky. Jump up ^ `` FACTS AND INCIDENTS OF THE RIOT. : THE MURDER OF COLORED PEOPLE IN THOMPSON AND SULLIVAN STREETS ''. The New York Times. July 16, 1863. p. 1. access - date = requires url = ( help ) Jump up ^ McPherson, James M. ( 2001 ). Ordeal by Fire : The Civil War and Reconstruction. McGraw - Hill Education. p. 399. ISBN 0077430352. ^ Jump up to : Asbury, Herbert ( 1928 ). The Gangs of New York. Alfred A. Knopf. p. 169. Jump up ^ Pete Hamill ( December 15, 2002 ). `` TRAMPLING CITY 'S HISTORY ' Gangs ' misses point of Five Points ''. New York Daily News. ^ Jump up to : Morison, Samuel Eliot ( 1972 ). The Oxford History of the American People : Volume Two : 1789 Through Reconstruction. Signet. p. 451. ISBN 0 - 451 - 62254 - 5. Jump up ^ David Donald. Civil War and Reconstruction, Pickle Partners Publishing, 2002, pg. 229 ISBN 0393974278 Jump up ^ Bernstein, Iver ( 1990 ), pp. 43 -- 44 Jump up ^ Thomas L. Jones, `` The Union League Club and New York 's First Black Regiments in the Civil War '', New York History ( 2006 ) 87 # 3, pp. 313 -- 343. Jump up ^ For the context see William Seraile, New York 's Black Regiments During the Civil War ( 2001 ) Jump up ^ Costello, Augustine E. Our Police Protectors : History of the New York Police from the Earliest Period to the Present Time. New York : A.E. Costello, 1885, pp. 200 -- 01. Jump up ^ `` Patrolman Edward Dippel ''. Odmp.org. Retrieved August 1, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Maj. Gen. Charles W. Sandford Official Report ( OR ) For The New York Draft Riots ''. Civilwarhome.com. Retrieved August 1, 2017. ^ Jump up to : `` Maj. Gen. John Z. Wool Official Report ( OR ) For The New York Draft Riots ''. Civilwarhome.com. Retrieved August 1, 2017. Jump up ^ John Ellis Wool biography, bio19c.com ; accessed April 26, 2014. Jump up ^ Eicher, p. 146 Jump up ^ Brown was in overall command of the military fortresses in New York city at the time and volunteered his services to General Wool. Wool instructed Brown to serve under the command of militia General Sandford to which Brown initially refused but eventually offered to serve in whatever capacity needed. Jump up ^ Brown was relieved of duty on July 16 and Canby succeeded him in command of the military post of New York City on July 17 Jump up ^ `` US Military casualties in the 1863 Draft riots... '' Civilwartalk.com. Retrieved August 1, 2017. Jump up ^ Swinton, William ( August 1, 1870 ). `` History of the Seventh Regiment, National Guard, State of New York, During the War of the Rebellion : With a Preliminary Chapter on the Origin and Early History of the Regiment, a Summary of Its History Since the War, and a Roll of Honor, Comprising Brief Sketches of the Services Rendered by Members of the Regiment in the Army and Navy of the United States ''. Fields, Osgood & Company. Retrieved August 1, 2017 -- via Google Books. Jump up ^ `` Edward Jardine ''. localhistory.morrisville.edu. Retrieved August 1, 2017. Jump up ^ `` 13th New York Cavalry - Battles and Casualties during the Civil War - NY Military Museum and Veterans Research Center ''. dmna.ny.gov. Retrieved August 1, 2017. Jump up ^ `` 1863 New York City Draft Riots '', mrlincolnandnewyork.org ; accessed April 26, 2014. Jump up ^ `` 17th NY Veteran Regiment of Infantry - battles and casualties during the Civil War - NY Military Museum and Veterans Research Center ''. dmna.ny.gov. Retrieved August 1, 2017. References Bernstein, Iver ( 1990 ). The New York City Draft Riots : Their Significance for American Society and Politics in the Age of the Civil War. New York : Oxford University Press. ISBN 0198021712. Cook, Adrian ( 1974 ). The Armies of the Streets : The New York City Draft Riots of 1863. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 9780813112985. Fry, James Barnet ( 1885 ). New York and the Conscription of 1863. McCabe, James Dabney ( 1868 ). The Life and Public Services of Horatio Seymour. Oxford University Press. McPherson, James M. ( 1982 ), Ordeal By Fire : The Civil War and Reconstruction, New York : Alfred A. Knopf, ISBN 978 - 0 - 394 - 52469 - 6 Rumsey, David. `` Map Of New York and Vicinity ( 1863 ) '' ( 1863 ed. ). Matthew Dripps. Retrieved July 20, 2007. Schecter, Barnet ( 2005 ). The Devil 's Own Work : The Civil War Draft Riots and the Fight to Reconstruct America. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 080271837X. Schecter, Barnet ( 2007 ). `` The Civil War Draft Riots ''. North & South. Civil War Society ( Volume 10 No 1 ) : 72. Further reading Dupree, A. Hunter and Leslie H. Fishel, Jr. `` An Eyewitness Account of the New York Draft Riots, July, 1863 '', Mississippi Valley Historical Review vol. 47, no. 3 ( December 1960 ), pp. 472 -- 79. In JSTOR United States War and Navy Departments ( 1889 ). Official Records of the American Civil War, volume xxvii, part ii. Walling, George W. ( 1887 ). Recollections of a New York Chief of Police, Chapter 6. New York Evangelist ( 1830 -- 1902 ) ; July 23, 1863 ; pp. 30, 33 ; APS Online, pg. 4. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to Draft Riots. Report of the Committee of merchants for the relief of colored people, suffering from the late riots in the city of New York. New York : G.A. Whitehorne, 1863, African American Pamphlet Collection, Library of Congress. 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Question: what was the new york city draft riots
Answer: violent disturbances in Lower Manhattan, widely regarded as the culmination of working-class discontent with new laws passed by Congress that year to draft men to fight in the ongoing American Civil War