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Why did the Thibodaux workers go on strike? The Thibodaux Massacre took place in Thibodaux, Louisiana on November 23, 1887. Black sugar cane workers, determined to unionize for a living wage, chose to combine their minimal power during the crucial harvest season.
What was the cause of the Thibodaux massacre?
The Thibodaux Massacre took place in Thibodaux, Louisiana on November 23, 1887. Black sugar cane workers, determined to unionize for a living wage, chose to combine their minimal power during the crucial harvest season. Instead, their actions sparked a massacre.
How many people were involved in the Lafourche strike?
It followed a three-week strike during the critical harvest season in which an estimated 10,000 workers protested against the living and working conditions which existed on sugar cane plantations in four parishes: Lafourche, Terrebonne, St. Mary, and Assumption .
Why were black workers evicted from Lafourche and Terrebonne?
Black workers and their families were evicted from plantations in Lafourche and Terrebonne parishes and retreated to Thibodaux . Tensions erupted into violence on November 23, 1887, and local white paramilitary forces responded to an ambush of town guards by attacking black workers and their families.
What happened to the Knights of labor in 1887?
The Knights had tried unsuccessfully to organize the workers in 1874, 1880, and again in 1883 but had been blocked all three times. But the cutters thought the results might be different in 1887, when the Knights urged them to wait until the rolling season was almost underway to propose making a stand.
When did the labor strike that led to the Thibodaux Massacre begin?
November 1, 1887When their demands were ignored, the Knights of Labor called for a strike to begin on November 1, 1887. On that day, an estimated ten thousand sugar plantation workers united in a work stoppage that affected the entire region.
What happened during the Thibodaux Massacre?
On November 23, 1887, a mass shooting of African-American farm workers in Louisiana left some 60 dead. Bodies were dumped in unmarked graves while the white press cheered a victory against a fledgling black union.
Who was responsible for the Thibodaux Massacre?
White paramilitariesThibodaux massacreTargetBlack peopleDeaths35–50Injuredunknown (possibly hundreds)PerpetratorsWhite paramilitaries4 more rows
How many slaves did Laurel Valley Plantation have?
135 slavesThe oldest cabins were built in the 1830s to house the slaves of the Laurel Valley Plantation near Thibodaux. As many as 135 slaves toiled in the sugarcane fields and lived here, touching these same bare cypress walls. Time has not erased those memories.
Where did the Thibodaux Massacre occur?
The Thibodaux Massacre took place in Thibodaux, Louisiana on November 23, 1887. Black sugar cane workers, determined to unionize for a living wage, chose to combine their minimal power during the crucial harvest season. Instead, their actions sparked a massacre.
What happened at Laurel Valley Plantation?
Tucker's death, Laurel Valley produced 685 hogsheads of sugar (1,100 lbs each), and 1,458 barrels of molasses. After his death the operation of the plantation was taken over by his cousin and business partner, Caleb Tucker, who even married his cousin's widow, Marcelline Emma Gaude, in 1855.
What does Fontaineaux mean?
I guess that Thibodaux and Fontaineaux (or something alike) are, perhaps, very common family names in the Bayou, so the meaning of the song is that all the people is in the place that is buzzing.
When did sugarcane come to Louisiana?
Between 1812 and 1850 they entered southern Louisiana by water, traveling on the Mississippi and on the western bayous.
Who founded Thibodaux LA?
Henry S. ThibodauxBornSeptember 24, 1769 Albany, New YorkDiedOctober 24, 1827 (aged 58) Thibodaux, LouisianaPolitical partyNational RepublicanSpouse(s)Felicité Bonvillain Bridgette Marie Bélanger10 more rows
What year did slavery end?
1865The House Joint Resolution proposing the 13th amendment to the Constitution, January 31, 1865; Enrolled Acts and Resolutions of Congress, 1789-1999; General Records of the United States Government; Record Group 11; National Archives.
Can you visit Laurel Valley Plantation?
Laurel Valley is the largest surviving 19th and 20th century sugar plantation and features miles of sugarcane fields, the original slave cabins, schoolhouse and church. Visit the general store and view antique tools used for harvesting sugar cane.
What is the best plantation to visit in Louisiana?
Oak Alley Plantation One of the most iconic of the historic mansions along the River Road, Oak Alley continually tops lists of the best plantations in Louisiana--and for good reason. The line of oak trees that lead visitors to the main house are more than 300 years old and are beautiful.
When did sugarcane come to Louisiana?
Between 1812 and 1850 they entered southern Louisiana by water, traveling on the Mississippi and on the western bayous.
What does Fontaineaux mean?
I guess that Thibodaux and Fontaineaux (or something alike) are, perhaps, very common family names in the Bayou, so the meaning of the song is that all the people is in the place that is buzzing.
Who founded Thibodaux LA?
Henry S. ThibodauxBornSeptember 24, 1769 Albany, New YorkDiedOctober 24, 1827 (aged 58) Thibodaux, LouisianaPolitical partyNational RepublicanSpouse(s)Felicité Bonvillain Bridgette Marie Bélanger10 more rows
When was the Thibodaux massacre?
The Thibodaux Massacre (November 23, 1887) The Thibodaux Massacre took place in Thibodaux, Louisiana on November 23, 1887. Black sugar cane workers, determined to unionize for a living wage, chose to combine their minimal power during the crucial harvest season. Instead, their actions sparked a massacre.
Who was the leader of the militia in the Thibodaux massacre?
Commanded by ex-Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard, the militia brought a .45 caliber Gatling gun while the paramilitary groups set up outside of the Thibodaux courthouse. Both the militia and white vigilantes went door to door shooting suspected strikers and those unlucky enough to cross their path.
What did the Black Sugar Cane workers do?
Black sugar cane workers, determined to unionize for a living wage, chose to combine their minimal power during the crucial harvest season. Instead, their actions sparked a massacre. With echoes of the bondage their ancestors had experienced during slavery, the cane workers protested the harsh working conditions, long hours, and starvation wages.
What did the Knights of Labor do?
The Knights of Labor, one of the few labor unions to organize blacks, encouraged the sugar cutters to demand better treatment and $1.25 a day in cash. The Knights had tried unsuccessfully to organize the workers in 1874, 1880, and again in 1883 but had been blocked all three times.
Who was the sugar planter who was involved in the attacks?
Sugar planter Andrew Price, who participated in the attacks, won a seat in Congress in 1888. Statues were erected and public areas named after many involved in the unlawful killings while the workers, including women and children, went anonymous, their murders marked only by their loved ones.
How many people died in the indiscriminate killing of the savages?
The indiscriminate killing left approximately 60 people dead. The bodies of many of the strikers were dumped in unmarked graves. Those who survived hid in the woods and swamps as the killings spread to other plantations.
Overview
The Thibodaux massacre was an episode of racial violence that occurred in Thibodaux, Louisiana on November 23, 1887. It followed a three-week strike during the critical harvest season in which an estimated 10,000 workers protested against the living and working conditions which existed on sugar cane plantations in four parishes: Lafourche, Terrebonne, St. Mary, and Assumption.
Background
The harvesting and processing of sugar cane comprised a complex series of steps which needed to be closely coordinated by a large labor force which was pushed to work to the point of physical exhaustion. Sugar plantations were called "factories in the field" and their workers died at a high rate during the era of slavery. Conditions were little improved after Reconstruction.
A major issue arose in the early 1880s when plantation owners began cutting wages and forcin…
Prelude
Newspapers reported that on November 1, the same day the Knights of Labor called the strike, strikers concealed in a cane field fired upon white replacement workers at the Lacassagne plantation in Tigerville (present-day Gibson) in Terrebonne Parish, wounding four workers. Over the next three weeks leading up to the massacre, strikers allegedly used threats and gunshots to intimidate replacement workers. A number were wounded, one losing an eye, and one man repor…
Attacks
Parish District Judge Taylor Beattie, who owned Orange Grove Plantation and was a member of the LPSA, announced formation of a "Peace and Order Committee" in Thibodaux. He declared martial law, and recruited 300 white men for his committee to serve as a paramilitary group. He ordered blacks within the city limits to show passes to enter or leave. Like many top-ranking white state officials, Beattie was an ex-Confederate and former slaveholder. He was a former member …
Aftermath
The known victims of the fatal violence of November 23, 1887 were Willis Wilson, Felix Pierre, Andy Jones, Frank Patterson, Grant Conrad, Marcellin Walton, Riley Anderson, and Mahala Washington. John G. Gorman, the first picket shot by the strikers, lost an eye from the lead slug that struck him on the side of the head and exited his mouth, shattering the bones along its path. The other picket, Henry Molaison, was unable to walk without assistance a month after his woun…
Representation in media
• The Thibodaux Massacre: Racial Violence and the 1887 Sugar Cane Labor Strike, a book released in 2016 by The History Press written by John DeSantis, details the events. It provides eyewitness accounts obtained from documents in the U.S. National Archives and names eight of the victims. It also provides a detailed history of a U.S. Civil War veteran who was wounded during the incident and whose records provide new information and insight. (It did not include the details relating t…
See also
• List of events named massacres
• List of massacres in the United States
• List of worker deaths in United States labor disputes
Further reading
• Rodrigue, John. Reconstruction in the Cane Fields: From Slavery to Free Labor in Louisiana’s Sugar Parishes, 1862–1880. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2001.
• DeSantis, John. "Tracing an Atrocity: How an Obscure Affidavit in the National Archives Unraveled a Historical Mystery". Prologue Magazine, summer 2017, volume 49, number 2.