Desperate Railroad Riot: When the Irish Labor Wars Came to Surry

Start at the Historical Society of Cheshire County, 246 Main St, Keene before carpooling to the Westmoreland Summit Cut.

Learn the  unknown story of the largest labor riot in the history of Northern New England – hundreds of Irish railroad workers fought each other in 1848 as the Cheshire Railroad neared completion. Using newspaper articles and primary sources, including those at the Historical Society of Cheshire County, this story was extensively researched by author/historian Howard Mansfield.  The details of his work are presented in the chapter, “When the War Between the Corkonians and Far Downs Came to America” in Mansfield’s new book, Invisible Monuments.  Following the talk, the group will visit the site of the riot, the now peaceful Summit Cut.