Molly Maguire Executions
Jim Thorpe, Carbon County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
On June 21, 1877, four "Molly Maguires," an alleged secret society of Irish mine- workers, were hanged here. Pinkerton detective James McParlan's testimony led to convictions for violent crimes against the coal industry, yet the facts of the labor, class, and ethnic conflicts, even the existence of the organization, remain contested. Six others were hanged on this day at the county jail in Pottsville; ten more were executed in Pa. through 1879.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
On June 21, 1877, four men accused of belonging to the "Molly Maguires," an alleged secret society of Irish miners, were hanged here in what came to be called the Day of the Rope. Their convictions rested largely on the undercover testimony of Pinkerton detective James McParlan, hired by coal interests. More than a century later, historians still debate the truth of the labor, class, and ethnic conflicts that drove the case, and even whether the organization truly existed.
Why it matters
The executions are a stark chapter in America's industrial history, exposing how coal capital, immigrant labor, and private detectives collided in the violent struggle over power in the anthracite region.
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Related people
- · James McParlan
Related events
- · Molly Maguire executions, June 21, 1877
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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Founded in 1854 as Fillmore and soon renamed for mining engineer Eckley Coxe, this village was built to house the workers who dug anthracite coal from the hills of northeastern Pennsylvania. Many were European immigrants, and their tight rows of company houses made Eckley a classic 'coal patch' town of the late 1800s. When the collieries faded by the 1950s the community nearly vanished, only to be preserved after it served as a filming location for the 1970 movie 'The Molly Maguires' and became a state historic site.
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