New York Draft Riot of 1863 – Day 1

420 PM  New York City July 13, 1863.
New York July thirteenth 3 PM for Col
Jas B. Fry Pro. Marshal Genl
A mob estimated at from ten
to thirty thousand men has assailed
& destroyed the office of the
provost marshal for the ninth district
the guard was completely routed &
many injured Gen. Wool has ordered
into the City all available forces
but they will not exceed five
hundred men of all Kinds not
more than two hundred Regulars the
mob threaten destruction of all Govt.
offices I have sent all the
Enrollment papers to Governors Island the
demonstration is extrmely dangerous I Respectfully
suggest that a force sufficient to
quell the mob be immedy. sent
to me as nearly all the
effective militia Regt. are absent &
those remainding here can not be
relied upon Col. Nugent is now
at the scene of the disturbance
Signed Samuel J Glassey Depy

On this day in 1863, the New York Draft Riot began.What started as a protest of the recently revealed draft concriptions quickly devolved into chaos, with African Americans becoming the targets of Irish and German immigrants. This telegram is an early report on the events, one of several that is preserved in the Thomas T. Eckert papers.

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