The Molly Maguires

       Towards the end of the 19th century, Schuykill County, Pennsylvania paid witness to a series of murders, assaults, and arsons blamed on the Molly Maguires. This secret society of Irish immigrants found its roots in Northern Ireland during the 1840s, inspired by the actions of other Irish secret societies such as the Whiteboys and Ribbonmen. In order to keep their existence nearly a complete mystery, they secretly functioned under the cover name Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH), which was a legitimate group recognized by the state. These groups sought to violently counteract the injustices and abysmal working conditions experienced among workers in the coal industry. In addition, they felt threatened as a result of their ostracization as Catholics and ethnic rivalries upon settlement in Pennsylvania during a large rise in Irish immigration in America.
        Following the Panic of 1873, mine bosses began to increasingly manipulate the wages and conditions of their workers, which led the Long Strike of 1875 as a result of pay rates decreasing by between 10 and 20 percent. This strike proved to be unsuccessful, which led to frustration among many Irish laborers who were unable to effectively address their grievances. From this, the Molly Maguires emerged as they began to target mine owners, company authorities, and anybody who broke up strikes. Nonetheless, this strike was the scene for extreme violence and the Molly Maguires' actions were even compared to the Ku Klux Klan, as floggings, lynchings, and ruthless murders were common practice for both of these groups.
       It was not until the involvement of James McParlan, an Irishman who worked for the Pinkerton Detective Agency which sought to intervene in times of crisis, that crimes and strikes involving the Molly Maguires began to be defeated. McParlan adopted the alias of James McKenna and was hired by coal companies to become involved in the AOH in order to acquire incriminating evidence that would bring suspected members of the secret society to court. McParlan worked his way through the AOH and eventually gained a place in the Molly Maguires, which allowed him to assist the arrest of 60 men in 1875. However, at the time these many of these men were tried as individuals because there was only circumstantial evidence supporting the existence of this secret society. Despite this, 20 men were still sentenced to hanging and surviving members during the 19th century were demonized by religious opposition and especially through yellow journalism.
       To this day, however, there remains little concrete evidence that the Molly Maguires existed. During their trials, the state of Pennsylvania recognized much of the proposed evidence and testimonials as inconclusive and refutable. As a result of this, even McParlan, although never convicted, was accused of perjury. Regardless, the Molly Maguires are still remembered, especially in the 1970 film The Molly Maguires, a historic meeting place of the group called The Wooden Keg Tavern, and are recognized as the first labor movement consisting entirely of workers in American history.





Sources
https://www.pabook.libraries.psu.edu/literary-cultural-heritage-map-pa/feature-articles/legend-molly-maguires
http://www.theirishstory.com/2013/07/09/the-molly-maguires/#.Xb88HOdKh0s
https://www.history.com/news/who-were-the-molly-maguires