Civil War Draft Riots - Prof. Shenton

Professor James Shenton’s lecture on the Civil War draft riots that took place in New York City in 1863 was an exceptional experience for the several generations of Columbia students who heard it in his lecture on United States history in the second half of the 19th century, his seminar on the Civil War and reconstruction, or other venues. Apart from the pure horror of the racist violence that engulfed the city when President Lincoln called for a draft of males in the north of age for military service (including the burning of a “colored orphanage”), it taught all of us who listened of the callous violence of one earlier immigrant group (the Irish) toward African-Americans and, as well, the viciousness with which the riot was put down by Native American Union soldiers, one of whom commented to New York City Civil War diarist George Templeton Strong on his shooting of Irish Immigrants: “First, I shot the nit (baby), then I shot the bitch (wife), then I shot the man (husband.)” This lecture regularly attracted a standing room only crowd to the auditorium in Fayerweather Hall. Professsor Shenton ended it with a note of levity: Irish looters had looted all the hats and coats from Brooks Brothers. And so the order went out: “Anyone wearing Brooks Brothers should be shot.” This lecture lives forever in my memory.